Gaining traction through the internet

In the past few years, more and more Hanfu events have emerged across the globe. In China, especially on college campuses, groups of students wearing Hanfu can be spotted.[Buckley and Katrina Northrop 2018] Since the day that Wang Letian walked the streets in Hanfu, it has gained much popularity, especially among the youth, with numbers of Hanfu enthusiasts being estimated in the two millions.[Cf]

Starting from humble beginnings, Hanfu’s rise seems to be intertwined with the rise of the internet in China. Early adopters of the netizenship came together in 2004 in Tianjin to spread awareness of Hanfu during the annual sacrifice to Confucius.[Cui 2016, p 22] As time went by, the Hanfu Movement gained traction and became more vocal. During the 2007 National People’s Congress and Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, two officials proposed to make Hanfu into national attire, believing that the old Manchu costumes which Westerners are more familiar with do not truly represent the Han ethnicity.[Ibid]

Over the years, the Hanfu Movement has mainly attracted young people.[Buckley and Katrina Northrop 2018] Possibly, the rise of Hanfu is linked to the rise in popularity and production quality of Chinese television shows about China’s dynastic history, in which popular actors and actresses dress up in traditional clothing. Shows such as Yanxi Palace 延禧宫略 set in the Manchu ruled Qing dynasty (1636-1912) have many viewers, with Yanxi Palace even being the most Googled show on earth in 2018.[Cf] Some youngsters find joy in dressing like the stars of these television shows, where women show off their beautiful, very Manchu liangbatou 两把头 hairstyle. Though beautiful, it is not ethnically Han Chinese, and young Chinese who also feel a sense of belonging through wearing traditional Han clothing would not wear such a hairstyle.

The youth is also very active on the internet, on platforms such as Sina Weibo. Weibo is a very active microblogging platform in China, on which 81% of the users are younger than 30 years old.[Deng 2019] The Chinese government has thus taken to the platform as well, and actively engages with the Hanfu Movement. In February 2015, the official Weibo of the People’s Daily wrote the following:

Though Hanfu 汉服 gets its name from the Han dynasty 汉朝, it is not only the clothing of that dynasty, just as the words “Chinese” hanyu 汉语 and “Chinese characters” hanzi 汉子 are not only the language and characters from the Han dynasty. Hanfu has always been the mainstream clothing of our nation, and it is not a simple sign of the times, it is a sign of an ethnic group.[Cui 2016, p 22]

The Hanfu Movement has managed to make an impact on Chinese contemporary life. Looking back at the Tianjin annual sacrifice to Confucius, the influence of the Hanfu Movement caused a change of attire in 2012. The traditional clothing of the Manchu-led Qing dynasty was changed to Hanfu that year, marking a significant change in real life.[Ibid] Though the impact is increasing, the majority of Hanfu followers seldom go out and about on the streets in their Hanfu on a regular working day.