The Manabí clothing consists of a cotona or light shirt, cloth pants, a straw hat and a mocora palm, for men. The woman wore a long and loose skirt, long-sleeved polka dots, adorned with arambeles and frets or lace. Long braided hair adorned with colorful ribbons and flowers.
Manaba is an Ecuadorian province located in the center-northwest of Ecuador, on the coast of the country. The capital is Portoviejo. Its limit to the north is with the province of Esmeraldas, to the west with the Pacific Ocean, to the east with the province of Santo Domingo de Tsáchilas and Los Ríos, and to the south with the province of Santa Elena and Guayas.
Origin of Manabí clothing
The way to dress Manabi, comes from the Montubian culture. This identity arises from the colony. It is the product of the mixture of the native coastal and mountain societies. They mixed with black, Spanish (Andalusian mostly), creole and mestizo slaves of the time.
There are currently 1,200 Montubia communities registered with the Ministry of Social Inclusion of Ecuador in the provinces of Guayas, Manaba, Los Ríos and El Oro.
It is the most important ethnic minority group in the country, above Afro-Ecuadorians and indigenous people.
Manabi clothing and its characteristics
The Montubia Manabi woman's clothing reflected her state of mind. Her clothing is very colorful and with striking combinations.
The montubio recreates its natural environment in its clothing. In the case of women, it represents the peacock when it spreads its feathers. Hence the breadth and showiness of her skirt. The blouses were called polkas. They had an inset in the front, and they had hemlines and lace.
Married women wore more discreet colored clothes and was more covered. The single women wore more striking colors and were more exposed.
The hairstyle was also different, in everyday life the woman wore two braids and at parties she added more showy bows and adorned it with flowers.
The Manabí culture today
With the passage of time, the Montubia Manabi culture has been lost. The dress is only worn at parties and festivities.
The abandonment of agriculture made the peasants migrate to the cities in search of well-being, assuming new customs and new ways of dressing.
The consequence was natal uprooting. In this way, the children who were born in the city are unaware of their Manabi past, which leads to the loss of a large part of their culture.
Among the main manifestations that are preserved of the Montubian culture is the "amorfino", oral heritage of the people.
They are popular songs improvised by two musicians. Alternately, rhyming verse quatrains are created. In them political or social events are discussed, or to woo the ladies.
One of the icons of the Montubio people is the rodeo. The Montubio man is an excellent rider, and rodeo with animals is his sport par excellence.
Man's clothing has to do with being a rider; cotton shirt buttoned up to the neck and sturdy fabric trousers. To ride he rolled it up to the top of the ankle, and used spurs.
References
- "The clothing of the Montubia woman reflected joy" in Culture & Society (August 2016). Recovered in September 2017 from El Diario EC in: eldiario.ec
- "Typical Manabi costumes" in Soy Manaba de corazón. Recovered in September 2017 from I am Manaba de corazón at: sites.google.com
- "The dance of the Iguana, Manabi tradition of the colonial era" in Regional Manabí (October 2014). Recovered in September 2017 from El Telégrafo in: eltelegrafo.com.ec
- "Montubios: one of the most representative towns on the Ecuadorian coast" in Metro. Recovered in September 2017 from Metro: metroecuador.com.ec
- "Montubios, a vital group in Ecuador" in Film and TV (October 2014). Recovered in September 2017 from El Universo at: eluniverso.com.