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In colder weather a montsuki haori (long jacket) with a white haori-himo (haori-fastener) completes the outfit. These are worn with black montsuki kimono (kimono with one, three, or five family crests on the back, chest, and shoulders), white tabi (divided-toe socks), white under-kimono and woven straw sandals of various types. The most formal type of hakama are made of stiff, striped silk, usually black and white, or black and grey. Many martial artists continue this tradition, but different sources give different meaning to these pleats. The pleats are supposed to represent the virtues considered essential by the samurai. Hakama have seven deep pleats, two on the back and five on the front. Later on, hakama were also used to protect clothing from dirt and tearing. Hakama were originally worn by samurai it is often mistakenly said that they used it to disguise their footwork and stances from an enemy, but in reality the warrior would tuck the hakama up through the belt when a confrontation was imminent, just as the sleeves of the kimono were tied back with cord. The rear of the garment has a rigid board-like section and a toggle which is tucked into the rear of the obi, and helps to keep the hakama in place. There are four straps, a long one on either side of the front of the garment, and a short one on either side of the rear. They are looser in the waist and narrower in the leg. A third type, called "mountain" or "field" hakama, were traditionally worn by field or forest workers.
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Both types are identical in outside appearance. This type of hakama are often called "divided skirts". The umanori type are divided like trousers, but nearer the bottom of the garment. There are two types of hakama, divided (umanori 馬乗り, horse-riding hakama) and undivided (gyōtō hakama 行灯袴). Hakama are tied at the waist and fall approximately to the ankles. Hakama were originally worn only by men, but today they are worn (albeit slightly differently) by both men and women. Hakama cover the lower body and resemble a wide, pleated skirt. Hakama ( 袴) are a type of traditional Japanese clothing.