Overview
A Zhongshan suit is a buttoned jacket with a closed, turned-down collar and four flapped pockets, usually worn with matching trousers. It was conceived as a practical national dress between the long changshan and the Western lounge suit.
How it is worn
It buttons up the front to the collar and is worn plain, its four pockets and five central buttons often read as carrying civic meanings. Cut in dark cotton or wool, it served equally for officials, students, and workers.
History
The suit was promoted in the 1910s and 1920s under Sun Yat-sen as a modern Chinese alternative to Western dress, and it later became the standard garment of officials and citizens in the People’s Republic, where it was known abroad as the Mao suit. It remains formal wear for some state occasions.