''Khes'' ( pa,

Shahmukhi Shahmukhi (, ) is a Persian alphabet, Perso-Arabic alphabet script used historically by Punjabi Muslims (primarily in present-day Punjab, Pakistan, Pakistani Punjab) to write the Punjabi language. It is generally written in the Nastaʿlīq Callig ...

:کھیس,

Gurmukhi Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonly r ...

:ਖੇਸ੍) () is a thin cotton blanket cloth in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

; it is a

damask Damask (; ar, دمشق) is a reversible patterned fabric of silk, wool, linen, cotton, or synthetic fibers, with a pattern formed by weaving. Damasks are woven with one warp yarn and one weft yarn, usually with the pattern in warp-faced satin ...

cloth used for blankets and winter wraps. Khes is generally

hand A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered appendage located at the end of the forearm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs. A few other vertebrates such as the koala (which has two opposable thumbs on each "h ...

woven Woven fabric is any textile formed by weaving. Woven fabrics are often created on a loom, and made of many threads woven on a warp and a weft. Technically, a woven fabric is any fabric made by interlacing two or more threads at right angles to on ...

with coarse

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

yarn Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manufact ...

s. Khes as a garment is a simple

clothing Clothing (also known as clothes, apparel, and attire) are items worn on the body. Typically, clothing is made of fabrics or textiles, but over time it has included garments made from animal skin and other thin sheets of materials and natural ...

item to wear loosely to cover the upper body by men in

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

and northwest

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. Khes is an important cloth in the

Punjab region Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...

, a region which is famous for its production and historically has been known for not only the production of Khes but also many other coarse cotton textiles, especially in the 19th and 20th centuries. Khes is a

comfort object A comfort object, more formally a transitional object or attachment object, is an item used to provide psychological comfort, especially in unusual or unique situations, or at bedtime for children. Among toddlers, a comfort object often takes th ...

used in

bedding Bedding, also known as bedclothes or bed linen, is the materials laid above the mattress of a bed for hygiene, warmth, protection of the mattress, and decorative effect. Bedding is the removable and washable portion of a human sleeping environm ...

, and is also usable as a

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

Khes weaving

Weave

''Khes'' is a thick woven cloth made on a handloom. Khes

weaving Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal th ...

was a traditional textile art associated with

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are describ ...

Punjab. The craft of khes-weaving had cultural significance in rural areas. Women in villages used to weave khes. Women in the villages of Punjab have been weaving khes as part of their wedding trousseau for years. Spans of khes were traditionally woven in pairs and then stitched together. Khes pieces from the town of

Rampur, Uttar Pradesh Rampur ( ) is a city, and the municipality headquarter of Rampur District in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It was formerly known for its various industries, like sugar refining and cotton milling. Its library has more than 12,000 rare manus ...

, were larger and available in sizes of up to 6 by 9 feet (2.75 by 1.8 m). ''Khesi'' is a wider variant of khes, for use in making sheets.

Patterns

Most khes were made of cotton, but there were also some varieties of cotton and silk. Khes varieties were distinguished by different weave patterns and origins. Primarily, Khes were plain or with geometrical designs, including

check pattern Check (also checker, Brit: chequer) is a pattern of modified stripes consisting of crossed horizontal and vertical lines which form squares. The pattern typically contains two colours where a single checker (that is a single square within the chec ...

(''charkhana'', chequered) and diamond patterns. The frequency of the checkered style has led to khes sometimes being referred to as a type of

tartan Tartan ( gd, breacan ) is a patterned cloth consisting of criss-crossed, horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Sc ...

cloth (a term more often reserved for Scottish textiles). ''Dabba khes'' is a pattern with squares formed using dyed yarns. Khes from

Rampur State Rampur State was a 15 gun-salute princely state of British India. It came into existence on 7 October 1774 as a result of a treaty with Oudh. Following independence in 1947, Rampur State and other princely states of the area, such as Bena ...

was famous for its superior-quality cotton and unique, interwoven patterns, often with gold thread and borders in various coloured yarns. ''Khes patpatti'' had white and red check patterns, while ''khes tukridaar'' was the name for white and blue checks. ''Khesbaf'' weaving was the term for forming diagonal patterns.

Production

India

Production in India takes place in the

Malwa Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also syno ...

region and the southern

Indian Punjab Punjab (; ) is a state in northern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the north and northeast, Haryana to the south and southeast, and R ...

. Other places in India include

Pakistan

Production in Pakistan takes place in South Pakistani Punjab (in the city of

Bahawalpur Bahawalpur () is a city in the Punjab province of Pakistan. With inhabitants as of 2017, it is Pakistan's 11th most populous city. Founded in 1748, Bahawalpur was the capital of the former princely state of Bahawalpur, ruled by the Abbasi fa ...

Multan Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab. Multan is one of the List ...

, and in the villages of the

Cholistan Desert The Cholistan Desert ( ur, ; Punjabi: ), also locally known as Rohi (), is a desert in the southern part of Punjab, Pakistan that forms part of the Greater Thar Desert, which extends to Sindh province and the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is ...

) and

Sindh Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...

(in the city of

Naserpur Naserpur ( sd, نصرپور), or Nasarpur, is a small town in Sindh, Pakistan. Historical background According to Hakeem Fateh Mohammad Sehwani (book Abo-al-fazal) Naserpur was one of the major city along with Umar Kot, Thatta and Sewistan (Sehw ...

Sehwan Sharif Sehwan ( sd, سيوهڻ شريف, ur, ; also commonly referred to as Sehwan Sharif or ''Noble Sehwan'') is a historic city located in Jamshoro District of Sindh province in Pakistan and on the west bank of the Indus River, Indus north-west of H ...

, and

Thatta Thatta ( sd, ٺٽو; ) is a city in the Pakistani province of Sindh. Thatta was the medieval capital of Sindh, and served as the seat of power for three successive dynasties. Thatta's historic significance has yielded several monuments in and ...

)

References

External links

* https://ehmerapunjab.tumblr.com/post/15564980167/clothes-of-culture {{Bedding Blankets Rugs and carpets Shawls and wraps Bedding Textile arts of India Textile arts of Pakistan Punjabi words and phrases