Glossary
182 saree words explained in plain language: the parts of a saree, weaving and looms, fibres, dyes and prints, embroidery, motifs and the words of the wardrobe.
Presented by ClearTrust Free for weavers, wearers and the curious.
A
- Aari
- Embroidery done with a hooked needle that makes quick chain stitch, worked on a stretched frame.
- Ahimsa silk
- Silk made without killing the pupa in the cocoon, because the moth is allowed to leave before the silk is spun.
- Ajrakh
- A block print of Sindh and Kutch in indigo and madder red, printed on both sides of the cloth.
- Alum
- A mineral salt, the most widely used mordant in Indian natural dyeing.
- Angavastram
- A long upper cloth worn over the shoulder, especially with a dhoti and at temple and ritual occasions.
- Antariya
- The lower garment of early India, a cloth wrapped round the waist and legs, an ancestor of the saree.
- Appliqué
- Decoration made by sewing shapes of one cloth on to another.
- Art silk
- A trade name for man-made fibre cloth sold as a cheaper stand-in for silk, usually viscose rayon, polyester or nylon.
- Azo-free
- Made with synthetic dyes that do not break down into certain banned chemicals, a standard for safe colour.
B
- Bagru
- Hand block printing from the village of Bagru in Rajasthan, with natural dyes and a mud resist.
- Bandhani
- A tie-dye craft of Gujarat and Rajasthan in which tiny points of cloth are tied tightly with thread before dyeing.
- Batik
- A resist method in which wax is applied to cloth before dyeing so that the waxed areas keep their colour.
- Bead work
- Decoration with beads, pearls and sequins stitched on to cloth, often together with zardozi or aari.
- Blend
- Cloth made of two or more fibres mixed in the yarn or used in the warp and weft, such as silk and cotton or cotton and polyester.
- Block print
- A method of printing patterns on cloth with carved wooden blocks dipped in dye.
- Blouse
- The fitted, short upper garment worn with a saree, leaving the midriff bare.
- Blouse piece
- A length of cloth sold with the saree, meant to be stitched into the blouse.
- Body
- The main stretch of the saree between the two borders and before the pallu.
- Border
- The decorated band that runs along each long edge of a saree.
- Brocade
- A heavy woven cloth with raised patterns made by extra weft threads, often in zari.
- Burn test
- A simple home check for the fibre in a saree: burn a loose thread and look at how it burns, smells and what it leaves.
- Buta
- A small repeated motif, such as a flower, leaf or sprig, scattered over the body or the pallu of a saree.
C
- Chador
- The upper cloth of the Assamese mekhela chador, draped over the blouse and tucked into the mekhela at the waist.
- Chanderi
- A light, sheer cloth from Chanderi in Madhya Pradesh, woven in silk, cotton or a blend, with small zari motifs and borders.
- Chaniya choli
- The three-piece outfit of Gujarat and Rajasthan: a flared skirt, a short blouse and a long scarf.
- Charkha
- The hand-turned spinning wheel that twists loose fibre into yarn, closely tied to the history of khadi.
- Chiffon
- A very light, sheer, plain-weave cloth made of fine, tightly twisted yarn, which floats and drapes softly.
- Chikankari
- White-on-white embroidery of Lucknow, worked in many stitches, including the shadow stitch.
- Choli
- A short fitted bodice worn with a saree or a lehenga, the older name behind the modern saree blouse.
- Chunri
- A tie-dyed scarf or saree dotted with tiny tied circles, from Rajasthan and Gujarat.
- Crepe
- A cloth with a crinkled, pebbly surface made by using highly twisted yarn, in silk, polyester or other fibres.
- Cutwork
- Extra-weft weaving in which the thread carried across the back between motifs is trimmed away after the cloth is woven.
D
- Dabu
- A resist print in which a paste of mud, lime and gum is stamped on cloth before it is dyed.
- Degumming
- Boiling silk in a soapy or mildly alkaline bath to remove its gum, which makes the thread soft and shiny.
