Why Few African American Males Wear Traditional African Hats Such As Kufis, Filas, Or Fezzes

Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post presents online comments about the reasons why the custom of wearing hats for men has greatly declined in the United States since the 1960s.

The post also specifically explores why few African American males have adopted the custom of wearing traditional African hats such as kufis, fezzes, and filas.

I've showcased a 2010 video of what I believe was an Africa Day church service to show how most of the African American males who are wearing traditional African attire in that choir don't have on the traditional African hat that is supposed to be worn with it.

The content of this post is presented for cultural purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post. Thanks also to all those who are featured in this embedded video and thanks to the publisher of this video on YouTube.

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SHOWCASE VIDEO: I Shall Wear A Crown.avi



AM13, Mar 23, 2010
-snip-
A number of commenters noted that "This is the Sanctuary Choir at Trinity United Church of Christ, 400 W 95th St, Chicago,IL".

I noticed one man in the choir wearing a cloth kufi and one man in the audience wearing a knitted kufi.

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GENERAL COMMENTS ABOUT WHY FEW MALES IN THE UNITED STATES WEAR HATS (EXCEPT FOR BASEBALL CAPS)
Excerpt #1:
From https://www.quora.com/Why-did-people-wear-more-hats-in-the-past Why did people wear more hats in the past?
(numbered for referencing purposes only)

1. Jonathan Lyons, ..., Answered Dec 26, 2011
"People wore hats more in the past because of social context and evolving technology.

The societal norm in the west is to bare one's head indoors. That means we saw more hats in the past, but we saw them outdoors. As already mentioned here, hats convey social status, style, shade, and warmth... outdoors.

Two major technologies have had a devastating effect on hat manufacturing. Firstly, climate control drove everyone off the streets and into offices. Modern ductwork, clean and smoke free work spaces, reliable heat and air conditioning have swept people out of the streets.”...

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2. Jordan Ambra, Der Mann, Answered Feb 4, 2013
"Well, people were outside more. Nowadays we sit inside, where there is a traditional historical norm to remove your hat. Not to mention, you don't need one to keep dust, bugs, and sun away from your precious balding head.

Hats are primarily functional, secondarily fashionable, and tertiarily traditional. The function and traditions have gone away for most people, leaving only fashion."

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Excerpt #2
From https://www.quora.com/Why-did-men-wear-hats-in-the-1930s-40s-and-50s-and-not-any-more-after-the-1960s Why did men wear hats in the 1930s, 40s and 50s, and not any more after the 1960s?

Élise Petras, ...Answered Jun 15, 2018
..."And the rhetoric of cinema, only wearing hats in period films and in specific scenes, gave us the idea that hats are worn only by people in old black and white films, or print ads, or by that famous actor in the movie set in the 1940s. And when we see them, we think of them as someone who's appropriating fashion from a time that they are entirely separate from.

[...]

So as to why it's never really come back… it's because we've done a good job of making hats either uncool or difficult to wear well. Perhaps trends will change and hats will become easier to wear with our fashion, but until then they shall remain tied to the past, for better or worse."

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Excerpt #2
From https://www.quora.com/Back-in-the-1920s-and-1930s-wearing-a-hat-was-almost-a-necessity-What-is-it-about-the-culture-in-the-United-States-that-has-caused-hats-to-fall-out-of-fashion "Back in the 1920's and 1930's wearing a hat was almost a necessity. What is it about the culture in the United States that has caused hats to fall out of fashion?

Dave Cary, ...Answered Oct 7, 2018
"If you spend any serious amount of time living or working outdoors, you quickly learn that a great deal of your body comfort depends on the comfort of your feet and head. Spend all day working under a Texas summer sun with a broad brimmed hat one day, then without a hat the next day. You will be amazed at how much less energy you have the next day. On a freezing day, you will find you will need less of a coat if you wear a hat. Hats serve an important purpose.

Now days, more people go from their home, to their covered car, to their indoors work. We grow up with homes with central heating and insulation so we have no idea how drafty a house of even just fifty years ago was. Sometimes, your living room felt so cold it was like you were on your front porch. We are far more isolated from the negative effects of weather now. Hats are less necessary.

The trend started with JFK, who was the first prominent person to not wear a hat. This was all part of his “young man” image he was trying to project. Young men are so virile, they don’t need hats! It caught on."
-snip-
Since African American males are part of the United States, if the reasons quoted above and other reasons cited in those discussion threads have merit, those reasons would apply to African Americans as well as to other American males.

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MY THOUGHTS ABOUT WHY FEW AFRICAN AMERICAN MALES, SPECIFICALLY, DON'T WEAR TRADITIONAL AFRICAN HATS SUCH AS KUFIS, FEZZES, AND FILAS

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2019/11/fila-red-ozos-kufis-and-some-other.html for Part I of a two part pancocojams series entitled "Filas, Red Ozos, Kufis, Aboki Cap, And Some Other Names For Traditional Nigerian Male Caps (information)". Part II presents videos of those male caps.

