In traditional societies, clothing protects the body from cold and heat, but it is also a language of identity, status and taste. How many rows of gold coins were strung across the fez on a woman's head, the colour of the sash at her waist, whether or not her headscarf was sequinned: all of this told those around her which village she came from, whether she was married or single, and how prosperous her family was thought to be. The dress culture of the Amasya region speaks this language with an unusually rich vocabulary. Across a wide range that stretches from mountain villages to town mansions, each garment carries a function, a custom and very often a belief.

Amasya lies in a transitional zone between the central Black Sea coast and Central Anatolia, and its dress culture bears the marks of that position. On one side stand the fine fabrics and gold-thread embroidery inherited from Ottoman urban life; on the other, the striped cloth woven on village handlooms, woollen stockings and rawhide sandals. Compilations on the region attribute the survival of these costumes in relatively unaltered form to the fact that its people long lived as a closed community, and they note that in the mountain villages there are still people who go about their daily lives in traditional dress.

The Ensemble Recognised as the Regional Costume

More than one type of traditional dress was worn in central Amasya and its villages. Of these, the one accepted as the regional costume of Amasya on account of its authenticity is the traditional women's dress of Ilısu, a village in the district of Göynücek. The same ensemble was also worn in Karayakup, another Göynücek village, and in both places it is said to belong to the Yörük (Turkmen nomad) population. The ensemble has also been entered in the intangible cultural heritage inventory of the Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism.

Sources differ on how many pieces the ensemble comprises. The common account describes it as a twelve-piece whole: fez, sequinned headscarf, shift, üçetek, cepken jacket, waistcoat, sash, çarpana belt, şalvar trousers, stockings and sandals. The official inventory, by contrast, calls it a "ten-piece" costume, yet its own list names eleven items: melez göynek, morlu tuman, zıbın, cepken, waistcoat, sash, çarpana, fez, sequinned headscarf, stockings and sandals. The variation in number depends on whether certain items are counted separately or together with another. Dressing followed a fixed order, and each piece had its own place within the ensemble.

The detailed description of this costume rests largely on a 2002 study by Güneş. The local writer Kadir Aydın republished that work with page references, and when it is read alongside the definitions in the inventory, almost every detail of the ensemble comes into view. The two accounts differ slightly on fabrics and colours. These differences can be seen as the natural outcome of practices that varied from village to village and from family to family.

Headwear: the Fez and the Sequinned Headscarf

The most striking part of the ensemble is on the head. The headpiece, known locally as tepelik, fez or beaded fez, is made of burgundy felt. Inside it is a white lining to absorb sweat, called the "terlik". Because cotton wadding is placed between the terlik and the fez, the headpiece sits snugly and takes the shape of the head. The inventory, however, describes the fez as made of cotton cloth sewn to fit the head. Coloured beads are strung on threads that hang from the crown of the fez down to the forehead. Each thread carries beads of a single colour, and when the threads lie side by side they form a many-coloured covering over the head.

Gold or silver lira coins are strung along the edge of the fez that falls at the forehead, overlapping one another. Güneş gives their number as one hundred. Some fezzes carry two rows of gold, silver or base-metal coins at the edge, and the richness of this ornament depended directly on the family's means. The fezzes of wealthy families were mostly decorated with double rows of gold coins. The point at the crown where the beads gather is covered with a round plate cut from silver or metal. On either side of the fez hang temple ornaments of beads or chains ending in small silver sequins.

Three ties keep the fez firmly in place throughout the day. One is fastened at the back to the braided hair, while the other two, which start at ear level, pass under the chin. The chin tie is usually decorated with blue beads. Over the fez is laid the sequinned headscarf. Locally, a cloth with no motifs at all is called a yemeni, and one bearing small motifs a yazma. The square yemeni is bordered on all four sides with large metal sequins. The middle of one edge is laid over the fez and the two ends are joined under the chin; of the two corners left at the back, one is brought forward, wound under the chin and placed on top of the head. The sequinned yemeni was worn by brides and young girls.