- Denier
- A measure of thread thickness used for silk and man-made fibres: the weight in grams of 9,000 metres of the yarn.
- Dhoop chaon
- A cloth woven with warp in one colour and weft in another, so the colour seems to shift with the light and the angle.
- Dhoti
- A long rectangle of unstitched cloth wrapped round the waist and legs, worn by men and in some drapes by women.
- Discontinuous weft
- A weave where a coloured or zari weft runs only within its own motif, turning back instead of crossing the whole width.
- Dobby
- An attachment that lifts chosen heddles in a set order, giving small woven patterns such as tiny checks, dots and diamonds.
- Dupatta
- A long scarf worn over the shoulders or head, with a salwar suit, a lehenga or a ghagra.
- Dupion
- A crisp silk with a slightly uneven, slubby thread, made from double cocoons that two worms have spun together.
E
- Elephant
- An elephant motif, a sign of royalty and good fortune, woven or printed in rows or in processions.
- Eri
- A soft, warm, cream-coloured silk from Assam and the northeast, spun rather than reeled, from a worm fed on castor leaves.
- Extra weft
- An added weft thread, often of zari or coloured silk, woven in only where the pattern calls for it, on top of the ground cloth.
F
- Fall
- A strip of plain cloth stitched on the inside of the lower hem to weight it and protect it from wear.
- Float
- A stretch of thread that passes over several crossing threads without binding down, seen as a loose strand on the back of patterned cloth.
- Fly shuttle
- A shuttle driven across the loom by a cord pulled with one hand, which speeds up weaving and allows wider cloth.
- Frame loom
- A handloom built on a raised wooden frame, with the weaver seated on a bench and the pedals hanging below.
G
- Gara
- A Parsi saree with fine embroidery, often of birds, flowers and Chinese scenes, worn with the pallu in front.
- Georgette
- A light, sheer, slightly crinkled cloth woven from tightly twisted yarns in both warp and weft, in silk or polyester.
- Ghagra
- A long, full, gathered skirt worn by women in north and west India.
- Gharchola
- A Gujarati bridal bandhani saree, red with a grid of small squares, each holding a motif.
- Ghoonghat
- A veil made by drawing the pallu or a dupatta over the head and sometimes the face.
- Gota patti
- A Rajasthani craft of sewing small shapes of flat metallic ribbon on to cloth as appliqué.
H
- Haku patasi
- A black cloth with a red border, the traditional wrap of Newar women in Nepal.
- Hamsa
- A swan or goose motif, a bird of Indian myth, often woven in pairs on borders and the body.
- Handloom
- A loom worked by the weaver's own hands and feet, with no electric power, and the cloth woven on it.
- Handloom Mark
- A label issued by the Indian government to show that a piece of cloth was woven on a handloom, not on a powerloom.
- Hank
- A loose loop of yarn wound in a ring, the form in which yarn is dyed and sold to weavers before it is wound onto bobbins.
- Heddle
- A cord or wire with a small eye that holds one warp thread, so that groups of threads can be raised or lowered together.
- Hem
- The lower edge of the saree, the one that falls near the ankle when the cloth is worn.
- Htamein
- The wrapped ankle-length skirt of Myanmar women, a cousin of the saree.
I
J
- Jaal
- A pattern of an all-over network of vines, flowers or shapes that covers the saree's field.
- Jacquard
- A loom attachment, first made in France in the early nineteenth century, that lets each warp thread be raised on its own for complex patterns.
- Jamdani
- A fine, figured cotton cloth from Bangladesh and India in which motifs are woven in with extra weft threads, thread by thread.
- Jangla
- A Banarasi design of dense, winding vines and flowers that fills the whole saree like a jungle.
K
- Kaccha
- A style in which the saree is passed between the legs and tucked at the back, giving a trouser-like shape.
- Kairi
- The mango motif, a curved teardrop shape found across Indian weaving and embroidery.
