Reconfiguring Cultural Identity Through the Revival of Dingjin-Embroidered Qungua: A Cross-Regional Comparison of Hong Kong, Macau, and Mainland China

This study examines the contemporary revival and cultural transformation of the Dingjin-embroidered Qungua across Hong Kong, Macau and mainland China. Originating in the Lingnan region, the Qungua integrates ritual traditions, folk customs and gold- and silver-thread couching embroidery, and it carries meanings associated with marriage, lineage and social distinction. The research adopts an in-depth qualitative case analysis of two organizational settings: Xiao Ru Qungua studio and a wedding-planning company in Foshan. Semi-structured interviews with an inheritor and a designer at the studio, together with a wedding-industry practitioner, provide accounts of changes in craft transmission, design, consumer demand and ritual use from people who have participated in the Qungua’s recent evolution. Within-case analysis and cross-case comparison are supported by field observations, visual materials and policy and media documents. The findings show that craft transmission and selective design adaptation sustain the Qungua’s material and symbolic value, while rental, pricing and wedding convention shape its wider circulation. Regional comparison further indicates that the garment supports hybrid local-Chinese belonging in Hong Kong and Macau and enters national cultural-revival narratives more strongly in mainland China. The study demonstrates how practitioners, commercial intermediaries and ritual practices jointly reconfigure cultural identity through traditional dress.