We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Vintage

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What is a Tarboosh?

By Douglas Bonderud
Updated: May 21, 2024
Views: 11,822
Share

A tarboosh is a man's hat that is typically made of felt. It has a flat top, no brim, and fits firmly on the head. It is commonly worn by Muslim men, either by itself or under a turban. The tarboosh also often has a silk tassel attached to the top. Red is the most common color for this hat.

Derived from the Persian word sarpush, meaning 'headdress,' the tarboosh is also known as a tarbush. It has also been called a fez and a checheya. The fez is a hat originally only produced in Fez, Morocco, and is slightly smaller than a tarboosh. Regardless of the name, all hats of this type have a similar truncated cone shape, that narrows as they extend upward from the head.

This hat has been popular in several nations over the last 200 years. In Palestine, two different types of this headdress were often seen, the tarbush maghribi and the tarbush istambuli. The first type was made of a soft material and had a rounded shape. In contrast, the second kind had straight sides and was rigid. The softer tarbooshes were worn by commoners and the stiff versions were worn by men of power.

Beginning in Turkey in the early part of the 17th century, the tarboosh was a required item of formal dress for men. This changed in 1925, when the leader of the Young Turks, Kemal Atatürk, banned the hat in an effort to make Turkish fashion more Western. His edict was not taken well, resulting in riots.

The tarboosh was also used as part of the Egyptian military uniform, under the rule of Mohamed Ali, who ruled Egypt from 1805 to 1848. Two tarbooshes per year were issued to soldiers. Initially, all of these hats had to be imported, but Ali commissioned a factory that began producing Egyptian-made tarbooshes in 1825. In time, the tarboosh became the headdress of all government members, but in 1952 the republican government of Egypt removed the official head wear requirement.

On October 29, 1932, this hat almost caused a serious diplomatic rift between these two countries. Egypt's diplomatic envoy to Turkey, Abdel Malek Hamza Bey, arrived at a Republican Day celebration dressed in his tarboosh, only to be told by Turkish officials that he should remove it because its presence would offend Atatürk. Bey refused, and left the celebration. Although the Turkish leader apologized for the incident, the official stance of the Turkish government was that no apology had been necessary.

Share
BeautyAnswered is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.
Discussion Comments
By bear78 — On Sep 21, 2011

@simrin-- I don't think that Ataturk had anything against the hat itself. I think he was against the symbolism attached to it. The tarboosh was a sign of the Ottoman Empire and wearing them meant serving the empire. But Ataturk and his followers did not want the Empire, they wanted a democracy and wanted Turkey to become like Europe.

So Ataturk banned the tarboosh and people replaced them with Western hats as a symbol of a new country and new government that would be more modern and democratic.

By SteamLouis — On Sep 21, 2011

My family and I took a trip to Turkey recently and I saw a lot of these hats in a famous market in Istanbul. They called them "fes" and were selling them to tourists. My dad bought one too.

I think it's a really nice hat, I especially like the deep red color and the tassel that hangs from the top.

Why was the tarboosh banned in Turkey? Wouldn't it have been better if people had the choice of wearing or not wearing them?

Share
https://www.beautyanswered.com/what-is-a-tarboosh.htm
Copy this link
BeautyAnswered, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

BeautyAnswered, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.