Honggaitou

A honggaitou (Chinese: 紅蓋頭; pinyin: hónggàitou), also shortened to gaitou (Chinese: 蓋頭; pinyin: gàitou; lit. 'head cover') and referred to as red veil in English,^: 37 is a traditional red-coloured bridal veil worn by the Han Chinese brides to cover their faces on their wedding ceremony before their wedding night.^: 37 The honggaitou is worn along with a red wedding dress.^: 560 Veils have been used in China since the Han dynasty.^: 202 The custom of wearing the honggaitou for wedding ceremonies can be traced back to the Song dynasty period.^: 202 The custom of wearing the honggaitou, along with the traditional red wedding dress, continues to be practiced in modern-day China. However, under the influence of Western culture and globalization, most Chinese brides nowadays wear white wedding dresses and a white veil, an imitation of Western Christian weddings, instead of the red wedding dresses and honggaitou.