Jerusalem Headgear

headgear model

2010-03-02T13:08:00.005+02:00

I am horribly backlogged - I have so many great pictures to post! Here are just some - a friend of mine graciously agreed to model the many forms of headgear found in his Jerusalem home.

And, there you are! All these hats are from one home, which as Jerusalem homes go, is not terribly hat obsessed. Most of them belong to the mother, which is pretty standard, as while the men can wear the same hat with all outfits, women tend to coordinate more. There are also hats for warmth, and of course, those just for fun. The final kepah in the collection is the one this young man wears on most days.

More to come soon!

more Holy Saturday

2009-07-23T09:41:00.004+03:00

This is the last Holy Saturday installment.

Many of the Ethiopians were wearing greenery of some sort on their heads. Maybe palm fronds?

This was the only black and white plaid I saw all day.

The miracle of the holy fire. I'm amazed no one set her hat on fire.

Many of the older women wore black scarves.

Again, a collection of different priest head coverings. Is there a meaning to them?

I hope all of you who celebrate Easter had a good one!

going to the chapel

2009-07-23T09:21:00.002+03:00

These pictures were taken in the Old City, on the way to or from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre on Eastern Orthodox Holy Saturday.

A hedgehog enjoying the proceedings.

As a Westerner, the greased mullet causes me heartburn, but it is not uncommon here.

A baseball cap makes for a more casual look. Yes, he is riding on someone's shoulders and brandishing a sword - why do you ask?

A more Western hat.

Even little celebrators need hats!

The Christian Arab Scouts had a parade in honor of the day. They wore a variety of different caps to complete their uniforms:

There are different kinds of Eastern Orthodox priest headwear. I don't know the difference between them - do any of my readers?

I just liked the color.

I believe these are Ethiopian Orthodox. Not completely sure though.

Muslim hats. I saw these on the way, but presumably they were not headed the same direction as me.

Holy Saturday

2009-07-20T21:59:00.005+03:00

I went to the Eastern Orthodox celebration of Holy Saturday (the day before Easter) at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. And were there ever hats! I can't offer much explanation, as I don't know all that much. But here are the pics.

Not all women in the Church of the Holy Sepluchre cover their hair, but the Eastern Orthodox do.

Even the cross has a hat!

These are only the pictures from inside the church. Outside and around the old city will be separate posts.

political headgear

2009-07-20T17:30:00.003+03:00

The election is long over, but as usual, I'm behind. Here are some posters of candidates, and naturally, their hats.

Tzipi Livni, being from a secular party, has no hat. She is brazenly showing her hair for all the world to see.

I apologize for not knowing which party this is, though I could hazard a guess. He's not just wearing his kepah, he's even wearing his tefillin. He will bring religion to the country.

Religious children need our help! The orange specifically represents Gush Katif and the settlers who were removed from it.

Black velvet for Shas, obviously.

purim headgear

2009-04-12T13:01:00.002+03:00

Purim is a great holiday. Everyone dresses up, there are cookies and drunkenness, what could be better? Naturally, headgear plays a big role in the costumes. Here are some examples.

We wouldn't know he was in costume at all without his balloon hat.

This boy struggles with the eternal identity problem. Soldiers don't wear the Bukharan kepah he has on, but he can't totally abandon his normal headwear.

Same thing here - army costume, but his standard kepah.

You can't be a king without a crown!

Fezzes were quite popular among the Orthodox set.

The streimel (fur hat) makes the outfit.

Strawberries need hats too.

Sorry this was so late. So now, hag sameach for a whole different holiday altogether! More to come soon, I hope.

knit kepot

2009-01-26T08:58:00.002+02:00

Ah, the knit kepah. So much can be expressed through one's knit kepah. The first thing it says is - I'm not ultra-orthodox. Generally knit kepot wearers are dati leumi (religious and patriotic), meaning they serve in the army and hold a job, they don't study all day, though this isn't universally true. Knit kepot are often hand crocheted by friends, girlfriends, daughters, nieces, sisters, etc, often with a personal touch - the person's name, or a picture of something he likes. You can also buy knit kepot with everything from geometric designs to your favorite baseball team. Although I have quite a few pictures of knit kepot, I still have not covered the entire range, so this entry will be supplemented by others periodically.

