The fez is a traditional hat worn in many Middle Eastern countries, originating in the Ottoman Empire in the early 19th century. It was developed as a practical alternative to western hats for Muslim men who prostrated themselves during prayer. The fez is traditionally red and is still worn in some countries today, but it has also become associated with luxury and laziness in the West.
A fez is a traditional hat worn in many Middle Eastern countries. It first became popular in the early 19th century in the Ottoman Empire. The fez is shaped like the lower half of a cone, rimless and flat on top, often featuring a tassel. The fez is traditionally red, although other colors exist as well. In South Asia, the fez became a symbol of Muslim identity and solidarity, while in the West it became an Orientalist symbol of languor.
In the early 19th century, men at the royal court of the Ottoman Empire, soon followed by those from other walks of life, began to adopt westernized fashions. However, western hats were impractical, as Muslim men prostrated themselves during prayer, lowering their foreheads to the ground, and a brim got in the way. Consequently, the fez was developed.
The fez is named after the city in Morocco where it originated, and early versions incorporated a turban. Hats were originally red, white, or black, although red fezzes became the norm in most contexts. The red fez is traditionally dyed with the berries of the kizziljiek plant. Sultan Mahmud Khan II decreed that the fez would be part of formal dress throughout the Empire.
Many men continue to wear the fez today in countries that were once part of the Ottoman Empire, including Egypt, Morocco, and Bosnia. The fez is not that popular in Turkey, since Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey, prohibited the use of the head as a symbol of feudalism. Muslims in South Asia have adopted the fez as a symbol of solidarity with their religious brethren in other areas of the world. The fez has a long history of use in military and paramilitary uniforms, often for native troops in European colonies, but also for national forces in Turkey, Pakistan, and Italy.
Fashionable 19th-century European gentlemen often wore the fez while relaxing at home, so the hat has become associated with luxury and laziness, much like other eastern fashions and objets d’art. Shriners, members of the fraternal organization known as the Ancient Nobles of the Arabian Order of the Mystic Shrine, founded in the 1870s in New York, are known to wear fezzes.
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