Keffiyeh

What it is

The keffiyeh is a headdress for men, made from a square scarf that is usually cotton. It is common in dry regions, where it gives cover from strong sun, dust and sand. A cord known as the agal is often used by Arabs to hold it on the head. Names differ from place to place: hattah, ghutrah, shemagh and, in Persian, chafiyeh. It comes in many colours and styles, and the method of tying it can point to a region or suit a particular occasion. Middle Eastern Arabs, Kurds and Yazidis all wear it.

Origins and history

Headscarves began among Bedouins as simple protection from the sun. The word keffiyeh entered Arabic after the Crusades and most likely came from a European loanword, related to the English word coif; some trace it to an Arabic word for cuff. A writer named Murtada al-Zabidi linked it to the Arabic for cave, because of the cloth's rounded shape, and a folk story connects it to the Iraqi city of Kufa. The ghutrah takes its name from an Arabic root meaning to cover. Written mentions of the ghutrah go back to the early 18th century. The oldest known picture is from the 19th century.

Regional styles

In Jordan the keffiyeh is red and white, checked, and finished with tassels; larger tassels mark a person of greater standing. It is the country's national symbol and is worn mostly in Jordan and among Bedouin communities. Palestinians wear a black and white checked version. Iraqi Turkmen use the name Jamadani, and in Oman it is called a mussar, tied over a cap called the kuma for formal events, without the agal. Gavin Young, staying with the Marsh Arabs of Iraq, saw local sayyids, men respected as descendants of the Prophet, in dark green while other people wore black and white checks. Egypt's Sinai and Saudi Arabia have their own forms.

A national symbol

Before the 1930s, Palestinian villagers and peasants wore a white keffiyeh with an agal, while city people and the educated elite preferred the Ottoman tarbush, or fez. During the Arab revolt of 1936 to 1939, rebel commanders told Arabs to wear the keffiyeh, and a British official reported that most tarbushes had been replaced within a month. After the revolt many returned to the fez or went bareheaded. The black and white check dates from the 1950s, when a British officer, Glubb Pasha, used it to tell his Palestinian soldiers apart from Jordanian troops in red and white. From the 1960s, and through the public image of Yasser Arafat, the keffiyeh became a symbol of Palestinian identity and solidarity.

Today and change

American service members in Iraq and Afghanistan took up the keffiyeh for practical reasons. It was never issued by the armed forces, but private sellers supplied scarves to Marines and Army personnel, dyed to match uniforms and printed with motifs that appealed to Western buyers. Veterans still wear them in black or coyote brown, sometimes without intending any support for Arab nationalism, and at times meaning the opposite. In the West the scarf also became a fashion item: in Britain in the 1970s, in the United States around the First Intifada, in Tokyo in the early 2000s, and again in Europe, Canada and Australia. This borrowing has drawn criticism. When a retailer printed the pattern on a playsuit in 2016, it was accused of cultural appropriation and withdrew the item.

How Keffiyeh is kept

A square scarf, usually cotton, is worn on the head. The agal, a cord, is set over it by many Arab men to keep it in place. Tying methods differ widely, and the way a man wears it can follow his region or the occasion: some wrap it close, others let it hang. Omanis do not use the agal, tying the cloth over the kuma for formal events instead. In Jordan the shemagh is finished with tassels, and larger tassels belong to people of greater importance.

When and where

The keffiyeh is not tied to one date. It is worn day to day in hot, dry places, and men choose different styles for ordinary days and formal events. In Jordan tassel size marks rank rather than season. In Oman the mussar is worn over the kuma on formal occasions. Modern Western fashion wore it in the 1970s and again in the 1980s and 2000s.

The keffiyeh belongs to the Middle East and North Africa, and is common in arid country. It is strongest in Palestine and Jordan, and is also worn in Iraq, Oman, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and among Kurdish and Yazidi communities. Jewish settlers in Mandatory Palestine adopted it for a time. American troops later wore it in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Western buyers took it up as fashion.

What Keffiyeh means

For many wearers the keffiyeh is practical first: shade for the face, a guard against dust and wind. It also carries belonging. Colour and pattern can say where a man comes from, and the agal, the tassels or the way the cloth is tied can show standing or the kind of occasion. Since the middle of the 20th century the Palestinian keffiyeh has stood above all for Palestinian national identity and solidarity, and it appears often in protests and political images.

Questions people ask about Keffiyeh

See also

Traditional tattooingThe ancient custom of marking the skin for protection, healing, status and sacred ritesNiqabA face veil worn by some Muslim women, hiding all but the eyesEid al-FitrThe feast that ends Ramadan, opened with morning prayers, sweets and visits homeMother's DayA worldwide annual celebration dedicated to mothers, maternal bonds and family care

Good reading and sources

• Encyclopaedia BritannicaArticle

• Keffiyeh on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.