Ethiopian woman in Addis Ababa wears violet Habesha kemis.

Habesha kemis (Amharic: ቀሚስ lit. "Shirt" or "Dress") is the traditional attire of Habesha women.[1][2]

The ankle length dress is usually worn by Ethiopian and Eritrean women at formal events, holidays and invitations, and comes in many regional varieties. It is made of cotton fabric, and typically comes in white, grey or beige shades. Many women also wrap a shawl called a netela around the formal dress.

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References

  1. ^ Travel & leisure Volume 36 2006 "A woman with her hair in tight braids and wearing habesha kemis — a white ankle-length dress with intricate embroidery — came around to each of us with a silver kettle of warm water and a silver basin for washing our hands."
  2. ^ Lisa L. Schoonover The Indigo Butterfly Page 114 2012 "The habasha kemis is a dress is made from traditionally using cotton and its generally grouped in the catogery of yahager lebse. Shiny threads called tilet are woven into the white fabric that creates an elegant effect. The hem of the dress is quite ornated by the tilet. “It takes about three weeks for them to make the dress. I had to special order it,” Sherine explains."

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