Here are my thoughts about this subject, given in no particular order:
1. Many African American males don't wear traditional African hats such as kufis and fezzes since they and other Americans associate those hats with Islam.

Notice the examples in the pancocojams post entitled "Eight Videos That Show African American Males Wearing Certain Types Of Traditional African Hats (kufis & fezzes)" https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2019/12/eight-videos-that-show-african-american.html that show Moorish Americans wearing fezzes and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad (Nation of Islam) wearing a kufi.

Also, according to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taqiyah_(cap) "The taqiyah (also spelled tagiya; Arabic: طاقية‎, ALA-LC: ṭāqīyah) is a short, rounded skullcap. They are often worn for religious purposes; for example, Muslims believe that the Islamic prophet Muhammad used to keep his head covered, therefore making it mustahabb (i.e., it is commendable to cover the head in order to emulate him).[1] Muslim men often wear them during the five daily prayers.

When worn by itself, the taqiyah can be any color. However, particularly in Arab countries, when worn under the keffiyeh headscarf, they are kept in a traditional white. Some Muslims wrap a turban around the cap, called an ʿimamah in Arabic, which is often done by Shia and Sufi Muslims. In the United States and Britain, taqiyas are usually referred to as "kufis".
-snip-
I added italics to highlight this sentence.

However, according to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kufi
"A kufi or kufi cap is a brimless, short, and rounded cap worn by men in many populations in North Africa, East Africa, Western Africa and South Asia....

African and African-American usage
In West Africa, a kufi cap is the traditional hat for men, and is part of the national costume of most of the countries in the region. It is worn by Muslims, and African Christians. Many grandfathers and other older men wear a kufi every day to symbolize their status as wise elders, religious people, or family patriarchs.[1]

Within the United States, it has become identified primarily with persons of West African heritage, who wear it to show pride in their culture, history, and religion (whether Christianity, Islam, or Traditional African religions). Often made of kente cloth, mudcloth, or knitted or crocheted in a variety of yarns."...
-snip-
I added italics to highlight this sentence.

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2. Only a few African American males wear traditional African hats because those hats (which are worn indoor and outdoor) aren't a major part of African American history and culture.

Note that the Moorish Science Temple (whose male members wear fezzes) began in 1928. Yet, very few African Americans are Moors (members of those religious communities) which are mostly found in certain cities such as Chicago, Illinois; Newark, New Jersey, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Also, although the honorable Elijah Muhammad wore a kufi, that hat wasn't (and isn't) the traditional head wear of Nation of Islam males.

Furthermore, as noted in the quotes given above in the General Comment section, it is not traditional for American males to wear hats indoors, which includes traditional African hats, although some exceptions are made for hats and other head coverings that are worn for religious reasons.

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3. African American males can show their pride in African culture in other ways rather than wearing a traditional African hat.

For instance, the relatively new African American custom of wearing kente cloth stoles at graduation ceremonies and other special occasions is one way that African American males (and females) can show our pride in our African heritage.

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4. African Americans may not be aware that males are supposed to wear a matching traditional African hat with formal African clothing such as an agbada. Also, very few African Americans wear any traditional African clothing as everyday attire or on special occasions, except for Kwanzaa (which isn't celebrated by most African Americans) or an annual Africa Day at churches (which, judging from YouTube videos, doesn't appear to be celebrated in many Black churches in the United States).

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5. African Americans may not know where they can purchase traditional African hats, although in this internet age, the lack of brick and mortar stores where you can shop for African attire makes this reason for males not wearing traditional African hats far less likely than it was in the past.

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6. The traditional African hats don't conform to African Americans' aesthetic tastes. In particular, with all due respect and prefacing these statements to say that I love Yoruba culture, including its women's geles and all of its male fila styles, I believe that few African American males have worn (or would wear if they knew about it) the Abeti-aja, a triangular Yoruba hat, whose name means, like the ears of a dog, from Yoruba people in Nigeria/ I think that that style may remind Americans (and other Americans) of elves caps and of caps that are worn by people in Lapland (Finland). Also, with all due respect and also prefacing this comment to say that I also love Igbo culture), I think that the the long knitted stocking cap with a ball at the end that some Igbo males wear might remind some African American males (and other Americans) of stocking caps that were worn to bed a long time ago.

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7. Traditional African hats don't have a status purpose for African American males.

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8. Traditional African hats don't have a functional purposes for African American males. Compare that lack with the functional purpose of the do rag (to help Black males develop wave patterns in their hair). Also, once those waves have developed, wearing a hat defeats the purpose of showing off that hair style.

Click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2019/11/african-american-definitions-of-uses.html African American Definitions For & Uses For Do-Rags (Durags).

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Please add to, correct, and discuss this subject in the comment section below.

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