Traje de flamenca

The traje de flamenca ("flamenco outfit") or traje de gitana ("Gitana outfit") is the dress traditionally worn by women at Ferias (festivals) in Andalusia, Spain. There are two forms: one worn by dancers and the other worn as a day dress.

The day dress is body-hugging to mid-thigh, and then continues in multiple layers of ruffles to the ankle. Modern interpretations of the style are difficult to walk in, let alone dance. The dancers' version therefore flares out from higher on the hip to allow freedom of movement.

Both versions are trimmed with layers of ruffles on both the skirt and sleeves. The dress is typically brightly colored, usually in black, red or and may be either plain or patterned, with the most famous being the polka dotted traje de lunares.

Traditionally, the outfit is completed with a shawl (mantón de Manila) worn over the shoulders. The traditional dancer will also wear her hair in a bun adorned with flowers, and perhaps a decorative hair comb.

The outfit is attributed to the Gitanos (Roma people of Spain), but is now generally thought of as typically Andalusian. The outfit originated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when women vendors dressed in modest calico gowns trimmed with ruffles came to the fairs along with livestock traders. In time, women of the propertied classes copied these outfits. Ever since the Seville Exposition of 1929, the traje de flamenca has had a status as the official outfit of the event.

The traje de flamenca has undergone changes over the century or more that it has been in widespread use. For example, in the 1960s and '70s, the skirts became shorter, with skirts reaching only to the middle of the calf or even to the knee (the so-called Marisol style). Beginning in the 1970s, the hemlines dropped back to the ankle.

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