Chuba

{{Short description|Long woolen coat worn by Tibetan people}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2025}} {{About||people with the given name or surname|Chuba (name)|the village in Iran also known as Chuba|Chubeh, Gilan}} [[File:Elderly Pilgrim, Tsurphu 1993.JPG|thumb|180px|Elderly pilgrim wearing a chuba, Tsurphu, Tibet]]

A '''chuba''' ({{bo|t=ཕྱུ་པ་|w=phyu pa|s=Chuwa|lang=yes}}), also called a '''chhupa''', is a warm ankle-length unisex robe worn in Tibet and by members of the Tibetan diaspora. It is worn with the left side wrapped over the right and bound around the waist by a long sash. The design and material of the chuba varies across Tibetan communities and the climate and season it will be worn in.

== Textiles and design == thumb|180px|Young woman wearing a decorated chuba|leftChuba vary in patterns and textiles depending on where the person is from and their background.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Tibetan Clothing |url=https://asia-archive.si.edu/learn/for-educators/teaching-china-with-the-smithsonian/videos/tibetan-clothing/ |access-date=2025-06-15 |website=Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art |language=en-US}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Mitra |first=Swapna |date=June 2015 |title=Changing status of Tibetan women in 19th century with special reference to Refugee women |journal=Exploring History |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=114}}</ref> A variety of textiles may be used, including:<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last=Yongdan |first=Lobsang |date=2018-10-23 |title=Precious Skin: The Rise and Fall of the Otter Fur Trade in Tibet |url=https://brill.com/view/journals/inas/20/2/article-p177_2.xml |journal=Inner Asia |volume=20 |issue=2 |pages=177–198 |doi=10.1163/22105018-12340106 |issn=1464-8172|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

* {{Transliteration|bo|Pulu}}, a woven wool fabric *Inner sheep fur *Lambskin *Sheepskin *Cotton *Silk Chuba are often decorated with black or colorful cloth along the hems or at the cuffs of the sleeves, which may indicate social statuses such as gender, whether the wearer is married, or the community the wearer is from. As in many cultures, more decorative clothing with bright colors and expensive materials is often worn for celebratory occasions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tsepak |first=Namgyal |title=Tibetan Clothing |url=https://folklife.si.edu/lag-zo/in-the-tent/clothing |access-date=2025-06-15 |website=Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage |language=en-US}}</ref>

Beginning in the 1600s, otter pelts were used for clothing meant for special occasions. The pelts were expensive, and they were usually only used for decorations such as trim. They were also used to make hats. Lighter furs were considered to be more desirable than black furs.<ref name=":2" />

Ethnologist Michel Peissel, discussing his experience wearing a chuba, described it as difficult to put on but "one of the most amazing and efficient garments ever invented". The sleeves are long to keep the hands warm, and the extra length of the body is pulled over the belt and used as a large pocket. In warm weather, one or both sleeves can be shrugged off the upper body.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Peissel |first=Michel |title=Mustang, The Forbidden Kingdom: Exploring a Lost Himalayan Land |publisher=E. P. Dutton |year=1967 |location=New York |pages=66-68}}</ref> It is worn over a shirt and sometimes trousers, and married women wear a colorful apron called a {{Transliteration|bo|pangdhen}} on top.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Yangzom |first=Dicky |date=2016-11-01 |title=Clothing and social movements: Tibet and the politics of dress |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/14742837.2016.1213163 |journal=Social Movement Studies |volume=15 |issue=6 |pages=622–633 |doi=10.1080/14742837.2016.1213163 |issn=1474-2837 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>

== Social aspects == [[File:Vienna 2012-05-26 - Europe for Tibet Solidarity Rally 162 Lobsang Sangay.jpg|thumb|Lobsang Sangay wearing a chuba at a solidarity rally]] In the early years of Chinese rule after the annexation of Tibet, traditional clothing was forbidden; items with otter fur were among those confiscated and burned by Chinese authorities, and its usage was banned. In the late 1970s, these restrictions were lifted, and demand for otter pelts grew again; however, the usage of furs sourced from wild animals became a topic of debate in Tibet.<ref name=":2" />

In 2006, the 14th Dalai Lama gave a speech where he said that Tibetans should not wear the furs of endangered species for ethical and environmental reasons. Afterward, people across Tibet publicly burned clothing such as chuba decorated with otter pelts and other types of fur, though the Dalai Lama had not asked people to do so. The demonstrations were motivated by a combination of desire to protect the environment, traditional Buddhist principles of nonviolence to living beings, and wishing to show regard for the exiled Dalai Lama. The wearing of otter furs is now rare in Tibet.<ref name=":2" />

Among the Tibetan diaspora in India, the wearing of chuba is on the decline, with women and older people wearing it more frequently; some only wear it on special occasions.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=2022 |title=Sixty Years in Exile: Exploring the Intergenerational Differences among Tibetans in India |url=https://tibetpolicy.net/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/TPI-Journal-Final-2022.pdf#page=137 |journal=Tibetan Policy Journal |volume=6 |issue=2 |pages=136-137}}</ref> However, chuba has been used as one aspect of nonviolent resistance by the Lhakar movement both within Tibet and in the Tibetan diaspora. For example, many Tibetan schools in India have mandated the wearing of chuba on Wednesdays, and chuba are worn to cultural gatherings.<ref name=":3" />

==References== {{reflist}}

Category:Tibetan clothing Category:History of Asian clothing