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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.
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