Qun
(), referred as  () prior to the Han dynasty,  () and  (), and sometimes referred as apron in English even though they are not apron as defined in the English dictionary, is a generic term which refers to the Chinese skirts used in , especially those worn as part of , and in . The  and its predecessor, the , along with the upper garment called  and the trousers called , are all indigenous clothing of the , which conformed to the fashion style of the Chinese civilization in ancient times. Both the  and the , were both typically in the form of a wrap-around skirt like an apron. However, throughout Chinese history, the  eventually evolved into the ; and the  evolved in diverse shapes, styles, and construction throughout the succeeding dynasties. The  continued to exist even in the Republic of China. Several forms of ancient-style  regained popularity in the 21st century following the Hanfu movement; this also inspired the development of new styles of qun with modern aesthetics and shapes. Terminology 
In a broad sense, the Chinese character 《》is a synonym for the word  (); both of these are generic words for skirts in China. In ancient China, the Chinese character 《》can refer to "lower garments," which included both the trousers called  and the  skirt also called  which also use the same character《裳》. The term  with the Chinese character《》also referred to skirt . According to the , the 《帬》was called 《》in the area of Wei and Chen; it was also called 《》by some people from the east of the Pass. The  also explains that the term  which uses the character《帬》is the same as the term  which uses the characters《 》. It also explains that the , which uses the Chinese character《》, is a skirt by using the term  with the characters《 》. There are also specific terms which are related to the , such as  () and . The  is a generic term which refers to unlined skirts. The  is a generic term which typically refer to a form of inner skirt. History 

In the ancient times, the  was referred as  and existed even prior to the creation of the trousers called . The  appeared on unearthed artifacts dating as early as the Shang dynasty; the  eventually evolved into what became known as the . Warring states period and Qin dynasty 
In the Warring States period, men could also wear short skirts similar to a kilt. Han dynasty 
Several wrap-over  were found in the Han dynasty tombs. The  () first appeared in the Eastern Han dynasty. According to the story, however, the wearing of short skirts with pleats first appeared in the Western Han dynasty when Feng Wufang saved Zhao Feiyan from falling; but while saving her, her skirt had been ripped. This led to the creation of a long excessively pleated-style , called , which was inspired by the ripped skirt of Zhao Feiyan and became popular. Song dynasty 
After the Sui and Tang dynasty, the pleats which were used in the  increased in numbers, from a few dozens to over one hundred forming the . The tomb of Huang Sheng contains various forms of , such as the  and the . Yuan dynasty 
The  continued to be worn in the Yuan dynasty. Qing dynasty 
The  continued to be worn in the Qing dynasty. In this period, the  worn by the Han Chinese were often  which featured pleats and embroideries at the panels and decorative borders. The late Qing dynasty  were also heavier compared to those worn in the earlier times as they were weighted by the embroideries and pleats. Republic of China 
During the early period of the Republic of China, people in Beijing continued to wear the clothing worn in the Qing dynasty. Women continued to wear the ; however, the  had evolved in style and had become shorter. Types and styles in  
The  can also have specific names based on the styles, design and constructions, the number of pleats and colours. In , the  can be used in set of attire, such as the , , . In some dynasties, the  could be found very long and was tied under the armpits either below or above the bust regions; for example, in the . In other dynasties, the  could be tied at the waist level. () are a form of  which are made out of several panel of fabric sewn together instead of using a single piece of cloth, similar to a gore skirt. and  

In the Qin and Han dynasties, the  were made out of four panel of fabrics which were sewn together. The upper parts were narrower than the lower parts; and there were also two pieces in the middle were also narrower than those which were found at the sides of the . It was most often found with a belt attached to it; however some women preferred to use a separate belt. The four-panel , as the one found in the Mawangdui tomb No.1 dating from the Western Han dynasty, was used as a form of  () and was usually worn over the  or under the . This form of  also had a waist belt which was sewed at the upper part of the skirt and both ends of the waist belt would extend to form the ties. () are a form of  made of alternative strips of fabric of two different colours sewn together. Its structure can be traced back to the late Northern Wei dynasty and continued to be used until the Five dynasties and Ten kingdoms period. This form of skirt was high-waist during the Sui and the Tang dynasties and were characteristics clothing for women during this time period. The evolution process of the  reflects the multiculturalism context, the cultural exchange, and the cultural integration which occurred between the Han Chinese, the northern ethnic minority culture, and the culture of the Western regions which occurred from the late Northern Wei dynasty to the Sui and Tang dynasties. The design of the skirt thus reflects the gradual integration of  and . Pleated skirts are called  (). There are several forms of , such as the  (), and the . is a form of wrap-around skirt which was tied at the waist level; it consisted of over 100 pleats in numbers. Each pleats were fixed to the waistband of the skirt and each pleats had the same width. and its variant 

The  was a wrap-around skirt composed of two overlapping panels of fabric which was tied at the waist level. It was characterized with a flat front and pleats on the two sides. The  () was a variant of the  and featured small pleats which gave a ripple effects. The early prototypes of the  was the  and the . A derivative of the  is the skirt used in the , which is also called . The  skirt, sometimes literally translated as "Dragon skirt" in English, was a skirt decorated with Chinese dragons and/or Chinese phoenixes or with  (). The  could typically vary in colour; however, red and green were the most common colours used. The  was typically paired with the  jacket. During the Qing dynasty, the  was worn by Han Chinese women; it was typically worn by the wives of Chinese noblemen or wives of high-ranking Qing officials as part of their quasi-official formal clothing attire on ceremonial occasions when their husband would be wearing the Qing dynasty court robe attire. Wives of the Qing dynasty officials also wore the  as part of their wedding attire and as their burial attire. The  () was a red skirt which was especially popular in the Tang dynasty. Imperial and court attire

Types and styles in  

The  was also used as a costume item in . There are several forms of  which are used as  by performing Chinese opera actors, which include the:

  () is worn with an  by a . (): a skirt which has the shape of a tube; it is often worn as outer-skirt being worn over an inner skirt, which could be pleated skirt. Similar forms 
 Chima – Korean equivalent

See also 

 Hanfu
 List of Hanfu

Notes

References 

Hanfu
Chinese traditional clothing
Skirts