- Kalam
- The bamboo pen with a felt-like tip used to draw and fill in colour in hand-drawn kalamkari.
- Kalamkari
- A craft of Andhra Pradesh in which patterns are drawn or printed on cotton with natural dyes.
- Kalga
- A plume-shaped motif, close to the paisley, used in Banarasi and other brocades.
- Kantha
- Running-stitch embroidery of Bengal and Bangladesh, first made by stitching layers of old cloth together.
- Kasavu
- The gold zari border of Kerala, and the cream handloom cotton saree and set-mundu that carry it.
- Kasuti
- A counted-thread embroidery of Karnataka, worked in tiny stitches on both faces of the cloth.
- Khadi
- Cloth that is both hand-spun and handwoven, tied in India to Gandhi and the swadeshi movement.
- Kora
- Raw or unbleached cloth, and in silk a crisp, sheer cloth woven with the gum left in the thread.
- Korvai
- In Kanchipuram weaving, a border in a different colour woven separately and joined to the body by interlocking the weft threads.
- Kota doria
- A very light cotton and silk cloth from Kota in Rajasthan, woven in a square check pattern that gives it a transparent, airy feel.
- Kuchu
- The tassels at the end of the pallu, formed by knotting or twisting the loose warp threads.
- Kuttu
- The interlocking join used in Gadwal sarees, where a silk border and pallu are woven into a cotton body rather than sewn on.
L
- Lac
- A red dye and resin made by lac insects on tree twigs, used on silk and cotton.
- Langa voni
- A three-piece south Indian dress: a long skirt, a blouse and a half-length scarf called a voni or davani.
- Lehenga
- A long, flared skirt, worn with a choli and a dupatta, common for weddings in north and west India.
- Lehenga saree
- A saree sewn or draped to look like a lehenga skirt with an attached pallu.
- Leheriya
- A Rajasthani tie-dye that makes diagonal wave stripes, worn especially in the rainy season.
- Leno weave
- An open weave where pairs of warp threads twist around each weft thread, giving a light, airy cloth that does not slip.
- Linen
- Cloth woven from flax fibre, crisp and cool to wear, which creases easily and softens with each wash.
- Loom
- The frame or machine that holds the warp under tension so that the weft can be woven through it.
- Lotus
- A lotus flower motif, a symbol of purity, woven into borders, buttas and the pallu.
M
- Madder
- A red dye from the roots of the madder plant, the classic natural red of Indian printed cloth.
- Madhubani
- A painting tradition of Mithila in Bihar, now also painted by hand on silk and cotton sarees.
- Madisar
- A nine-yard drape worn by Tamil Brahmin women, with the pleats passed between the legs.
- Matka silk
- A silk cloth with a rough, nubby, slightly uneven surface, woven from yarn made from short silk fibres left over from reeling.
- Meenakari
- A technique of enamel on metal that gave its name to Banarasi weaving in several bright silk colours over zari.
- Mekhela
- A sewn tube skirt worn by women in Assam, wrapped at the waist and tucked in, part of the mekhela chador.
- Mercerised cotton
- Cotton yarn or cloth treated with a strong alkali under tension, to make it stronger, shinier and better at taking dye.
- Metallic zari
- Zari made without real gold or silver, usually from a metal-coated polyester film or a coated copper wire.
- Mirror work
- Embroidery that holds small round mirrors on cloth with interlaced stitches, from Gujarat and Rajasthan.
- Mordant
- A metal salt or other substance that helps a natural dye bind to the fibre and stay fast.
- Mothra
- A leheriya pattern of small checks, made by tying the cloth in both directions.
- Muga
- A golden-yellow silk made only in Assam, from a worm that feeds on som and soalu leaves, known for its shine and long life.
- Mulberry silk
- The most common silk, from the domesticated silkworm Bombyx mori fed on mulberry leaves, fine, smooth and white to cream.
- Mulmul
- A soft, fine, light cotton cloth in plain weave, the Indian word for the muslin the subcontinent was once famous for.
