Ukrainian embroidery
Encyclopedia
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
decorative arts. Embroidery
Embroidery
Embroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
has a rich history in Ukraine, and has long appeared in Ukrainian
Culture of Ukraine
Ukrainian culture refers to the culture associated with the country of Ukraine and sometimes with ethnic Ukrainians across the globe. It contains elements of other Eastern European cultures as well as some Western European influences. Within Ukraine, there are a number of other ethnic groups with...
folk dress as well as played a part in traditional Ukrainian weddings and other celebrations. Appearing all across the country, Ukrainian embroidery varies depending on the region of origin. From Poltava
Poltava
Poltava is a city in located on the Vorskla River in central Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Poltava Oblast , as well as the surrounding Poltava Raion of the oblast. Poltava's estimated population is 298,652 ....
, Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, and Chernihiv
Chernihiv
Chernihiv or Chernigov is a historic city in northern Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Chernihiv Oblast , as well as of the surrounding Chernihivskyi Raion within the oblast...
in the east, to Volyn and Polissia in the northwest, to Bukovyna, and the Hutsul area in the southwest, the designs have a long history which defines its ornamental motifs and compositions, as well as its favorite choice of colors and types of stitches.
History
Herodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
, the famous Greek
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
historian, in describing the invasion of Darius, mentioned that the Thracian
Thracians
The ancient Thracians were a group of Indo-European tribes inhabiting areas including Thrace in Southeastern Europe. They spoke the Thracian language – a scarcely attested branch of the Indo-European language family...
-Dacian
Dacians
The Dacians were an Indo-European people, very close or part of the Thracians. Dacians were the ancient inhabitants of Dacia...
people who lived in what is now the Balkans
Balkans
The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...
and western Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
used embroidery to decorate their clothes. Excavations of sites from the 1st century AD have revealed examples of embroidered clothing in the territory of Ukraine. Other early examples of embroideries include pre-Christian
Pre-Christian
Pre-Christian may mean:*before Christianization**historical polytheism *BC**Classical Antiquity**Iron Age...
goddess motifs, such as Berehynia. There are eleventh-century examples of embroidery in the Saint Sophia Cathedral
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev
Saint Sophia Cathedral in Kiev is an outstanding architectural monument of Kievan Rus'. Today, it is one of the city's best known landmarks and the first Ukrainian patrimony to be inscribed on the World Heritage List along with the Kiev Cave Monastery complex...
in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
on fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
s and miniatures. Many of these early examples have distinct similarities to the local embroidery throughout history. Ukrainian embroidery was an everyday art in the common people's lives until the 19th century, when it became more of a craft
Craft
A craft is a branch of a profession that requires some particular kind of skilled work. In historical sense, particularly as pertinent to the Medieval history and earlier, the term is usually applied towards people occupied in small-scale production of goods.-Development from the past until...
.
Embroidery was mostly used for the decoration of clothing and fabrics and for the decoration of homes and churches. Embroidered products, especially towels, are greatly symbolic for a series of ceremonies and rituals of Ukraine.
Most embroidery was used for clothing. The primary object of clothing that was decorated with embroidery was the shirt
Shirt
A shirt is a cloth garment for the upper body. Originally an undergarment worn exclusively by men, it has become, in American English, a catch-all term for almost any garment other than outerwear such as sweaters, coats, jackets, or undergarments such as bras, vests or base layers...
or vyshyvanka
Vyshyvanka
Vyshyvanka is the Ukrainian traditional clothing which contains elements of Ukrainian ethnic embroidery. Many variations of its design were created. Usually, it was made of homemade linen which was produced by loom...
. The shirt was mostly decorated with embroidery on the sleeves, and also on the neck, bosom, and the cuffs. Other elements of clothing are also embroidered, including scarves, skirts, aprons, men's caps and trousers, sleeveless jackets, kozhukh
Kozhukh
A kozhukh is a traditional Ukrainian coat.Generally worn in the winter, the kozhukh was normally made of sheepskin, sometimes decorated with embroidery and with leather, cords, tassels, and other accessories. They were tight at the waist, sometimes very long...
and kozhushanka
Kozhushanka
The kozhushanka is a traditional Ukrainian sheepskin coat.Kozhushankas were winter attires worn by women, typically in the middle Dnieper River region, including the Left-Bank and steppe areas, and also in the Lemko region, particularly in the central regions. They are thought to have originated...
(sheepskin coats), sashes, ochipok
Ochipok
The Ochipok was a married woman's headdress as part of traditional Ukrainian folk dress, often decorated with Ukrainian embroidery.Ochipok is a cap that covers the entire head with a slit in the back and laces that pull it tightly around the head....
, etc. In some areas, bed linens were also embroidered. Aside from clothing, other items decorated with embroidery are towels, tablecloths, bench covers, veils and kerchiefs, and pillowcases. Many of these items are used to decorate the interior of churches, for example a cover for the sacraments or a shroud for icons.