Shift, Üçetek and Şalvar

The innermost garment of the ensemble is the shift called melez göynek. The inventory defines it as an undergarment of cotton or silk. Its sleeves reach the wrist and its hem falls at knee level. The front and sides are embroidered with coloured threads in floral or geometric patterns, both sides of the collar are decorated with the "lamba" (lamp) motif, and shiny white sequins are sewn over the embroidery. Güneş's study explains that the fabric of the shift was woven of wool or silk on handlooms, with rod-like stripes in pink and red called "tahta" (planks) along its edges. When the sleeves are attached, these stripes are aligned with the underside of the arm. There is no shaped armhole, and a square gusset called "kuşluk" is inserted under the arm to allow free movement.

The neck opening of the shift is cut to fit the wearer's neck, the front is opened down to chest level, and a narrow strip of the same cloth is folded to form a stand-up collar. Beads of many colours are sewn on the outside of the collar, much as on the fez. On some shifts large blue beads mark the point where each new colour begins. Although the decoration varies with taste, coloured beads are never absent. The collar is closed with a button. A shift woven of raw silk clings tightly to the body when first worn and gradually stretches and loosens over time.

The best-known garment of the regional costume is the üçetek ("three skirts"). It is also called üçpeş and zıbın. It is a long-sleeved robe in three parts reaching to the ankles, two at the front and one at the back. It is open down the full length of the front and slit up to the hips. The fabric is usually a woven blend of silk and cotton with coloured stripes known as "tahta", and local people especially favour cloth with pink stripes. The inventory states that the zıbın is made of kutnu (a silk-and-cotton satin weave), fully lined, with scalloped edges. A thick sash is tied around the waist of the üçetek, and the two front skirts are each gathered at the middle, folded into an inverted triangle and tucked into the sash. The skirt ends can also be fastened into the sash in other ways. This arrangement allows ease of movement in walking and working and gives the figure a distinct shape.

The şalvar worn under the üçetek is also known locally as tuman. Güneş records the names alapaça, morlu tuman and paça tuman together. It is made of cotton or raw silk, from the same cloth as the shift. Above the knee it is white, below it coloured. Güneş describes the lower part as red and says that the trousers took the name "alapaça" from these red legs. The inventory, on the other hand, relates that the part below the knee is woven from purple or burgundy thread, with black stripes set between, and that the coloured section is decorated with green and yellow pompoms. The width of a single panel of the cloth varies between thirty and thirty-five centimetres. The şalvar is tied at the waist and at the ankles with drawstrings.

The Cepken and the Delme Waistcoat

The cepken jacket is worn over the üçetek. Also known locally as the "yellow-sleeved waistcoat", the cepken is generally made of yellow cloth and fully lined. According to Güneş, its fabric is silk or cotton woven on the handloom, with cotton wadding between the lining and the outer cloth. The front and back are cut in one piece, as with the shift, and the neck opening and front are cut open afterwards. It reaches to the waist. When the cloth is folded in two, the "V" seams meet exactly in the middle, which keeps the neck opening well proportioned. Bindings of red, green and black cloth are applied to the edges at one-centimetre intervals, with stitching in two colours of thread between them.

The cuffs of the cepken are of black cloth, finished at the wrist with a red band. The sleeves, running from shoulder to wrist, are the most richly decorated surface of the whole ensemble. In this ornament, which features amulet, lamp and flower motifs, the gaps are filled with tiny pieces of cloth, usually black, each holding a large shiny sequin and stitched to the sleeve. No decoration is placed on the chest or back of the cepken, because these parts remain hidden under the waistcoat worn on top.

The waistcoat, called "delme" locally, is worn over the cepken and wraps the body entirely. According to the inventory it is generally black and lined. Pieces of red and yellow cloth are appliquéd onto the black fabric in the motif known as "lamba", and these are in turn decorated with sequins. Various ornaments of beads and sequins are worked in the exact centre of the back. On the part of the waistcoat over the right breast is a decoration called the "mirrored pocket", in which a small mirror was once placed, while the left breast bears only lamp motifs. The waistcoat ends at the waist and is closed in front by a single button at waist level. The collars of the cepken and waistcoat are cut so as not to cover the collar ornaments of the shift worn beneath. In this way the decoration of each of the layered garments remains visible.

