Hat
A hat is a type of covering for the head, and there are many types of hats.
Hats are different in different parts of the world. Some hats are worn by women, other hats by men, others by both; infants and children may also wear hats, and some hats are not worn by anyone at all. These hats are just used for decoration. People who make hats for men are called hatters, and those who make hats for women are called milliners. The kinds of hats (or caps, which are like hats) worn by different groups within various societies in different countries are very numerous.
Some types of hats or caps are worn as a sign of social roles. For example, bishops wear mitres and some lawyers wear wigs. In these cases the special headware is only worn on specific occasions. Monarchs wear crowns on special occasions.
All kinds of clothing send social messages as to what the person is. For years workmen in Britain wore caps, but foremen (supervisors) wore bowler hats. So, in traditional societies it was expected of a person that he or she would dress appropriately. Other people would know from their clothes what kind of person was on view. That aspect of hats and clothing in general is much less true today.
Examples
Some examples of hats:
- baseball cap, for baseball players and many others
- beaver hat, made of beaver skin
- beret, for fishermen or peasants in parts of western Europe
- bowler hat, for men practising some traditionally middle class occupations
- coonskin cap, for some hunters or trappers
- cowboy hat, for cowhands
- fedora, a felt hat of a particular shape
- fez, similar to a tarboush, found in many Islamic countries
- helmet, either for those serving in the armed forces or for sportsman (e.g. motorcyclists)
- mitre, for formal use by bishops
- riding helmet, a helmet for horse riders
- sombrero, for the Latin American peasant
- ten-gallon hat, a type of cowboy hat
- top hat, for the smart men of the world
Etiquette and dress codes
Traditionally during the 19th and early 20th centuries, it was considered bad form to wear hats indoors, except in barns and the most public spaces inside public buildings. Women traditionally were exempt during church services and formal dinners. Today, certain establishments such as banks, schools and military facilities ban hats, and many companies ban hats as part of their employee dress codes.
Hat Media
A collection of 18th and 19th centuries men's beaver felt hats
Woman in a Flowered Hat (1889), by Pierre-Auguste Renoir: Straw hat with brim decorated with cloth flowers and ribbons
Parts of a hat. Key: Kniff = crease, dent, pinch; Krone = crown; Schlaufe = trim; Hutband = hat band; Krempe = brim; Schweißband-schleife = sweatband bow; Futterdach = crown inner lining; Futter = inner lining; Schweißband = sweatband; Krempe = underbrim.
Carle Vernet's 1796 painting showing two decadent French "Incredibles" greeting each other, one with what appears to be a top hat, perhaps its first recorded appearance.
Left-to-right: Top-hat, peaked cap, Borsalino, bowler hat (Sweden, early 20th century).
A hat shop from about 1900 inside the Roscheider Hof Open Air Museum.
This is a photo of an Ascot (cuffley) cap on the head of the photographer, taken by Schaefer on the morning of 2 October 2005 in his bedroom. This image is released into the public domain.
A Balmoral, a type of cap (bonnet in Scottish English) that is often a part of formal and casual civilian
