Guayabera
The Beloved National Garment

A guayabera is a typical Cuban shirt, at once a distinctive national garment and a link between Cuba, the Caribbean and the rest of the world. Narrator Lisandro Otero used to say that a guayabera, which becomes more popular every summer, is a symbol of carefree wear, of a festive spirit and laid-back manner, while at the same time dignifying informality and simplifying formal events. Cuban poet Nicolás Guillén assured us that it was the garment best suited to the way we perspire.

Many countries dispute the birthplace of the guayabera, although the word itself has a Cuban origin and in many nations in Latin America it is known either as a guayabera, a Cuban shirt or a habanera, reaffirming its Cuban character. However, it is difficult to pinpoint its origins in Cuba.

Although one legend has it that the name guayabera comes from a poor rural Cuban seamstress who sewed large pockets in her husband’s shirts to carry guava (guayabas) from the...