Ecuadorian traditional dress

Since I’ve been in Ecuador, I’ve noticed a lot of different clothing. I have noticed that people wear different clothing in different parts of Ecuador. In every part of Ecuador, you will see people wearing jeans and t-shirts, but in each region there are also traditional types of clothing. In Ecuador, the three main regions are the coast, the mountains and the jungle. In each region, there are different traditional clothing. Today I am going to be telling you all about these different types of dress. 

The coast is hot and the traditional dress is designed for a hot climate. It is white with bright colors and is made out of loose, light weight material. The women wear white and light blue dresses and the men wear white pants and light shirts. They wear straw hats with wide brims. 

Models of people from Esmeraldas province on the coast

The jungle is hot too and people live close to the rivers. They wear less clothing than people in other parts of Ecuador.  In traditional communities, people used to dress using leaves and clothing that could be made from the plants and animals in the jungle. You still see some of that type of dress, but most people now wear light-weight cotton clothes like the ones you see on the coast.

Women sell jewelry made from seeds and animal teeth

Traditionally dressed jungle man (in museo Pumapungo)

Pumapungo jungle man

We live in the sierra so we know a lot more about the different traditional clothing types than other places in Ecuador so this one is gonna be big. If you know how people from different sierra regions dress, you can sometimes tell where a person is from by how they are dressed. The most famous traditional dress in the sierra is from Otavalo, an indigenous town in the northern part of Ecuador. There, women wear black skirts. We were told by an indigenous guide that their black skirts are a symbol of mourning the death of the last Incan king, Atahualpa. They also wear white, embroidered tops and thick red belts. They wear layers of golden necklaces that are meant to symbolize the corn harvest and wear red coral beaded bracelets that symbolize courage. The men from Otavalo wear blue ponchos and white cut-off pants. They don’t cut their hair and wear long braids that often reach down most of their backs. 

Traditionally dressed Otavaleña showing us her traditional dyes for weaving

Robin in the Otavalo market

Otavalo necklaces

Otavaleños are master weavers and use traditional techniques and natural dyes

Traditional hat from Otavalo

Otavaleño with ponchos in Pumapungo

Moving a little south in the sierra to the Chimborazo and Tungurahua provinces, you see many different variations to the same type of dress.  The men dress in ponchos. In some areas of Tungurahua, you see men wearing red ponchos, which we learned was meant to be a symbol of the blood shed in the war of independence from Spain. You can also learn a lot from the hats that you see the women wear. Each community has it’s own variation of a traditional hat. In one community, the women wear hats with tassels and depending on which side of the hat the tassel is on tells people around her if she’s married or not. Our indigenous guide on Chimborazo told us that the brown hats we saw the women wearing, called fedoras, were brought to the region by the Spanish colonizers. The women started wearing fedoras after they gained independence from Spain to show that they were in charge. 

Robin and Nick ready for work in Chimborozo

Woman wearing a fedora, a traditional symbol of resistance and power

Traditional red poncho from Tungurahua

Traditional women we shared a van ride with in Chimborazo thought it would be fun to dress me and my mom up in their clothing.

In Cañar province, just north of us, the indigenous Cañari culture pre-dates the Incan conquest. The Cañaris worshiped the moon, unlike the Incans, who worshipped the sun. The Cañaris are known for their Carnaval celebration and their famous “Taita Carnaval.” He is a mythical creature with leather pants and a large hat who visits houses where food and drink offerings have been left for him and leaves health, luck, and good harvests. Each year now, a “Taita Carnaval” is elected by the community.

Taita Carnaval in Pumapungo 

In Azuay, where we live, the traditional dress for women is the “chola cuencana.” This dress is a symbol of mestizo culture, meaning mixed indigenous and Spanish ancestry. The women wear knee-length velvet pleated skirts of many colors with embroidered flowers along the bottom. We learned that you can learn a lot about a woman’s family from the embroidery pattern. They also wear white puffy embroidered and lacy shirts with wool shawls and straw hats. 

One of the many places to shop for traditional clothing in Cuenca

So fancy

Cholas Cuencanas in Pumapungo museum

Traditionally dressed women outside the Gualaceo market

Cholas Cuencanas performing in a dance show

Dressed up little girls in a parade in Cuenca

The diablo huma is a mythical creature that is key to the Inti Raymi sun celebration in late June. He wears a rainbow mask with faces on both front and back so that he cannot be surprised by evil spirits approaching from the back. They wear furry brown pants and carries a whip to drive evil spirits away. He was seen as threatening by the Christian colonizers, and was given the name “diablo” or devil. 

I have loved learning about all the different ways that people dress in Ecuador. If you ever want to see many different traditional dresses, come to Ecuador. 

The original tree hugger, a Chola Cuencana