View source for Keffiyeh

{{Short description|Traditional headdress worn by men in the Middle East}}
{{pp-extended|small=yes}}
{{Cleanup|reason=badly organised; other non related attire is mentioned in the article|date=July 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}
{{About|a traditional headdress worn by men|the Palestinian national symbol|Palestinian keffiyeh|''kefiyah'', compulsion by the Jewish courts|Jewish divorce}}
{{Infobox clothing type
|title=Kufiyyeh
|caption=[[Demographics of Yemen|Yemeni]] man wearing a keffiyeh in turban-style and a Yemeni shawl on his shoulder
|image_file=In_Conversation,_Yemen_(12694670333).jpg
}}
The '''keffiyeh''' or '''kufiyyeh''' ({{langx|ar|كُوفِيَّة|kūfiyya|[[coif]]}}),<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Brill|first=E. J.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ro--tXw_hxMC&pg=PA890|title=E.J. Brill's First Encyclopaedia of Islam: 1913-1936. Ṭāʻif - Zūrkhāna|date=1993|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-09794-0|language=en}}</ref> also known in Arabic as a '''hattah''' ({{langx|ar|حَطَّة|ḥaṭṭa|label=none}}), is a traditional [[headdress]] worn by men from parts of the [[Middle East]]. It is fashioned from a square scarf, and is usually made of [[cotton]].<ref name="Bartlett1973">{{cite book|author=J. R. Bartlett|title=The First and Second Books of the Maccabees|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uj44AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA246|access-date=17 April 2013|date=19 July 1973|publisher=CUP Archive|isbn=978-0-521-09749-9|page=246|quote=traditional Jewish head-dress was either something like the Arab's ''Keffiyeh'' (a cotton square folded and wound around a head) or like a turban or stocking cap}}</ref> The keffiyeh is commonly found in [[arid]] regions, as it provides protection from [[sunburn]], dust, and sand. The regional variations are called '''ghutrah''' and '''shemagh'''. A head cord, ''[[Agal (accessory)|agal]]'', is often used by Arabs to keep the ghutrah in place.{{sfn | Lindisfarne | Ingham | 1997 | p=45}}
== Origin ==
The keffiyeh originated amongst [[Bedouin|Bedouins]] as a practical and protective covering for the head and face, especially in the [[desert climate|arid desert climate]] in which they have traditionally lived.<ref>{{Citation |last=Donica |first=Joseph |title=Head Coverings, Arab Identity, and New Materialism |date=2020-11-10 |url=https://brill.com/display/book/9789004435926/BP000013.xml |work=All Things Arabia |pages=163–176 |access-date=2023-10-18 |publisher=Brill |language=en |isbn=978-90-04-43592-6}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2013-08-07 |title=Ghutrah — who designed it? |url=https://www.arabnews.com/news/460492 |access-date=2023-10-18 |website=Arab News |language=en}}</ref>  The term itself is a [[Loanword|loan]] from [[Italian language|Italian]] (''cuffia'') and shares its etymology with English "[[coif]]".<ref name=":0" />
[[File:Abdullah I of Saudi Arabia.jpg|thumb|Abdullah bin Saud Al Saud wearing ghutrah with agal]]
The word ''ghutrah'' ({{langx|ar|غُترَة|ḡutra}}) comes from the Arabic root ''ghatr'' ({{Langx|ar|غتر|label=none}}) which means "to cover". The early pictures of Arabs invariably show them wearing [[turbans]], and it is unclear when the keffiyeh became acceptable for the upper classes. While the written reports of ghutrah date back to the early 18th century, the earliest known picture is from the 19th century ([[Abdullah bin Saud Al Saud]], made before his execution in 1819).{{sfn | Lindisfarne | Ingham | 1997 | p=45}}
== Varieties and variations ==
Middle Eastern [[Arabs]], [[Kurds]], and [[Yazidis]] wear this headpiece.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thekurdishproject.org/history-and-culture/kurdish-culture/kurdish-dress/|title = Learn About Kurdish Dress}}</ref> [[Iraqi Turkmen]] wear it and call it Jamadani,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Salman |first=Mofak |title=Altunköprü the ancient name of Türkmen Township |url=http://www.turkmen.nl/1A_Others/ms3.11.pdf |quote="They also wear a scarf which is known among the public as Jamadani"}}</ref> while [[Omanis]] call it a mussar.  No matter its name, it is available in multiple colours and styles with many different methods of tying it, depending on regional origin and the nature of occasion. Omanis do not use the agal, instead tying it over the [[Kuma (cap)|kuma]] for formal occasions.
