The Guayabera: A Shirt's Story - HistoryMiami Museum

WHAT IS A GUAYABERA?

Men wearing guayaberas are a familiar sight in Latin America and the Caribbean. A traditional piece of menswear, the shirt is distinguished by its four front pockets and two vertical stripes of pleating and/or embroidery. Its widespread usage and distinctive appearance has made it the most iconic piece of clothing associated with the cultural life of Latin American and Caribbean populations worldwide.
Despite this far-reaching popularity, the circumstances concerning the guayabera’s origin and stylistic evolution are indeterminate and widely dispersed across a number of sources. The Guayabera: A Shirt’s Story weaves together the threads of the shirt’s history from an array of different legends, archival records, advertisements, historic photographs, articles and other sources from different centuries.

THE ANATOMY OF A GUAYABERA

Guayaba-Bera. 2011. Acrylic on canvas. Painted by Tony Mendoza.
In this work, Cuban-American artist Tony Mendoza depicts the popular belief that one early use of the guayabera’s pockets was to store guayabas (guavas), a function that may have inspired the shirt’s name.
How many names can one shirt have? A lot, if that shirt is the guayabera, which is also known widely as the “Mexican wedding shirt.” Other names for the guayabera that exist in different countries include the “chacabana,” used in the Dominican Republic, the “shirt-jac,” as it is called in Trinidad, and the “guayabel,” as it is referred to in Haiti.
The exact origin of its most common name “guayabera,” however, is uncertain. The most popular belief states that the garment’s name is a derivative of the Spanish word “guayaba,” meaning “guava.”
This often-repeated belief suggests that the storage of guavas in the shirt’s pockets may have been an early use of the garment. Most versions of this story identify its setting as Sancti-Spiritus, Cuba, the locale most often claimed as the shirt’s birthplace. Inhabitants of this city on the Yayabo River have historically been referred to as “yayaberos” and “yayaberas.” Other sources refer to these inhabitants as “guayaberos” and “guayaberas.” Although not easily verified, these possible explanations for the shirt's name continue to be the most widely accepted among people familiar with the guayabera.

HOW THE GUAYABERA GOT ITS NAME

How many names can one shirt have? A lot, if that shirt is the guayabera, which is also known widely as the “Mexican wedding shirt.” Other names for the guayabera that exist in different countries include the “chacabana,” used in the Dominican Republic, the “shirt-jac,” as it is called in Trinidad, and the “guayabel,” as it is referred to in Haiti.

The exact origin of its most common name “guayabera,” however, is uncertain. The most popular belief states that the garment’s name is a derivative of the Spanish word “guayaba,” meaning “guava.”

This often-repeated belief suggests that the storage of guavas in the shirt’s pockets may have been an early use of the garment. Most versions of this story identify its setting as Sancti-Spiritus, Cuba, the locale most often claimed as the shirt’s birthplace. Inhabitants of this city on the Yayabo River have historically been referred to as “yayaberos” and “yayaberas.” Other sources refer to these inhabitants as “guayaberos” and “guayaberas.” Although not easily verified, these possible explanations for the shirt's name continue to be the most widely accepted among people familiar with the guayabera.

John James Audubon J. J. Audubon, engraved by H. B. Hall, based on a painting by Henry Inman. Engraving from The Life of John James Audubon, the Naturalist, edited by his widow. New York: G. P. Putnams' Sons, 1894.

THE CUBAN CHAPTER

Competing notions concerning the guayabera’s geographic origin exist with some placing it in Cuba and others in Spain, Mexico or the Philippines.

