18th century

Peasant women typically wore a halter top (Vietnamese: áo yếm) underneath a blouse or overcoat, that was paired with a skirt (váy).^[4] Influenced by the fashions of China's imperial court, aristocrats favored less revealing clothes.^[5] In 1744, Lord Nguyễn Phúc Khoát of Huế decreed that both men and women at his court wear trousers and a gown with buttons down the front.^{[2][nb 2]} Writer Lê Quý Đôn described the newfangled outfit as an áo dài (long garment).^{[nb 3]} The members of the southern court were thus distinguished from the courtiers of the Trịnh Lords in Hanoi, who wore a split-sided jacket and a long skirt.^[6]