During his sojourn with the [[Marsh Arabs]] of Iraq, [[Gavin Young]] noted that the local ''[[sayyid]]s''—"venerated men accepted [...] as descendants of the Prophet [[Muhammad]] and [[Ali ibn Abi Talib]]"—wore dark green keffiyeh  in contrast to the black-and-white checkered examples typical of the area's inhabitants.<ref>{{cite book |last = Young |first = Gavin |author-link = Gavin Young |others = Photography by Nik Wheeler |title = Return to the Marshes |orig-year = First published by William Collins & Sons in 1977 |year = 1978 |publisher = Futura Publications |location = Great Britain |isbn = 0-7088-1354-2 |pages = 15–16 |quote = There was a difference here for nearly all of them wore dark green ''kefiyahs'' (or ''cheffiyeh'') (headcloths) instead of the customary black and white check ones. By that sign we could tell that they were ''sayyids'', like the sallow-faced man at Falih's. }}</ref>
<gallery widths="200" heights="140">
File:שייח עודה אבו מועמר.jpg|Man wearing a white ghutrah with black agal
File:Yazidism08.jpg|[[Yazidi]] men wearing keffiyehs
</gallery>
=== Jordanian shemagh ===
Another type of keffiyeh is the shemagh, which is a scarf that is red-and-white, checkered and has tassels. The bigger the tassels, the more important the person. This red-and-white keffiyeh is associated with Jordan and is its national symbol.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Penn |first=Lindsey |date=2020-09-25 |title=The Keffiyeh, the Shemagh, and the Ghutra |url=https://www.arabamerica.com/the-keffiyeh-the-shemagh-and-the-ghutra/ |access-date=2024-06-14 |website=Arab America |language=en}}</ref> The shemagh is worn mostly in Jordan and by Bedouin communities.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2023-10-26 |title=Traditional Scarves or Keffiyehs of the Arab World Explained |url=https://www.cairo360.com/article/arts-culture/traditional-scarfs-or-keffiyehs-of-the-arab-world-explained/ |access-date=2024-06-14 |website=Cairo 360 Guide to Cairo, Egypt |language=en-US}}</ref> It is made from cotton. The Jordanian shemagh and the Palestinian keffiyeh are different in regard to color and geographical meanings.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ajlouni |first=Eman |date=2023-10-25 |title=The Palestinian Keffiyeh and The Jordanian Shemagh |url=https://www.arabamerica.com/the-palestinian-keffiyeh-and-the-jordanian-shemagh/ |access-date=2024-06-14 |website=Arab America |language=en}}</ref>
=== Other shemagh variations ===
Other regional shemagh variations are the Egyptian Sinai shemagh and the Saudi shemagh (also known as a ghutrah.)<ref name=":2" />
=== Palestinian keffiyeh ===
{{Main|Palestinian keffiyeh}}
[[File:ArafatEconomicForum (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|[[Yasser Arafat]] wearing his iconic fishnet pattern keffiyeh in 2001]]
Prior to the 1930s, Arab villagers and peasants wore the white keffiyeh and [[Agal (accessory)|agal (rope)]] while city residents and the educated elite wore the [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] [[fez (hat)|tarbush (fez)]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Swedenburg |first=Ted |title=Memories of Revolt: The 1936–1939 Rebellion and the Palestinian National Past |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |year=1995 |isbn=978-1-557-28763-2 |pages=30–31 }}</ref> During the [[1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine]], Arab rebel commanders ordered all Arabs to don the keffiyeh. In 1938, [[Mandatory Palestine|British Mandatory]] [[High commissioner (Commonwealth)|High Commissioner]] in Palestine, [[Harold MacMichael]], reported to the Foreign Office: "This ‘order’ has been obeyed with surprising docility and it is not an exaggeration to say that in a month eight out of every ten [[Fez_(hat)|tarbushes]] in the country had been replaced by the [keffiyeh and] ‘agal’."<ref>{{cite report |title=Report on the situation in Palestine, Part 1, CO 935/21 |page=47 |work=Confidential Print: Middle East, 1839–1969 |via=Adam Matthew Digital }}</ref> Following the end of the revolt, most residents either reverted to wearing the tarbush or elected to go hatless.<ref>{{cite book |last=Swedenburg |first=Ted |title=Memories of Revolt: The 1936–1939 Rebellion and the Palestinian National Past |publisher=University of Minnesota Press |year=1995 |isbn=978-1-557-28763-2 |page=34 }}</ref>