According to Mary Doliszny, a Ukrainian-Canadian activist, the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
's attempts at Russification
Russification
Russification is an adoption of the Russian language or some other Russian attributes by non-Russian communities...
took a toll on the embroidery of Ukrainians. Because of attempts to destroy the art of Ukrainian embroidery, diaspora
Ukrainian diaspora
The Ukrainian diaspora is the global community of ethnic Ukrainians, especially those who maintain some kind of connection, even if ephemeral, to the land of their ancestors and maintain their feeling of Ukrainian national identity within their own local community.-1608 To 1880:After the loss...
Ukrainians worked to document patterns and revive the art. Much of this research was done at the institutes of Ukrainian studies at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
and the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
.
Folk embroidery was symbolic and connected with a great number of beliefs, myths, and superstitions, including beliefs regarding protection and fertility. The lozenge
Lozenge
A lozenge , often referred to as a diamond, is a form of rhombus. The definition of lozenge is not strictly fixed, and it is sometimes used simply as a synonym for rhombus. Most often, though, lozenge refers to a thin rhombus—a rhombus with acute angles of 45°...
shape is a common motif and represents a sown field
Field (agriculture)
In agriculture, the word field refers generally to an area of land enclosed or otherwise and used for agricultural purposes such as:* Cultivating crops* Usage as a paddock or, generally, an enclosure of livestock...
and female fertility
Fertility
Fertility is the natural capability of producing offsprings. As a measure, "fertility rate" is the number of children born per couple, person or population. Fertility differs from fecundity, which is defined as the potential for reproduction...
.
In Ukraine, embroidery was developed by women and typically a women's activity and remains one to this day. There was scarcely a woman who did not master it to some extent. It is popular in both Ukraine and her diaspora, where many embroidery clubs exist.
Embroidery is remembered as a national pastime and is a part of the Ukrainian cultural and national identity.
Variations
Ukrainian embroidery has many variations from region to region, or even village to village. However, most embroidery is generally similar overall for most Ukrainians. Even with these variation, the styles of needlework found throughout Ukraine, when taken together, represent a definite Ukrainian national style of embroidery. Red and black were the most common colors of Ukrainian embroidery. Ukrainian folk embroidery is notable for great variety of its techniques.Central and Eastern Ukraine
In the Central and Eastern parts of Ukraine, embroidery usually consists of geometric forms and plant ornaments. The color range of the motifs is very delicate and very diverse as to individual details. In the Poltava Region, the colors usually include pale blue, white, light ochre, pale green and gray tones. Poltava products are especially famed for their “white-on-white” and openwork embroidery. The red, red-blue (or red-black) color scheme plays an important role in Central- and Eastern-Ukrainian embroidery, as it did throughout almost the whole of Ukraine.Western Ukraine
In the Lemko region, the oldest embroideries were executed in red and red-blue linear motifs. Over time, other colors, such as blue, green and yellow, were added.
The embroideries of Bukovyna are among the richest in all of Ukraine, often combining as many as nine or more colors, including silver and gold metallic thread as well as colored glass beads. It also uses a number of stitches.
The needlework of Pokuttya
Pokuttya
Pokuttya or Pokuttia is a historical area of East-Central Europe, between upper Prut and Cheremosh rivers, in modern Ukraine. Historically it was a culturally distinct area inhabitated by Ukrainians and Romanians on the previously unpopulated borderlands between the lands of Lviv and Halych...
was also rich and intricately executed, and also quite varied. Red was the predominant color in many of the styles of embroidery in this region, usually being worked in thick home-processed wool threads, sometimes with accents of yellow, green and blue added. Although cross-stitch was not uncommon, the older and more traditional technique was that of the so-called “curly stitch” (quite popular, in fact, throughout many areas of Southwestern Ukraine). In some parts of Pokuttya and neighboring Podillya, wide motifs of intricately worked white-on-white embroidery combined with open work were popular. The embroideries of Podillya were similar in many respects to that of both Bukovyna and Pokuttya, with discreet yet recognizable differences in color scheme, motifs and placement that nonetheless set them apart.
In Halychyna, there is a variety of embroidery styles that were specific for individual localities, such that when one sees a piece of embroidery there is no mistaking its origin.
Northern Ukraine
In the northwest and north of Ukraine (including the Ukrainian ethno-historic territory of PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
) needlework traditions have been preserved relatively intact from the oldest of times. Red, as well as red-blue and red-black were the predominant color schemes in the archaic geometric embroideries of these northern regions of Ukraine, executed primarily in dense rows of a horizontal needle-weaving stitch (called “zavolikannia”) that created horizontal bands of patterns reminiscent of weaving. Floral motifs are also popular in the North, using red, red-blue or red-black palette as the needle-woven bands, but in the much more recent technique of cross-stitch.