Traditional Dress
Bhutanese have a traditional style of clothing which they wear most of the time. The men wear a “gho” (pronounced “go’), which is like a robe, hitched up to the knees with a sash. Underneath is worn a shirt and shorts. Shoes and knee socks complete the outfit, except in cold weather, when long johns are frequently worn.
Women wear a kira, a long seamless ankle length dress, folded under the right arm and wrapped around, fastened at both shoulders with two silver brooches and tied with a sash. They wear a blouse underneath the kira and frequently wear a waist length button less jacket over it.
Both men and women must wear a ceremonial scarf over their traditional dress, when they visit a government building. For men, this is called a kabne and the color denotes their position - white for most people, orange for senior officials, yellow for the king and chief abbot, etc.