The black and white keffiyeh’s prominence increased during the 1960s with the beginning of the Palestinian resistance movement and its adoption by Palestinian leader [[Yasser Arafat]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Torstrick |first=Rebecca |title=Culture and Customs of Israel |publisher=Greenwood |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-313-32091-0 |page=117 }}</ref>
==Other cultural symbolisms==
Early Jewish migrants to [[Mandatory Palestine]] adopted the Keffiyeh because they saw it as part of the authentic local lifestyle.<ref>{{cite web |title=How the keffiyeh – a practical garment used for protection against the desert sun – became a symbol of Palestinian identity |url=https://news.ufl.edu/2023/12/conversation-keffiyeh-palestinian-identity/ |date=5 Dec 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240403211820/https://news.ufl.edu/2023/12/conversation-keffiyeh-palestinian-identity/ |archive-date=3 April 2024 |work=[[University of Florida]] |first=Armin |last=Langer }}</ref> Up until the 2000s, Turkey banned the keffiyeh because it was considered a symbol of solidarity with the [[Kurdistan Workers' Party|PKK]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Music as a Platform for Political Communication|last=Uche|first=Onyebadi|date=14 February 2017|publisher=IGI Global|isbn=9781522519874|pages=214|language=en}}</ref>
== Westerners in keffiyeh ==
[[File:Ljidda.jpg|thumb|[[T.&nbsp;E. Lawrence]] at [[Rabegh]], north of [[Jeddah]], in 1917]]
British [[Colonel]] [[T. E. Lawrence]] (better known as ''Lawrence of Arabia'') was probably the best-known Western wearer of the keffiyeh and agal during his involvement in the [[Arab Revolt]] in [[World War I]]. This image of Lawrence was later popularized by the film epic about him, ''[[Lawrence of Arabia (film)|Lawrence of Arabia]]'', in which he was portrayed by [[Peter O'Toole]].
Many of the Jewish [[Zionism|Zionist]] immigrants to Ottoman Palestine and British [[Mandatory Palestine]] wore the keffiyeh in emulation of the Arab population out of the desire for "closeness and a sense of belonging to the place".<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://blog.nli.org.il/en/hoi_keffiyeh/ |first=Shir Aharon |last=Bram |title=Jews in Keffiyehs? – The Headdress That Became a Symbol |website=[[National Library of Israel]], The Librarians blog |date=18 May 2022}}</ref> These included youth group members, political notables, and militiamen, including [[Hashomer]]. Other Jewish residents of Palestine wore the keffiyeh for studio photograph sessions as Orientalist dress.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://blog.nli.org.il/en/hoi_keffiyeh/ |first=Shir Aharon |last=Bram |title=Jews in Keffiyehs? – The Headdress That Became a Symbol |website=[[National Library of Israel]], The Librarians blog |date=18 May 2022}}</ref> After the [[1929 Palestine riots]] and the [[1936–1939 Arab revolt in Palestine]], "the popularity of the keffiyeh began to decline and Jewish attempts to emulate the Arabs became less common, but throughout the 1940s and 1950s, the keffiyeh could still spotted in Israel," including on politicians and soldiers. As the keffiyeh became a key component of Yasser Arafat's signature look, it definitively lost popularity among Israelis and was associated exclusively with the Palestinian nationalist movement.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://blog.nli.org.il/en/hoi_keffiyeh/ |first=Shir Aharon |last=Bram |title=Jews in Keffiyehs? – The Headdress That Became a Symbol |website=[[National Library of Israel]], The Librarians blog |date=18 May 2022}}</ref>
The 1920s' silent-film era of [[American cinema]] saw studios take to [[orientalism|Orientalist]] themes of the exotic Middle East, possibly due to the view of Arabs as part of the [[Allies of World War I]], and keffiyehs became a standard part of the theatrical wardrobe. These films and their male leads typically had Western actors in the role of an Arab, often wearing the keffiyeh with the agal (as with ''[[The Sheik (film)|The Sheik]]'' and ''[[The Son of the Sheik]]'', starring actor [[Rudolph Valentino]]).
