As the precursor to the modern Ao dai, the “traditional five-panel Ao dai” features a larger amount of fabric compared to the standard Ao dai, and its design follows an older style, making it suitable as attire for all social classes. Consequently, compared to the modern Ao dai, which is tailored to accentuate the waist and highlight the wearer’s shape and curves, the five-panel Ao dai has a higher “using” value due to its loose and comfortable shape that accommodates various body types. Above all, it embodies the national spirit and “national essence”, making it easier to resonate with people when reused.

Deeply connected to the fashion industry and with a profound love for traditional Ao dai, Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh, Chairwoman of the Thua Thien Hue Garment Association and Director of SH Trading One Member Limited Liability Company, has nurtured the idea of “spreading love for traditional costumes among the youth” for the past two years. The 2024-2025 school year is a ripe moment for this plan, with the first step is reaching out to high schools in the area for implementation. Even in the final days of summer, as schools hurriedly prepared for the new academic year, Ms. Hanh and her team contacted several high schools in the city and donated sets of five-panel Ao dai with small sleeves to the female students.

“Five-panel Ao dai is originally designed for both men and women. However, nowadays, the image of the Ao dai has become a hallmark of Vietnamese female students, while male students are still... not used to it. So, for now, the activity is aimed at females to provide an additional option besides the traditional white Ao dai, known as the five-panel Ao dai,” said Ms. Hanh. The first addresses that the Thua Thien Garment Association targets include Hue Sciences High school for the Gifted, as well as Nguyen Hue High school and Gia Hoi High School, with each school piloting one class.

At the Hue Sciences High school for the Gifted, one of the first and most enthusiastic institutions to accept the invitation to participate in this activity, Dr. Nguyen Van Hung, Vice Principal of the school stated: “Since 2018, when the content related to local education was added to the general education program, our school has been focused much on incorporating lessons and extracurricular activities relating to the heritage and culture of Thua Thien Hue, including the history of Ao dai. Recognizing that this activity aligns with the school’s direction, we count the collaboration with the Association as a beautiful blend of theory and practice, so we agree to implement it immediately”.

Just only three days after the decision, representatives from the Association came to the school to take measures for each female student in the 10th-grade Literature classes to ensure they would be ready for the opening ceremony. According to Mr. Hung, the female students in the 10th-grade Literature class will wear the five-panel traditional Ao dai on the first Monday of each month, while on other Mondays, they will continue to wear the white Ao dai. After one semester, the school may gather feedback from each student to assess whether introducing the five-panel Ao dai as a school uniform is suitable. “We need time for the students to experience wearing the new uniform in Hue rainy and sunny seasons. From that, we can get accurate evaluations about the appropriation of wearing five-panel Ao dai to school,” said Mr. Hung.

The initiative to take the traditional five-panel Ao dai into schools by the Association has received support from various Ao dai businesses such as Hue SH Ao dai, Nguyen Trang Ao dai, Quang Hoa Ao dai, Tran Thien Khanh Design, Hoa Nghiem Vietnamese costumes, and Doan Trang Ao dai. These are well-known names in the Ao dai industry in Vietnam in general and Hue in particular, and they are also active participants in the effort to establish Hue as the capital of Ao dai. Their support extends not only in spirit but also in material. Specifically, they contributed both labor and fabric to make Ao dai for female students, in which tailoring the garments individually for each student. The total number of traditional five-panel Ao dai that these six businesses plan to donate to three high schools is nearly 200 sets.

Bringing the five-panel Ao dai into schools will help young people “become familiar with, grow attached to, and cherish” the five-panel Ao dai, not as something “stepping out of history books”, but as something coming from real life, from their early years under the school roof. By understanding and identifying themselves with the traditional costume of the nation, they will be proud of and love their hometown’s culture, as well as the land of Hue Ancient Capital. This activity is the way that the Hue Sciences High school for the Gifted supports Hue City’s goal of becoming a centrally-governed municipality,” Mr. Hung remarked.