Traditional Marshallese dress for both sexes left the upper body unclothed and covered only the lower body and the thighs. A woman's knees, in particular, were sexually suggestive and not to be seen at any point (I thank Peter Roudiak-Gould for this observation!). The missionaries, who were not too pleased with all this nudity, introduced 'western' clothing in the islands, resulting in rather unpractical long Victorian-style gowns. Nowadays, Marshallese woman's fashion is starkly age-graded: While older and middle-aged women wear colourful flowy Muumuu style dresses (called 'Guams', as you can see below), younger women wear more and more americanised clothing. You even see some scandalously sexy tank tops and tight (!) shorts being paraded around, Needless to say, the older folks are none too pleased. So I got my first guam - here it is :) |