During the 2001 Iraq and Afghanistan wars, members of the United States Armed Forces began wearing keffiyeh for practical reasons. While the scarves were never issued by the American armed forces directly, many private tactical equipment retailers marketed and sold them to service personnel in the Marines and Army. The scarves were usually dyed into color schemes that closely matched the service uniforms, and bore symbols that appealed to Western consumers (''e.g.'', skull and cross bones, [[Gadsden flag|Gadsden]] snakes, and Spartan helmets). Black and coyote-brown keffiyeh are still commonly worn by military veterans without any implied support for Arab nationalism or similar causes, and at times can carry the opposite message.{{Citation needed|date=February 2024}}
== Fashion trend ==
As with other articles of clothing worn in wartime, such as the [[T-shirt]], fatigues and [[khaki]] pants, the keffiyeh has been seen as chic among non-Arabs in the West. Keffiyehs became popular in the UK in the 1970s and then in the United States in the late 1980s at the start of the [[First Intifada]], when [[bohemian style|bohemian]] girls and [[Punk subculture|punks]] wore keffiyehs as [[scarf|scarves]] around their necks.<ref name="vv" /><ref name="nytstyle" /> In the early 2000s, keffiyehs were very popular among youths in Tokyo, who often wore them with [[camouflage]] clothing.<ref name="vv" /> The trend recurred in the mid-2000s in the United States,<ref name="vv" /><ref name="nytstyle" /> Europe,<ref name="nytstyle" /> Canada and Australia,<ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/05/30/1211654279497.html |title = Keffiyeh kerfuffle hits Bondi bottleshop |date = 30 May 2008 |archive-date = 29 August 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110829060040/http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/05/30/1211654279497.html |first=Arjun|last=Ramachandran |newspaper = The Sydney Morning Herald |location=Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |access-date = 24 September 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url = http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/05/29/1211654168145.html |title = Celebrity chef under fire for 'jihadi chic' |first=Arjun|last=Ramachandran |newspaper = The Sydney Morning Herald |date = 29 May 2008 |location=Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |access-date = 24 September 2013 |archive-date = 21 September 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110921123622/http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/05/29/1211654168145.html }}</ref> when the keffiyeh became popular as a [[fashion accessory]], usually worn as a scarf around the neck in [[hipster (contemporary subculture)|hipster]] circles.<ref name="vv">{{Cite news|first=Nina|last=Lalli|url=https://www.villagevoice.com/nyclife/0508,lalli2,61280,15.html|title=Checkered Past: Arafat's trademark scarf is now military chic|date=15 February 2005|work=The Village Voice|location=New York, New York|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724052343/https://www.villagevoice.com/nyclife/0508,lalli2,61280,15.html|archive-date=24 July 2008}}</ref><ref name="nytstyle">{{cite news|last=Kim|first=Kibum|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/11/fashion/shows/11KAFFIYEH.html|title=Where Some See Fashion, Others See Politics|work=The New York Times|location=New York, New York|date=11 February 2007}}</ref> Stores such as [[Urban Outfitters]] and [[TopShop]] stocked the item. However, after some controversy over the retailer's decision to label the items "anti-war scarves", Urban Outfitters pulled it.<ref name="nytstyle" /> In spring 2008, keffiyehs in colors such as purple and mauve were given away in issues of fashion magazines in Spain and France. In the UAE, males are inclining towards more Western headgear while women are developing preferences for [[dupatta]]—the traditional head cover of South Asia.