Competing notions concerning the guayabera’s geographic origin exist with some placing it in Cuba and others in Spain, Mexico or the Philippines. Historical evidence, however, suggests that the garment emerged in Cuba. The most frequently told origin story involves an 18th century couple in the Cuban countryside. In this tale, the husband asks his wife to create a shirt with multiple pockets to store his belongings while working.
Late 19th century archival records describe the guayabera as a shirt or jacket, which may have resembled the uniforms of Spanish and Cuban soldiers of the period. Unlike the contemporary guayabera, these military garments featured four pockets positioned along the hem. Other sources describe its use in the countryside by Cuban landowners and fieldworkers.
By the mid 20th century, the guayabera featuring two chest and two hem pockets had become well established in the country’s urban centers, including Havana. The shirt’s adoption by government officials and workers may have inspired its popularity among city dwellers.
After the revolution of 1959, the garment’s common use in Cuba, along with the country’s apparel industry, gradually faded away. The guayabera is still made there in limited quantities for tourists, but is rarely seen on the streets of Havana today.

A sepia-toned portrait of a man in a military-style jacket, standing beside a column, with a serious expression.

THE MEXICAN CHAPTER

The guayabera is also referred to as a “Mexican wedding shirt,” signifying its importance to Mexico’s cultural heritage.

Mexican men wear the shirt as frequently as men elsewhere in Latin America and the Caribbean. The shirt is most noticeably a part of life in the coastal city of Veracruz and the Yucatan Peninsula, both of which have long-standing historical connections to Cuba. One commonly told story of the shirt’s arrival to Mexico states that Yucatecan henequen planters first encountered the garment in Cuba in the late 19th or early 20th century.
The guayabera is also referred to as a “Mexican wedding shirt,” signifying its importance to Mexico’s cultural heritage. Mexican men wear the shirt as frequently as men elsewhere in Latin America and the Caribbean. The shirt is most noticeably a part of life in the coastal city of Veracruz and the Yucatan Peninsula, both of which have long-standing historical connections to Cuba. One commonly told story of the shirt’s arrival to Mexico states that Yucatecan henequen planters first encountered the garment in Cuba in the late 19th or early 20th century.
After production of the guayabera dwindled in Cuba, Mexican manufacturers in the Yucatan city of Merida rose to prominence as makers of the garment. The heyday of Mexican production occurred in the 1970s and is credited largely to former Mexican president Luis Echevarría who promoted the shirt's use domestically and elsewhere by wearing it for government business.
In later decades, increased competition from Chinese factories led to a dramatic reduction of guayabera manufacturing in Merida. The city, however, remains an important hub for the shirt’s production and sale. One stylistic innovation of the shirt is widely recognized as a Yucatecan contribution: the intricate embroidery usually featured on the garment’s front.

THE CONTEMPORARY CHAPTER

The guayabera is currently worn at business meetings, beach weddings, nightclubs and elsewhere not only in Latin America and the Caribbean, but also in parts of the United States such as South Florida, Texas, California and New York, which have large populations from these regions.

The shirt is particularly popular in warm locales where its traditionally lightweight, light-colored design is most appropriate.

Recent trends in the use and design of the shirt represent a dramatic break with the past as up-and-coming and established designers, tailors and other makers and sellers of the garment reinvent the tradition. Clothing corporations, boutique stores, online businesses and fashion designers are introducing new fabric types and styles, as well as new imaginative designs. They are also targeting a more diverse consumer base.

Designers and business owners in Miami, Florida, many of whom are members of the region’s Cuban community, are creating a global hub for innovation. They and others in the industry are producing not only inventive designs for men, but also guayaberas and guayabera-inspired items for women, children and even pets. The shirt’s current availability in both high-end shops and mass market department stores has extended its reach and popularity to more than just Latin American and Caribbean customers.

HOW IT'S MADE

Throughout its history, the guayabera has been crafted by individual artisans such as designers, tailors and seamstresses, and also by factory workers in industrial settings. When compared, the former usually produce more expensive, higher quality shirts in smaller quantities, while the latter focus on larger quantities and less expensive materials. Industrial manufacturing is increasingly the norm. Guayabera factories are currently located in China, Mexico, Panama, Ecuador and elsewhere.
The shirt is currently made from a variety of fabrics; historically, however, the shirt has been crafted from linen or cotton. The typical tools used to create the garment include measuring devices, cardboard patterns, scissors, sewing machines, and more. The complicated process of crafting the guayabera includes numerous steps.