Güneş lists silk, linen and velvet as the fabrics of the waistcoat, adding that cotton examples have also been found. The shoulder edges and the hem bands are decorated with bindings of coloured cloth, and coloured tassels of silk thread are sewn along the shoulder edges. On the right and left front edges of the waistcoat run velvet appliqué strips four centimetres wide, from shoulder to hem. Onto this velvet are sewn ornaments two to three centimetres long, cast in moulds from silver or metal and shaped like a keyhole or a fish. With twenty on each side, a single waistcoat carries forty metal ornaments in all. One end of each ornament is broad, the other narrow and knobbed. They are fastened to the velvet with needle and thread through two small holes in the broad end and around the knob. Waistcoats have also been found in the region with as many buttons sewn opposite as there are metal ornaments.

The Sash and the Çarpana

The sash tied at the waist in the women's costume is a square woollen weave, usually red or burgundy. Two white or black stripes running around the entire edge, a little inside the point where the fringe begins, are worked into it during weaving. When the sash is folded into a triangle, ties one metre long, made of cord or twisted coloured yarn, are sewn to two opposite corners. One or more tassels hang from the ends of these ties. Two large blue beads sit on the head of each tassel, and small black and burgundy beads at its tips. A "V"-shaped fringe of black or brown yarn is made along the edge of the sash, its strands tipped with white beads. The sash is folded into a triangle and tied tightly around the waist with the long part at the back.

Over the sash is tied the çarpana. Known in some villages as "kolon", the çarpana is a long, narrow belt woven on the loom. The inventory gives its width as three to four centimetres, while Güneş records it as one and a half centimetres wide and one metre thirty centimetres long. It is generally woven of coloured wool, decorated with beads, and a pompom is attached to the part that falls at the hip. Brides usually prefer a blue çarpana. Each end of the çarpana carries three tassels of its own yarn, and both ends are decorated for twenty centimetres with buttons, large metal sequins, blue beads and so-called hound beads. By Güneş's count each end carries one button, ten metal sequins and eleven hound beads. If large sequins could not be found, buttons might be used in their place. These ornaments are believed to protect against the evil eye and to symbolise abundance and fertility.

Stockings, Sandals and Jewellery

Woollen stockings and rawhide sandals complete the ensemble. The inventory notes that the embroidered woollen stockings once knitted to below the knee, and the sandals, have not survived to the present day. According to Güneş, women and men wore the same stockings. They are plain stockings in the natural colour of the wool, though some have self-coloured patterns. At the top is a tie of the same yarn ending in small pompoms. To keep the stocking from slipping down the calf, this tie is wound once or twice and knotted so that the pompoms fall to the side.

The çarık sandal is made of buffalo or ox hide. The hide is cured in salt and alum to soften it, then shaped and dried. The front is sandal-like, with a slightly upturned toe, and seen from the front it looks like a shoe. The toe is sewn with a thin leather thong called sırım. Long leather laces pass through the pierced leather strips on the sides, are wound around the heel and tied at the ankle. Women and men generally wore the same çarık, but the women's version is lighter and heeled. Some have buckles or mirrors at the ankle. The çarık was mostly worn in dark, plain colours, while the red çarık was used chiefly by women.

The women's costume is completed with jewellery. The principal pieces are the beşibirlik (a five-in-one gold coin), bracelets, rings, earrings, a coin purse, a silver belt, a silver necklace, an amulet case called hamaylı, and a kaytan ornament of silver or beads. The most striking of these is the silver forehead ornament called "cıngıl". It was worn mostly by new brides and engaged girls. Three chains on each side are attached by small rings to a round silver plate the size of a palm, which rests in the very centre of the forehead. Silver pendants hang from the ends of the chains, and each set of three chains is then joined and finished with a hook. Once the hair has been gathered up, these hooks are fastened to the hair or to the skullcap worn on the head. A silk crêpe cloth is laid over the cıngıl after it has been attached to the skullcap or fez.

