---
node: garment_ruqun
type: garment
slug: ruqun
title: "Ruqun"
lead: "The ruqun is the two-piece outfit of a short jacket (ru) worn over a long skirt (qun), the everyday dress of Chinese women for centuries. Its high-waisted Tang-dynasty form, tied above the bust, is the most iconic."
published: 2026-08-09
updated: 2026-08-09
image_file: ruqun.jpg
image_source: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E6%8F%AE%E6%89%87%E4%BB%95%E5%A5%B3%E5%9C%96%EF%BC%88%E5%B1%80%E9%83%A8%EF%BC%89.jpg"
image_author: "Zhou Fang"
image_license: "Public domain"
---

## Overview

A ruqun pairs a waist- or hip-length upper garment with a wrapped or gathered skirt tied at or above the waist. It is one of the oldest and most enduring shapes of Han Chinese women's dress, worn in countless variations of length, collar, and sleeve.

## How it is worn

The jacket is put on first and the skirt tied over it; in the Tang high-waisted style (qixiong ruqun) the skirt is tied at the chest, often with a long sash and a gauze shawl draped over the arms. Sleeve width and skirt fullness signalled the fashion of the day.

## History

The ru-and-qun combination goes back to pre-imperial China and ran through the Han, but it reached its most celebrated form in the Tang, when full skirts, high waists, and airy silks matched the era's confident taste. It remains central to the modern hanfu movement.