A Ghanaian smock is a plaid shirt that is similar to the

dashiki The dashiki is a colorful garment that covers the top half of the body, worn mostly in West Africa. It is also known as a Kitenge in East Africa and is a common item of clothing in Tanzania and Kenya. It has formal and informal versions and vari ...

, worn by both women and men in

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in Ghana–Ivory Coast border, the west, Burkina ...

. It is the most popular traditional attire in Ghana. The smock is called Bingmaa in

Dagbani language Dagbani (or Dagbane), also known as Dagbanli and Dagbanle, is a Gur language spoken in Ghana and Northern Togo. Its native speakers are estimated around 3,160,000. It is a compulsory subject in primary and junior high school in the Dagbon Kingd ...

, Bun-nwↃ or Bana by Mamprusis, fugu in Mosi, batakari in the southern regions, in Frafra, and Banaa in Kusaal both in the upper east region. It is worn by Royals and civilians across

Dagbon The Kingdom of Dagbon is one of the oldest and most organised traditional kingdoms in Ghana founded by the Dagomba people (Dagbamba) in the 11th century. During its rise, it comprised, at various points, the Northern Region (Ghana), Northern, Uppe ...

and other northern regions, but popular across Ghana. The smock originated in the northern region of Ghana but widely used in West Africa and diasporans across the world. The smock is not unlike the national attire of

Burkina Faso Burkina Faso (, ; , ff, 𞤄𞤵𞤪𞤳𞤭𞤲𞤢 𞤊𞤢𞤧𞤮, italic=no) is a landlocked country in West Africa with an area of , bordered by Mali to the northwest, Niger to the northeast, Benin to the southeast, Togo and Ghana to the ...

known as faso dan fadi. The smock and

Kente cloth Kente ( ak, kente or ''nwetoma''; ee, kete; Dagbani: Chinchini) refers to a Ghanaian textile, made of handwoven cloth, strips of silk and cotton. Historically the fabric was worn in a toga-like fashion by royalty among ethnic groups such as the ...

are the national dress of Ghana. Kente cloth originated in the southern region of Ghana. The smock is made of hand-loomed strips popularly called Strip Cloths. They are made of a mixture of dyed and undyed cotton loom, and are originally from the northern part of Ghana and other parts of West Africa. The strips are sewn together by hand or machine giving the smock a plaid appearance. Most smocks have embroidery on the neckline. The smock is worn with a kufi cap. However, chiefs in Ghana wear the smock with a red fez hat.

The smock in the West

Historically, the smock was rarely seen in the West. As recently as the 1990s, immigrants from Ghana were the only individuals seen wearing the smock. All of that changed as the popularity of films produced in

increased among Black Americans and Caribbeans. In recent years people of African descent have started wearing smocks to churches,

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a Place of worship, place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers (sujud) ...

s, African

festivals A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, Melā, mela, or Muslim holida ...

, and Kwanzaa celebrations in major Western cities like

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and Kingston, Jamaica.

Popular culture

A man is seen wearing a smock in the opening scene of the Jackie Aygemang movie, ''I Knew Nothing Till You Taught Me''.

References

External links

''I Knew Nothing Until You Taught Me'' on DVD. Kente Cloth
Tops (clothing) African clothing Woven fabrics

The smock in the West

Popular culture

See also

References

External links