- Mundu
- The white cotton wrap worn round the waist in Kerala by women and men, often with a gold kasavu border.
- Myrobalan
- The dried fruit of a tree, rich in tannin, used to prepare cloth before natural dyeing.
N
- Natural dye
- Colour taken from plants, insects or minerals rather than made from petrochemicals.
- Nauvari
- The Maharashtrian nine-yard saree and the drape worn with it, with the pleats passed between the legs.
- Neriyathu
- The upper cloth of the traditional Kerala dress, worn over the shoulder with the mundu.
- Nine-yard saree
- A longer saree, about eight metres, worn in drapes that pass between the legs.
- Nivi
- The commonest way of wearing a saree today: pleats at the front and the pallu over the left shoulder.
- Noil
- The short fibres left over after combing silk, or another fibre, spun into a rough, dull yarn.
O
- Onakodi
- The new cloth given as a gift at Onam in Kerala, by elders to the younger members of a family.
- Organza
- A sheer, crisp, light cloth in plain weave from fine, tightly twisted yarn, in silk or polyester.
- Osariya
- The Sri Lankan Kandyan saree, worn with a jacket and with a frill of pleats at the waist.
P
- Paisley
- A curved teardrop motif, the best known design in saree weaving and printing.
- Paithani
- A Maharashtrian silk saree from Paithan and Yeola, woven with zari in a tapestry technique, known for its peacock pallu.
- Pallu
- The free end of a saree, the part that crosses the chest and falls over the shoulder.
- Pallu pin
- A small pin used to fix the pallu to the blouse at the shoulder so that it does not slip.
- Panetar
- A Gujarati wedding saree in white or ivory with a red border, traditionally worn by the bride.
- Parrot
- A parrot motif, a symbol of love and good news, often woven in pairs in Paithani and other sarees.
- Patchwork
- Cloth made by joining small pieces of different fabrics, often as borders or whole sarees in craft work.
- Pavadai
- The Tamil word for a long skirt, worn under a saree or by girls with a blouse and a half-saree.
- Peacock
- A peacock motif, a favourite of Indian weavers, found in the pallu, the border and the body.
- Petticoat
- The plain skirt worn under a saree, with a drawstring at the waist into which the cloth is tucked.
- Phanek
- The wrapped, ankle-length skirt of Meitei women in Manipur, worn with a blouse and a shawl.
- Phulkari
- Punjabi embroidery that covers cloth in bright silk thread, worked from the back in long stitches.
- Pick
- One pass of the weft thread across the width of the cloth, also the count of weft threads in an inch.
- Pirn
- The small spool of weft yarn that sits inside the shuttle and unwinds as the shuttle crosses the loom.
- Pit loom
- A handloom set low over a pit dug in the floor, where the weaver sits at ground level with the feet in the pit.
- Plain weave
- The simplest weave, where each weft thread passes over one warp thread and under the next, alternating on every row.
- Pleats
- The fan of folds in the middle of the saree, tucked into the waist at the front.
- Ply
- A strand of yarn; yarn made of two or more strands twisted together is called two-ply or three-ply and is stronger and more even.
- Powerloom
- A loom driven by an electric motor, which weaves much faster and more cheaply than a handloom.
- Pre-stitched saree
- A saree with the pleats stitched in place and a waistband, so that it is worn like a skirt with a pallu.
- Punch card
- A stiff card with punched holes, read by a jacquard or dobby to decide which warp threads rise for each pick.
R
- Real zari
- Zari made with real silver, gilded with a thin layer of gold, wound on a silk thread.
- Reed
- A comb-like frame on the loom that keeps the warp threads evenly spaced and presses each new weft thread into place.
- Reeling
- Unwinding the long thread of silk from several softened cocoons at once and twisting them into one raw silk yarn.
- Rudraksha
- A motif of small round beads, named for the sacred seed of Shiva, found in Kanchipuram sarees.
S
- Saree or sari
- Two English spellings of the same garment, a long unstitched cloth wrapped round the body.
