sarafan

1 9.9

A long Russian dress without sleeves worn over a blouse

noun
/ˈsærəˌfæn/

: sarafán

The sarafan is a symbol of Russian culture.

Examples

She wore a beautiful sarafan to the festival.
The museum displayed a beautifully embroidered sarafan from the 19th century.
She wore a bright red sarafan to the folk festival.
During the performance, all the dancers wore a traditional sarafan over white blouses.
In traditional Russian culture, women often wear a sarafan over a blouse for festive occasions.
The old photograph showed her grandmother in a beautiful sarafan at a village festival.
During the folk art exhibition, many dancers proudly displayed their colorful sarafans as they performed.

Synonyms

peasant dress

vssarafan

1 3.4

A loose women's dress with gathered sleeves and simple embroidery

is sleeveless and worn layered over a blouse rather than having loose sleeves

Surface Forms

sarafan singular

sarafans plural

Etymology

Sarafan comes from Russian and originally named a long, sleeveless folk dress worn over a blouse. Think of it as the bright dress dancers wear at folk festivals, and that's why sarafan still means that traditional garment today.