The Traditional Dress – Dirndl

The dirndl – the sound of the name alone conjures up images of mountains, fresh country air, green fields and happily laughing women with rosy cheeks. We allow ourselves to be seduced by the thought of the simple, healthy life in harmony with nature, and wallow in nostalgic reminiscences about old traditional ways and customs of the regions around the Alps.

With these thoughts, it soon becomes clear that the dirndl is much more than a simple piece of clothing. It is also an expression of the feeling of connection with one’s homeland, of the longing for the simple life of the rustic idyll. So it does not appear so strange if wearing this costume changes the wearer not just outwardly but also inwardly. Just the simple cut of the dirndl, consisting of a tight, sometimes low-cut top, a blouse reaching to just below the breast, a wide skirt and an apron, is unique in the way it makes the most of the female form.

The breast is lifted, the waist emphasised and any unattractive bits of padding miraculously hidden under the broad sweep of the skirt. So there is no more need to torture oneself for hours in fitness studios to feel like a seductive Dirn (young girl). The fact that the dirndl so enhances the female figure can be put down to its being originally conceived as underwear, as a bustier with matching petticoat.

Simple and frill-free in its design and allowing full freedom of movement, it then progressed in the middle of the 19th century to become the farm girl’s working wear. By wearing an apron as well, the material was protected, the life expectancy of the dress increased and the girls’ purses were spared. It was prepared from local products, especially linen and loden, most of which are to this day still produced in local factories. After that, the dirndl started to become popular as everyday wear for the rural servant class.

But by the end of the 19th century, city folk seeking peace and relaxation in the country discovered the dirndl for themselves. For them it was a welcome opportunity to keep a bit of the rural idyll for themselves. The relaxation might soon be gone, but there was still a little part of the rustic life to hang on to: you only had to open the wardrobe – the “urban dirndl” as a fashionable way of expressing one’s connection to nature.

For the rural population, however, the costume represents not only a symbolic, but also a real relationship with the home. For regional costumes, like coats of arms, express a certain sense of belonging to a place, which is shown by determinate colours and patterns of the dress and the apron. So the dirndl is not just a simple item of clothing, but represents the wearer’s pride in her tradition and origin.

Over time, the dirndl has evolved from a simple item of underwear and work dress of exclusively functional nature to an ideologically oriented garment to a trend object, particularly for visitors to the Munich Oktoberfest. Finally, the significance of the correct lacing needs to be addressed. If, on occasion, you should wear a dirndl, but not be approached by any of the nice gentlemen in their lederhosen, don’t be concerned about yourself and your appearance straight away, but first check the placement of the bow on your apron.

If it is tied on the right side, this means that you are already taken and not inclined to take up with someone else. Knotted in the middle, it is a public declaration of virginity. Only a bow on the left-hand side signifies that one is free and definitely inclined towards making a new acquaintance. Special care needs to be taken, however, in the case of bows at the back – because these do not mean that the ribbons are too long, but that the wearer is already a widow. So many ladies have in this way unwittingly “buried” their husbands symbolically.

Alun Hill MCIJ