An Indumentaria maya is a traditional dress that is originally from Guatemala. It is a dress that can be passed down from generation to generation, but this piece of clothing has a symbol to it and a connection to their ancestral roots. The beauty about these dresses is that they are handmade and the patterns on these dresses that many women express their culture and stories with. Each part of the Guatemalan community has a style, for example in Santa Lucía Utatlán, the huipil is known for its colorful zigzag patterns and embroidered collars and sleeves adorned with small rhinestones; these patterns show the stories and culture of these communities. The zigzag pattern can represent volcanos and mountains.

These dresses have been worn since the Guatemalan civil war (1960-1996). The soldiers in the war would use the colors patterns and symbols to help identify age, wealth, ethnicity, and community of the wearer. Nowadays, this dress is used for a form of resistance and for the women that face discrimination. These dresses are made of cotton and other fibers. When using cotton, they have to clean it first then they must pick out the seed, and then they have to spin it into a thread for weaving.




 

– YH

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