A honggaitou (Chinese: 红盖头; pinyin: hónggàitou), also shortened to gaitou (Chinese: 盖头; pinyin: gàitou; lit. 'head cover')[1] and referred to as red veil in English,[2]: 37 is a traditional red-coloured bridal veil worn by the Han Chinese brides to cover their faces on their wedding ceremony before their wedding night.[2]: 37 The honggaitou is worn along with a red wedding dress.[a][3]: 560 Veils have been used in China since the Han dynasty.[4]: 202 The custom of wearing the honggaitou for wedding ceremonies can be traced back to the Song dynasty period.[4]: 202 The custom of wearing the honggaitou, along with the traditional red wedding dress, continues to be practiced in modern-day China. However, under the influence of Western culture and globalization, most Chinese brides nowadays wear white wedding dresses and a white veil, an imitation of Western Christian weddings,[5] instead of the red wedding dresses and honggaitou.[6]
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