Čādoršab

If there is one thing that unites the different roles Gilaki (especially Qasemabadi) women play in society, it is the Čādoršab. This garment is a thin patterned silk that is wrapped around the waist during farming or other laborious tasks to protect the back. It is also used to wrap and carry a baby on the body. The Čādoršab is often given as a gift to women getting married from their families (Bomberger et al., 840-848).

Grab a near by blanket, scarf or sweater. Tie it around your waist tight, preferably wraping it around more than once. Now try to touch your toes! How does your back feel?

Čādoršab fabrics are woven on looms (pāčāl) with treadles and two rows of heddles and are made of silk harvested locally. Women are involved with every step of the garment's lifespan as traditional Gilaki women are also publicly involved in agriculture and craftsmanship. This isn't the case in all parts of the country where women are secluded to the private sphere. Women in Gilan are laboriously involved with the rural production of rice, tea, silk as well as other goods. Both men and women are involved in clothes making, rug making and other crafts. Even in the home, there is not much sexual division (Bomberger).

The progressive nature of this traditional Iranian culture has become a type of heritage that the people of Iran now cling to. With lots of cultural export from Gilan and a push for tourism, most Iranians identify with this archetype of woman as opposed to the secluded type seen more in the plateaus (Bastenegar, 105-111).