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.uaestylemagazine.com/24/what-do-arabs-wear-on-their-heads.html |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131107011659/http://www.uaestylemagazine.com/24/what-do-arabs-wear-on-their-heads.html |url-status = usurped |archive-date = 7 November 2013 |title = What do Arabs wear on their heads |work = UAE Style Magazine |date = 24 August 2013 }}</ref> The appropriation of the keffiyeh as a fashion statement by non-Arab wearers separate from its political and historical meaning has been the subject of controversy in recent years.<ref name="Swedenburg2021">{{cite book|last=Swedenburg|first=Ted|editor1-first=Asef|editor1-last=Bayat|title=Global Middle East: Into the Twenty-First Century|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RTEaEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA162|accessdate=13 May 2021|year=2021|publisher=University of California Press|location=Berkeley, California|isbn=978-0-520-96812-7|pages=162–173|chapter=The Kufiya}}</ref> While it is often worn as a symbol of solidarity with the Palestinian struggle, the fashion industry has disregarded its significance by using its pattern and style in day-to-day clothing design. For example, in 2016, Topshop released a romper suit with the Keffiyeh print, calling it a "scarf playsuit". This led to accusations of [[cultural appropriation]] and Topshop eventually pulled the item from their website.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/topshop-removes-product-after-twitter-backlash-over-palestinian-struggle-1853057347 |title = Topshop pulls 'keffiyeh playsuit' after row over cultural theft |publisher = middleeasteye.net |access-date = 1 September 2017 }}</ref>
== See also ==
{{columns-list|
* [[Emamah]], Arabian turban
* [[Gamcha]], scarf from South Asia
* [[Khăn rằn]], checkered shawl worn in Cambodia and Vietnam
* [[Krama]], Cambodian scarf
* [[List of headgear]]
* [[Litham]], Arabian headdress
* [[Sudra (headdress)|Sudra]], Jewish scarf
* [[Tagelmust]], Berber scarf
* [[Tallit]], Jewish shawl
* [[Turban]], headdress worn in Central and Western Asia
}}
== References ==
{{reflist|30em}}
== Further reading ==
* {{Cite book |last = Jastrow |first = Marcus |title = Dictionary of Targumim, Talmud and Midrashic Literature |isbn = 978-1-56563-860-0 |year = 1926 |publisher = Hendrickson Publishers }} The lexicon includes more references explaining what a sudra is on page 962.
* {{cite book |last = Philippi |first = Dieter |title = Sammlung Philippi – Kopfbedeckungen in Glaube, Religion und Spiritualität |year = 2009 |publisher = St. Benno Verlag, Leipzig |isbn = 978-3-7462-2800-6 }}
* {{cite book | last1=Lindisfarne | first1=N. | last2=Ingham | first2=B. | title=Languages of Dress in the Middle East | publisher=Curzon | year=1997 | isbn=978-0-7007-0671-6 | chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lC-qQgAACAAJ&pg=PA45 | access-date=2024-08-10 | chapter=Head wear | pages = 45–47}}
== External links ==
{{Commons category|Keffiyeh}}
* [http://middleeast.about.com/b/2008/05/28/the-keffieh-and-the-arab-heartland.htm "The Keffiyeh and the Arab Heartland"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150403031909/http://middleeast.about.com/b/2008/05/28/the-keffieh-and-the-arab-heartland.htm |date=3 April 2015 }} from About.com
* [http://www.saudiaramcoworld.com/issue/199605/the.dye.that.binds.htm "Saudi Aramco World: The dye that binds"] by Caroline Stone
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090419223729/http://www.tyndalearchive.com/tabs/jastrow/ More references about a sudra on page 962] from Jastrow Dictionary Online
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090124175620/http://www.kabobfest.com/2007/07/modern-chronology-of-keffiyah-kraze.html Modern Chronology of the Keffiyah Kraze] from Arab American blog Kabobfest
* [https://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/che-couture-gives-way-to-kurds-pusi-chic-10363095 Che Couture Gives way to Kurds' Puşi Chic] by [[Işıl Eğrikavuk]], ''Hurriyet''
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120203151059/http://www.middle-east-online.com/english/?id=27623 Palestinian Keffiyeh outgrows Mideast conflict]
* [http://www.palestine-shirts.com/store/p69/Palestinian_Hatta_Shemagh_Headdress.html Last factory in Palestine produces Kuffiyeh]
* [https://www.kufiya.org Hirbawi: The Only Original Kufiya Made in Palestine]
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