The Bindallı and Urban Dress

Alongside the handwoven ensembles of the villages, town life had a garment of its own: the bindallı. Made of velvet or satin, the bindallı is embroidered with plant designs worked in raised gold and silver thread. The motifs recall the branches of a tree in spring blossom, and the garment takes its name, "thousand branches", from this branching embroidery. According to material collected in the Taşova area, the bindallı is made of navy, burgundy or purple velvet, cut to reach the ankle, embroidered with various floral designs in metallic thread, and generally worn as an engagement dress. The same compilation records that in towns, the bindallı of purple and burgundy velvet embroidered in gold thread with plant motifs was the preferred dress for henna nights.

The most concrete examples of Amasya's urban dress can be seen today in the Hazeranlar Mansion. The mansion was built in 1865 by Hasan Talat Efendi, the defterdar (chief finance officer) of Amasya, and takes its name from Hazeran Hanım, who lived there for many years. The restoration begun by the Ministry of Culture in 1976 was completed in 1979, and after the display work was finished the mansion opened to visitors on 12 June 1984 as an Ethnographic House Museum. The objects on display include garments reflecting nineteenth-century life, women's jewellery, carpets and kilims. Among them, the bindallı robes, the silver jewellery and the gold-coloured metal-thread embroidery are considered especially significant for what they reveal of the taste of the period.

Because the bindallı was tied to the most special days in a woman's life, her engagement and her henna night, families kept it with great care and often handed it down to later generations. Writers on the region note that men, because of their working lives, adopted modern dress earlier, whereas women, through their attachment to their belongings and their habit of keeping things, ensured that traditional garments survived to the present. The fact that women's clothing was in every period richer and more elaborate than men's is also part of this legacy.

Bridal Dress and the Meaning of Colours

In the Turkish dress tradition the most important ceremonial garment of a woman is the wedding dress. Although its cut, colour and fabric have changed over time, its meaning has remained the same. In the Amasya region the wedding dress was enriched with different weaves, embroidery and colours according to the differences between town and village life, and it was made in shades of red, purple, blue and pink. Today white is used as the symbol of cleanliness and purity. On the henna night, however, the bride is dressed in a red gown and covered with a red veil. It is believed that dressing the bride in red and covering her with a red veil protects her from harm and the evil eye, and that tying a red handkerchief to the groom's back likewise protects him from harm.

The colours most often used in the region's clothing are red, green, yellow and blue, and each of them has been given a meaning. According to material collected in the Taşova area, red symbolises the command of God and, together with the red veil, virginity, fulfilment of one's wish and the joy of seeing one's children grow. Green stands for one's heart's desire, while sky blue expresses the heavens, loftiness and growth. Yellow is regarded as the colour of longing, evil, misfortune and sickness. Orange signifies good luck, black mourning, evil and evil spirits, and purple hurt and resentment. This world of belief explains why the colour of a cloth was chosen one way for a wedding and another way for mourning.

Some customs related to dress still survive in present-day wedding traditions. As the bride leaves her father's house, her brother ties a red "sibling's sash" around her waist. The bride's family hangs gifts such as headscarves, chiffon and towels on the cars that come to fetch her. Although the outfit worn by the bride on the henna night is now in most places a ready-made "henna set", some families still take the bindallı and the şalvar out of the chest again for this night.

Men's Dress

The traditional men's dress of Amasya is far simpler than the women's and puts function first. According to Güneş, the men's costume consists of a fez or wrapped headcloth, an undershirt or melez göynek, the delme waistcoat, şalvar, a shawl sash, sandals and stockings. A fez or skullcap is worn on the head. The fez is purple, with a white lining inside, and takes the shape of the head when worn. A square, coloured kerchief of silk or wool called poşu is wound around the fez like a band. Before it is tied, one end of the poşu is left hanging on the left side of the head, the other end is wound over it, and the wound end is tucked inside.

