The Chinese character《袍》can be found in ancient texts dating prior to the Qin and Han dynasties, such as in the Lun Yu《論語》.

[4]: 14 There are also specific terms which is used to described pao with or without lining or padding: for example, jiapao and mianpao,[4]: 12  yunpao (Chinese: 縕袍; lit.

Typically the paofu closes on the right side in a style called youren and was a very important symbol of cultural identity for the Han Chinese.

[14] It was also a possible for some living Han Chinese to adopt paofu with a zuoren closure in geographical areas which were ruled by foreign nationalities.

[1] Other pieces of fabric could be added to make the width at the sides bigger or to create the overlapping front of the robe.

The baoyi bodai style also appeared on the images of Buddha which dates from the late 5th century AD.

[18]: 315  The baoyi bodai style appears to have been a direct consequence of Emperor Xiaowen's Sinicization reforms in 486 AD.

[20] The popularity of the baoyi bodai style was very high, and it eventually replaced the Indian-style clothing (i.e. sanghati) which used to be depicted on the Buddha.

[21]: 435 [20] In the Tang dynasty, the jiaolingpao evolved into a paofu with a round collar,[4]: 14  referred as yuanlingpao or panling lanshan.

However, Tang dynasty women also continued to wear long and loose jiaolingpao which was tied and knotted with a large sash at the hipline.

[22]: 28  Other specific forms of paofu also coexisted such as: daopao, yuanlingpao, zhiduo, zhishen, and panling lanshan, etc.

[23] The kimono was based on a type of Chinese pao which was popular in the 8th century AD Japanese court.

[16] The po influenced by the Han dynasty either had a straight collar crossing at the front, which is referred as jingnyeong gyoim (Korean: 직령교임; Hanja: 直領交衽; RR: Jiknyeonggyoim), or had a straight collar which does not overlap at the front, which is referred as jingnyeong daeim (Korean: 직령대임; RR: jingnyeongdaeim); the sleeves of the Chinese-style po were also long enough to cover the back of the hands; the robe could reach the ankle-level or longer, and could even trail on the ground.