Along the southern shores of the Caspian Sea, in the north of the country, stretch the coastal plain and mountain slopes of what is generally called Gilan. The traditional dress for men in Gilan consists of a short tunic (pirahan) or, more commonly, a Western style shirt. On top are worn waistcoats, which are often made of sal, which is a locally made woollen cloth, and a Western style jacket (kut). Many men used to wear a type of trousers (sal-shalvar) made of sal or thick cotton, which reaches to the ankles. At the end of the twentieth century, however, it is usually only the shepherds who wear such trousers. Similarly, puttees made from bands of cloth (patava) used to be wrapped over the trousers up to the knees and were regarded as a distinctive feature of Gilani male costume. The puttees were necessary as a protection against the thorny bushes, which abound in this region. Nowadays, however, few men wear patava, as their protective function is now being filled by thick, hand knitted socks (jurab), which cover the trousers up to mid-calf height.
By the turn of of the twentieth and twnty-first century, the basic outfit of a Gilani woman consists of close-fitting, ankle length trousers (bapare), over which are worn a full skirt (tuman), gathered at the waist. Women normally wear two or three skirts together, one on top of each other. The length of the skirt is often used to indicate the age of the wearer: a younger woman will have a calf-length skirt, while an older woman’s version may reach the ankles or the ground. In addition, in the eastern parts of Gilan, the skirt reaches to the thighs or even to the knees, while in the west it may come down to the ankles.
Over the skirt is worn a tunic (shiy). There are two slits at either side of the garment to allow for the fullness of the skirts. A waistcoat is normally worn over the shiy. As a generalisation, dark grey or black waistcoats are worn on a daily basis, while those for special events are normally in bright colours and ornamented with braids, beads and coins. Another distinctive regional garment is the sash (charshu), which is a rectangular piece of cloth folded into a triangle and worn knotted around the waist with the point at the side or back.
At home a woman may wear a scarf (lachak), which covers only the top of the head. In the eastern part of Gilan these tend to be made of plain black cloth, folded into a triangle. Elsewhere the scarf may be white or with a plain, lightish colour. Outside the home, women normally wear a white shawl (dasmal). It is made from a square piece of material, folded into a triangle and then knotted or crossed under the chin.
The traditional shoes (chumush) from the region, for both men and women, are made from cow's leather and basically consist of soles that are large enough to envelop the lower part of the foot. They are kept in place with a system of thongs that are pulled tightly, so bringing the leather upward and enclosing the foot.