The shift, also called içlik, is made of white linen or raw silk, and its cloth is the same as that of the women's shift. It is open at the front, long-sleeved, with a stand-up collar, closely set buttons, and long enough to cover the hips. Some have embroidered collars. Dark colours are generally preferred for the delme waistcoat. It is lined, double-breasted, with a "U"-shaped neckline and pockets on the right and left. The cord of the watch chain is fastened in the small pocket on the upper left front, and the watch is placed in that pocket. The şalvar is made of the same cloth as the waistcoat. It is very full at the seat, and because a wide pleated piece cut in a "U" shape is inserted between seat and leg, it has a bellows-like appearance from behind. The leg narrows towards the bottom, and the narrow cuffs give the şalvar a look close to that of trousers.

Men tied two types of sash around the waist, one rectangular and one square. The square sash is folded into a triangle, its upper part folded once more to suit the wearer's waist, and it is tied tightly from right to left with the end tucked inside. The shawl sash measures between two and two and a half metres. When the watch chain is attached to the waistcoat, its links fall over the sash and give the outfit a neat appearance. The sash wound around the waist kept the wearer warm and also served to carry everyday items such as a coin purse. Among the shoes formerly worn in the region were the lakçin, a soft boot of thin leather; the kaleş, a slipper-like shoe made to fit over such a boot; and the çarık, a simple shoe with leather sole and laces used in everyday life. The çarık is also called postal. Stockings were knitted of wool on five needles and differed in no way from women's stockings.

The men's costume used in folk dancing follows these basic elements. As described by costume makers, the Amasya men's costume consists of a double-buttoned poplin shirt, a waistcoat, potur şalvar (or in some districts a bellows-style potur), a finely woven patterned sash called "hasanbeyli", hand-knitted coloured woollen stockings and çarık sandals, with a watch chain added in some districts. On days such as weddings and religious holidays, men's dress also took on a more careful appearance. One of the rare cases in which traditional dress can still be seen on the street is Elvan Özgüray, known as "Elvan Dede", who sells perfume essences in the İçeri Şehir quarter. According to recent news reports, the ninety-two-year-old Özgüray, in his şalvar, cepken and fez, has become a town figure with whom tourists often pose for photographs.

Dress in the Taşova Area

The dress culture of Taşova, in the east of the province, is closer to that of the neighbouring Tokat region. There is a historical reason for this. Villages now attached to Taşova, such as Arpaderesi, formerly belonged to the Erbaa district of Tokat and joined Amasya when Taşova became a district in the 1940s. The villagers say that their dialect, their folk songs and their dress all reflect the Tokat region. The men's garments recorded in this area include the işlik or göynek shirt, the aba coat, cepken, waistcoat, zıvga trousers, sash, stockings, çarık, yemeni and çapula footwear, fez and terlik, the zıvga tie, dolak leg wrappings, coin purse, handkerchief, watch chain and knife.

Most of these garments are made from cloth woven on handlooms to a width of forty to forty-five centimetres. The aba is cut from a thick woven woollen cloth in black or brown, with its sleeves and pocket flaps decorated with machine stitching. The zıvga is a pair of potur trousers made from black or brown şayak (coarse woollen cloth) woven in the depme technique, wide in the crotch and gathered at the waist with a drawstring. The fez is made of red woollen felt, with a silk poşu in red, green and yellow wound around it and its tasselled ends left hanging on both sides. The sash is a square weave striped in red, green and yellow, and serves to keep the waist firm and upright. The handkerchief, folded into a triangle and fastened to the groom's back, has a red or white ground embroidered with flower motifs in cross-stitch and edges decorated with sequins and beads. The white woollen dolak, wound over the stocking from the toes up in winter, and the çapula, a booted shoe made from the hairless skin under a sheep's tail, are pieces suited to the region's climate.

