Áo dài
For centuries, peasant women typically wore a halter top () under a blouse or overcoat, alongside a skirt (váy). Aristocrats, on the other hand, favored a cross-collared robe called áo giao lĩnh, which bore a resemblance to the Korean hanbok, and the Japanese kimono. In 1744, Lord Nguyễn Phúc Khoát of Huế decreed that for men and women at his court to wear trousers and a gown with buttons down the front. The writer Lê Quý Đôn described the newfangled outfit as an áo dài (long garment). The members of the southern court were thus distinguished from the courtiers of the Trịnh Lords in Hanoi, who wore áo giao lĩnh with long skirts.