10 Historically Accurate Details About The Costumes In 'ATLA' That Are Actually Super Interesting

Although Katara is typically dressed in Water Tribe gear, there are several key points over the course of the series where she puts on other types of clothing. At the end of the series, she wears a Cheongsam, a type of Chinese dress that is close-fitting and first emerged in the 1920's (source: Culture Trip). Although the culture of A:TLA doesn't have many of the technologies from that era, wearing the Cheongsam was a nice nod to more modern styles. 

Many elements of the Water Tribe's culture are clearly drawn from the traditions of native arctic peoples like the Inuits (source: LA Times), and that includes the way that they dress. Several characters in the Southern and Northern Water Tribes are seen wearing Mukluks, a kind of boot that is designed for icy conditions. Sokka can be seen wearing them in the show's very first scenes, and they appear throughout the series whenever the Water Tribes are prominent. 

Many elements of the Fire Nation's culture are based on imperial Japan, whereas the Earth Kingdom is based on ancient China. When it comes to one element of their armor, though, the Fire Nation are much more indebted to Thai culture. The triangular shoulder pads common on Fire Nation armymen is pulled from traditional Thai armor (source: Cultures of Avatar: The Last Airbender), as well as Thai ballet costumes. Japan may be the greatest influence on the Fire Nation, but it wasn't the only one. 

The Kyoshi Warriors are immensely cool in part because they use fans as weapons, but also because their style is deeply indebted to the traditions of Japanese Kabuki theater. The makeup, elaborate, dress-based costumes and the fans are all elements that seem to be based on Kabuki theater (source: Britannica), as is the Kyoshi Warriors distinctive fighting style. Kabuki is a style of dance theater, and Kyoshi Warriors integrate elements of dance into their fighting style as well. 

The Air Nomads that Aang is descended from are very clearly based on Eastern monks, and that's true of their clothing as well. In the show's first two season, Aang's clothes resembles those traditionally worn by Shaolin monks (source: Learn Religion). Those aren't the flowing robes typically worn by Western monks, but are much more equipped for the kind of movement that Aang often does during the show's action sequences. 

In the show's third season, Aang does a bit of wardrobe change, especially for the show's final scenes. In this sequence, Aang is dressed in more flowing robes, and his clothes more closely resemble those worn by the Dalai Lama (source: Architectural Digest). This is a fitting transition for Aang, as he becomes a spiritual leader whose immediate fights are behind him. The clothes he ends the show in are clothes signifying peace and prosperity.