Restoration of Folk Costumes in Brno Districts

The inhabitants of the Czech-German city of Brno stopped wearing traditional costumes in the mid-nineteenth century, and only several suburban villages supplying the market with local products kept them as a sign of quality. Material documents have disappeared; the oldest pictorial sources date from the turn of the twentieth century. Under the influence of svéráz [» peculiarity] and due to the need to demonstrate belonging to the Czech nation, festive folk dress from the Kyjov area was worn in the interwar period. In the second half of the twentieth century, this type of folk dress was also worn at kermesses. In the new millennium, individual city districts have made greater effort to restore the original folk dress ensembles. Sometimes, this is initiated by members of folk ensembles and local history and geography enthusiasts, but in many cases this activity comes from the ranks of political representatives. The restoration of folk costumes has thus become a matter of prestige, leading to competition between neighbouring city districts. The quality of the folk costumes corresponds to the level of effort to achieve credibility, and the financial resources available.