- Sari or saree
- Two English spellings of the same garment, taken from the Sanskrit word for a strip of cloth.
- Sarong
- A tube or wrapped cloth worn round the waist, common in South and Southeast Asia, a distant relative of the saree.
- Satin weave
- A weave with long floats of thread on one face, which reflect light and give a smooth, glossy surface.
- Seedha pallu
- A drape in which the pallu is brought from the back over the right shoulder and falls in front.
- Selvedge
- The firm edge of a woven cloth, made by the weft turning back at the side so that it cannot fray.
- Sericin
- The sticky protein gum that holds the two silk strands of a cocoon together, and which is washed out to make silk soft.
- Sericulture
- The raising of silkworms and the plants they eat, to harvest cocoons from which silk thread is reeled.
- Set mundu
- The two-piece Kerala dress in cream and gold: a mundu and a matching upper cloth.
- Shed
- The gap between the raised and lowered warp threads, through which the shuttle carries the weft.
- Shibori
- A Japanese family of resist-dyeing methods in which cloth is folded, bound, stitched or clamped before dyeing.
- Shikargah
- A Banarasi brocade design that shows a hunt, with animals, hunters and trees among flowers and vines.
- Shuttle
- A smooth, boat-shaped holder that carries the weft thread across the warp through the shed.
- Silk Mark
- A quality label from the Silk Mark Organisation of India, set up under the Central Silk Board, that certifies natural silk.
- Six-yard saree
- The standard saree length, about five and a half metres, enough for the Nivi drape.
- Sizing
- Coating the warp threads with starch paste so they are strong and smooth enough to survive the rubbing of weaving.
- Sozni
- Very fine needle embroidery of Kashmir, worked in tiny stitches on shawls and sarees.
- Stanapatta
- A band of cloth worn across the chest in early Indian dress, before the stitched blouse.
- Sungudi
- Tie-dyed cotton of Madurai in Tamil Nadu, with a pattern of fine dots made by tying the cloth.
T
- Tapestry weave
- A weave where each colour of weft is worked only in its own area, so the pattern is part of the cloth rather than lying on top.
- Temple border
- A border of stepped triangles that recalls the outline of a South Indian temple tower.
- Tested zari
- Zari sold with a test certificate that states how much silver and gold it contains.
- Thread count
- The number of warp and weft threads in one square inch of cloth, a measure of how closely the cloth is woven.
- Throw shuttle
- A shuttle passed through the shed by hand, thrown from one side and caught on the other, slower than a fly shuttle.
- Tilla
- Metal-thread embroidery of Kashmir, in gold or silver coloured thread on shawls and cloth.
- Tissue
- A sheer, shimmering cloth woven with a zari weft over a fine silk or cotton warp, so the whole fabric glints.
- Treadle
- A foot pedal on the loom that raises or lowers the shafts of heddles, freeing the weaver's hands for the shuttle and reed.
- Trousseau
- The set of clothes and linen that a bride brings or is given for her married life, in which sarees have a central place.
- Tuck
- The pushing of the edge of the cloth into the waist of the petticoat, which holds a saree without a pin or knot.
- Tussar
- A wild silk with a coarse, dry texture and a natural golden to beige colour, woven in eastern and central India.
- Twill weave
- A weave in which the crossings step along by one thread each row, giving fine diagonal ridges on the cloth.
U
- Uttariya
- The upper cloth of early Indian dress, worn over the shoulder or head, an ancestor of the saree pallu.
V
- Vanya silk
- The group name in India for silks other than mulberry, which is tussar, muga and eri, from worms that feed on forest trees and plants.
- Veshti
- The Tamil word for the dhoti, a long cloth wrapped round the waist and legs.
- Voile
- A light, slightly sheer plain-weave cloth made of tightly twisted yarn, used for easy summer sarees.
W
Y
- Yarn count
- A number that tells how fine a yarn is; for cotton, a higher count such as 80s means a finer thread than 20s.