The Man Nationality

The total population of Manzu Nationality is now 9,821,900 ,of which, more than 7,000 live in Yunnan who live mainly in Kunming city and other place. Most of them are immigrant from north China in Qing Dynasty.

They have not formed compact community yet due to the population is small and live dispersedly ,and their language and custom keep conformable with local Han Nationality.

Qipao, or Cheongsam, is a typical piece of clothing of the Manchus worn by both men and women, old and young in all seasons. Simply tailored, a qipao has a round collar, a loose-fit- ting front and back and narrow sleeves, There are four slits on the four seasons to facilitate the mounting of and dismounting from a horse.

Semicircle cuffs are attached to the eds of the narrow sleeves to facilitate the shooting of arrows since the cuffs are shaped like horse hooves , they are called horse-hoof sleeves or arrow sleeves. Later, when the Man-chus gradually abandoned horse-riding and arrow-shooting, the arrow sleeves became mere ornaments.

It was a custom of the Manchus of the upper classes to flap down the arrow cuffs when they meet and salute to each other. The qipao worn by Manchu women is more ornamental than the one worn by men. The collar, the front and the sleeve ends are decorated with colorful strips. The style of the qipao has changed continually as society develops.

Instead of four slits there are now only two slits on the left and right. The one worn by women has become close-fitting to emphasize the curves of a woman’s body.