Traditional Weaving

Another defining quality of each Mayan tribe is their traditional clothing. The traditional clothing of Mayan women is a beautifully embroidered huipil worn as a top, a large piece of woven cloth wrapped as a skirt called a corte, and a thin woven band wound around the waist like a belt to hold the corte in place called a faja. In some tribes, the women also weave colorful bands that are tied around the head. The traditional clothing of most mayan men consists of short pants reaching down to the calf, which are sometimes embroidered, and a woven shirt. Although the basic design of the clothing may be similar, each Mayan tribe has it own special colors and embroidered patterns that make them look very different.

Most traditional clothing is still made by hand in each community as it has been done for centuries. The first step is to weave the cloth. Although some cloth is now woven by machine, many women still use back-strap looms. Sitting on the ground, this simple loom is suspended off the wall and then secured around the woman's waist. Between the piece of wood on the bottom of the loom near the woman's lap and the piece of wood at the top, the weaver can string vertical lines of yarn in the color and pattern she chooses. Then, by hand or using a shuttle, the woman weaves yearn horizontally through these vertical lines. Traditionally, the yarn used would have been dyed using natural colors from different plants. Now, most yarn is colored using synthetic dyes, although some weavers continue to use the more difficult, traditional methods. Also, now there are men weavers, as well.

Once cloth is woven, several pieces are sewn together to form the basic outline of the huipil or pants. Then, the challenge of embroidering the clothing begins. Each Mayan tribe has special and unique embroidery patterns. Really intricate, beautiful patterns can take up to two moths to finish! The specific traditional colors and embroidery patterns of each tribe date back to ancient times. However, like clothing around the world, local fashions change with time. When we went to a second-hand shop, our friend pointed out the different embroidery patterns that were popular in the 70's, 80's and 90's.

Not all Maya continue to use the traditional clothing of their tribe, but many do. Women tend to wear their traditional clothing more than men. However, after the landslide in Panabaj, many people - both men and women - expressed deep sadness at having lost their traditional clothing in the disaster. "Our clothing ties us to our ancestors and our community," they told us. "We don't feel comfortable in this western clothing donated from the United States." Because it takes a long time to make each huipil or pair of traditional pants or a lot of money to buy them, some of these people will have to wait a long time before they are able to dress in their Tz'utujil clothing again.