In Taşova the women's costume consists of the inner saya or göynek, the outer saya (that is, the üçpeş or the bindallı), apron, şalvar, fez, yazma, yağlık bib, hair ornament, beaded waist tie, back apron, tuzluk pouch, stockings, mirrored çarık and jewellery. The outer saya is called üçpeş because it has one skirt at the back and two at the front. It is made of velvet, etamine, heavy cotton or kutnu, and the area between the slits and the hem is decorated with embroidery or black braid. Kutnu üçpeş robes have a "V" neckline, and strips of single-coloured silk called "süslük" are sewn along the collar, shoulder and hem edges. The apron worn by women while working is also known locally as "şal öynük". It is woven of wool on the handloom in two pieces and enriched with crochet lace and pompoms. The back apron is a woollen weave striped in yellow and red, white and red, or yellow and white, and is wrapped around the waist so that its forty- to fifty-centimetre fringe falls at the back. The beaded waist tie is made with nine, twelve or sixteen fringes. The yağlık is a small piece covering the throat and neckline, its front worked in beads and cross-stitch. The tuzluk is a small embroidered and beaded pouch hung from the waist or slung across the shoulder.

The headpieces of this area are also varied. The semerli (saddle) or parçalı fez is moulded from felt, its crown given a crescent-shaped dome stuffed with wool, cotton, straw and grass, and ten to fifteen silver coins are sewn in a herringbone pattern over the black band that covers the forehead. The fez with a wooden hoop is covered with red velvet or felt, and gold or silver coins are arranged herringbone-fashion on its front, large ones in the middle and small ones at the sides; this ornament is called "tel". The beaded tie passed from the temple under the chin to hold the fez in place is called the chin tie. Over the fez is laid a "findi" or "elmalı yazma" (apple-patterned scarf) with a black ground printed with dark red or burgundy apple-like designs, its edges trimmed with sequin lace made by the shuttle-tatting technique. The beaded hair ornament woven into the braids and hanging down to the waist, the silver sakalduruk hanging from the fez to the cheek, and the hamaylı in which amulets and charms were carried complete these headpieces. The alaçorap stockings, knitted on five needles from silk or wool yarn coloured with root dyes, show below the şalvar.

A Study of Headpieces in Suluova

A field study of the women's headpieces used in the district of Suluova and its villages shows in figures the present state of this dress culture. Fifty people were interviewed, and thirty-seven headpieces with their accompanying garments were examined on separate record forms. Half of those interviewed said they had worn the headpiece at weddings and thirty per cent at engagements, while six per cent said they had worn it every day for forty years but had given it up when fashions around them changed. No one was found still wearing a headpiece today. Locally the headpiece is most often called fez, followed by alınlık, tepelik and tirşe.

Felt, cloth and metal were used in roughly equal proportions in the base of the headpieces, while brass coins and beads predominated in the decoration. Ornament is concentrated mostly on the crown, the forehead and the covering cloth of the headpiece. Moulding, relief work and whipstitch were used in making them, and lace and metallic-thread embroidery on the garments and scarves. The great majority of colours are burgundy, yellow, green, blue and white. The garments worn with the headpiece fall into groups: şalvar and dress; şalvar, shirt, üçetek, sash and cepken; or şalvar and bindallı. It was found that şalvar and bindallı are still worn, if only occasionally, at henna nights. Among men's headwear, the turban was worn by the elderly, the fez by the middle-aged and the skullcap by the young.

The study stresses that Suluova's formation as a district settled by migrants accounts for the variety in its headpieces and costumes. It also records the reasons why so few headpieces have survived. Because younger generations did not appreciate their value, some were sold, some were taken apart to be used for other purposes, and those whose worth was recognised were given to museums. At the end of the study, products inspired by the headpieces, such as key rings and coin purses, were designed to help promote the district.

Weaving and Merzifon Cloth

The dress of the Amasya region depends to a great extent on fabrics woven on local looms. The striped silk of the shift, the two-coloured weave of the şalvar, the sashes and the çarpana belts are all products of the handloom. One of the most deeply rooted centres of this tradition is Merzifon. Merzifon weaving is a handwoven cloth, usually on a white ground, produced from cotton yarn on a two-treadle fly-shuttle loom. Locally it is simply called "bez" (cloth), and it is used to make shirts, underwear, sheets, towels, bath wraps and covers. Its history goes back to the nineteenth century, and it is a constant feature of the trousseau chests of the area.

