Banyan (clothing)

For other uses, see Banyan (disambiguation).
Ward Nicholas Boylston in a brilliant green banyan and a cap, painted by John Singleton Copley, 1767.
Fitted banyan, 1750–1760
Sir Isaac Newton painted by James Thornhill, 1709–1715. Note T-shaped cut without a shoulder seam.

A banyan is a garment worn by European men and women in the late 17th and 18th century, influenced by the Japanese kimono brought to Europe by the Dutch East India Company in the mid-17th century.[1] "Banyan" is also commonly used in present-day Indian English and other countries in the Indian subcontinent to mean "vest" or "undershirt".

Also called a morning gown, robe de chambre or nightgown, the banyan was a loose, T-shaped gown or kimono-like garment, made of cotton, linen, or silk and worn at home as a sort of dressing gown or informal coat over the shirt and breeches. The typical banyan was cut en chemise, with the sleeves and body cut as one piece. It was usually paired with a soft, turban-like cap worn in place of the formal periwig. An alternative style of banyan was cut like a coat, fitted, with set-in sleeves, and was closed with buttons and buttonholes.[2]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference VictoriaAlbert was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Waugh (1994), p. 89