[4] It was worn as a simple official outfit or for small national ceremonies while court ladies wore it as a daily garment.

[7] It is currently believed the dangui originated from jangjeogori (장저고리; long jeogori), which was worn before the early Joseon Dynasty[8] as formal wear.

[2] The scholars of the late Joseon Dynasty, such as Bak Gyusu who wrote the Geoga japbokgo (거가잡복고 居家雜服攷), a history of Korean clothing, in 1841, believed that the dangui originated from China and may have dated back to the time when the Chinese clothing system was introduced to Korea between 57 BC and 668 AD, during the Three Kingdoms period of Korea: 지금 사람들은 모두 당의가 부인의 예복이라고 이른다.

그 제도 또한 녹색이고 좁은 소매에 옆을 트며 길이는 배를 가릴 정도인데 또한 어디서부터 기원하였는지 알 수 없고 이것은 예에 근거가 없다【생각건데, 원삼과 당의의 제도는 모두 근본이 없어 이른바 당의라는 것은 당나라 때의 부인의 편복이었는데 우리나라 풍속이 우연히 그것을 본떠 마침내 당의라고 이름하게 된 것이다.】 (“其一, 今人皆謂唐衣是婦人禮服, 其制亦綠色爲之窄袖缺骻, 長可掩服.

[10][11] In the chapter, Gwallyejo《冠禮條》on the coming of age ceremonies, the samja (삼자; 衫子) was commonly called dangui and its length reaches to the knees and its sleeves are narrow.

[4] The materials, along with the decorations and colours used in the dangui, differed based on the social status of its wearer, on the occasions when it had to be worn, and on the seasons.

[3][12] The queen consort, the king's concubines, sanggung (court matron), and yangban women (nobility) wore the garment over a short jacket called jeogori.

The dangui for the Queen, princesses or other royalty, geumbak (gold leaf) patterns were decorated from the shoulder part through the end of the sleeves, as well as the front and back side, and goreum.

The wearer also put a hwagwan (a form of Korean guan) on the head, attached a norigae, a type of accessory to the goreum, and wore a pair of shoes made of silk.