Some varieties of Merzifon weaving are directly related to clothing. Bürük weave, produced by combining the plain and the pile-like "potlu" techniques, is used for women's outerwear; alaca weave, in which two colours are reflected into each other, for bath wraps and outerwear; and kıvratma weave, woven with elastic yarn, for both under- and outer garments. Bright colours are preferred for the yarn, red above all, along with turquoise, blue, green, orange, yellow, purple and pink. The weavers' favourite motifs include the rose branch, the bridal veil, the rosehip flower, the daisy and geometric designs. The ends of the cloths are finished with fringes knotted in macramé, bearing names such as genie's knot, sheet tie and heart tie. Following an application by the Merzifon Chamber of Commerce and Industry in 2021, Merzifon weaving was registered in 2024 as a geographical indication with a designation of origin.

In the early Republican period, Merzifon weaving also acquired an institutional structure. The weavers founded an association on 7 July 1936, and in the same year the district was recorded as having three thousand five hundred weavers, seventy dyers and warpers and two hundred and fifty winders. The association did not allow unstamped goods to be sold and fixed the lengths and dyes of cloth under ninety-two headings, with the result that demand for Merzifon cloth from large cities such as İzmir, İstanbul and Konya could no longer be met. By the fifteenth year of the Republic, the number of handlooms in Merzifon and its villages had reached three to four thousand.

Traces of the dress culture can also be found in the region's oral tradition. In Haluk Yücel's study of the folk songs of Merzifon, the clothing and ornaments most often mentioned in the ninety-four songs examined are the handkerchief, the hair clasp and the shirt, while bracelets, rings, the yazma scarf, the shawl and the şalvar are also named. A line from a folk song collected in Taşova, "the flowers of the scarf on your head / do they never fade", is a small example of how large a place the yazma held in everyday life.

Folk Dance Costume and the Present Day

Today Amasya's traditional costumes live on chiefly on the folk dance stage. The women's costume prepared for folk dancing consists of an inner shift, şalvar, üçetek, shawl, önnük apron, cepken, waistcoat, fez, yemeni, stockings and çarık. The women's costume is more colourful and made up of more pieces than those of other regions. Velvet and satin are used as fabrics, and the workmanship includes suzani and cordonnet embroidery. The waist sashes are tied crosswise. The önnük is a decorated, colourful apron tied over the üçetek, and the shawl is a thin, colourful, lace-edged cloth worn over the head or shoulders. The defining feature of the costume is layering. Bright colours and embroidery stand out in women's garments, while men's garments are plainer and in darker tones. Both costumes are cut full and loose to suit the nimble figures of the dances.

In daily life these garments are now worn mostly at weddings, henna nights, folk dance performances and on special occasions. As the inventory points out, some pieces, especially the old embroidered woollen stockings and the çarık sandals, have not survived. Of the examples that remain, some are kept in family chests and some in museums such as the Hazeranlar Mansion. This diversity, which stretches from the Yörük villages of Göynücek to the Tokat-influenced villages of Taşova, and from the migrant headpieces of Suluova to the looms of Merzifon, shows that Amasya's dress is a layered tradition that does not fit into a single mould.

Chronology

19th century: Merzifon weaving establishes its place in the local economy and in the trousseau tradition.

1865: Hasan Talat Efendi, defterdar of Amasya, builds the Hazeranlar Mansion, where bindallı robes and gold-thread embroidery are displayed today.

1936: The Merzifon weavers found their association on 7 July. The district has 3,500 weavers, 70 dyers and warpers and 250 winders.

1940s: With Taşova becoming a district, some villages formerly attached to Tokat join Amasya, bringing their Tokat-influenced dress culture with them.

1976–1979: The Hazeranlar Mansion is restored by the Ministry of Culture.

1984: The Hazeranlar Mansion opens to visitors on 12 June as an Ethnographic House Museum.

2002: Güneş describes in detail the women's and men's costumes of Ilısu village in Göynücek.

2021: The Merzifon Chamber of Commerce and Industry applies for geographical indication status for Merzifon weaving.

2024: Merzifon weaving is registered on 5 August with a designation of origin.

Bibliography

Academic studies

Official sources

Other sources

Online sources