A Breslover kepah, whose meaning I have explained in a previous entry.

In the world of knit kepot, size matters. A small one can say, I'm religious, but don't take it too seriously, or, my mother may make me wear a kepah, but she can't control what size I wear.

A larger kepah often indicates a more hippie/spiritual outlook on life.

Placement of the kepah also says something. Do you wear it on the back of your head (more traditional, an older look), right on the top of your head (more of a high school/college age group), or even farther forward (high school and also in the 'thinks they're cool crowd')?

Some classic knit kepot above.

I can't say for sure, but I'd be willing to bet a small amount of money that this boy's kepah was crocheted for him. Maybe by the girl he's sitting and talking with?

another classic

Blacks in Israel are usually Ethiopian. I'm not sure what their headgear was before they immigrated, but now they can be seen wearing all the modern versions, including the teeny tiny one this boy is wearing.

This man may be wearing a knit kepah, but he is ultra-orthodox, as can be easily seen from his shaved head and long peyot (side curls). Many men wear white kepot during the time between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur, as an expression of the purity they are trying to attain. But some wear them all year long. The pom pom on top generally indicates a particular sect or group they belong to.

The solid black knit kepah. This man is straddling worlds. He says, "I'm not quite liberal enough to wear a colorful kepah, but I'm not ready to identify with the more old fashioned society that wears black velvet or leather, either."

This man too is straddling worlds. His kepah gives a modern touch, but his black pants, white shirt, tzitzit (fringes) hanging out and being past his knees, and his peyot (side curls) tell you he's still firmly planted in the most traditional sector of society.

Another example of Ethiopian assimilation.

Kepah hanging off to the side. It might mean, "I'm too cool to worry about whether my kepah is falling over my ear." It might mean, "I'm not concerned with appearances." It might mean, "My kepah clips won't stay on."

Big purple kepah and wearing a backpack? Definite hippy.

Another version of the white knit kepah, this one sans pom pom.

This is only a taste of the knit kepah world. More to come!

honorary entry

2009-01-20T20:57:00.002+02:00

Ok, I know I haven't been posting (not for a lack of headgear, but for a lack of time) and I know this particular headgear wearer isn't in Jerusalem, but...as a headgear enthusiast, I can't NOT post a pic:

now that's a hat.

election day

2008-11-19T18:47:00.006+02:00

About a week ago, Jerusalem had its municipal elections. Here, what you wear on your head makes a statement about your political views, among other things, so I hung around our local polling place, taking pictures of the different kinds of hats that showed up to vote. Obviously, this is only a small sample of the local color, but I caught a number of different kinds of voters. For the purposes of showing the diversity, I also took pictures of non-hat wearers. After all, they were voting too!

The two pictures above show men working for Shas, the right wing religious party. This is probably the strongest political example of hat/party correlation. People who wear black hats are likely to vote for Shas, and Shas represents mainly the interests of people who wear black hats.

I feel that I should point out, that I did not intentionally take an unflattering picture of the man above. I waited and waited for him to stop scratching his nose, but he never did. I guess he had a very itchy nose. Also, for the uninitiated of you who can't tell this for yourself, the woman here is wearing a wig.

This woman is not wearing a black hat, but is wearing headgear I associate with the women in what is actually called here the "black hat community."

Just to make clear, I would never presume to guess who is voting for who. I simply group these people together because of their hattage.

This young man is working for Nir Barkat, our new mayor. I can tell because the shirt on his head says so.

The next few pictures are of "knit kepot." Knit kepot are most often worn by members of the dati leumi community - literally "religous and patriotic." - these hats often denote rightist political leanings and strong sense of Zionism. Unlike the Haredim, or black hats, above, who often do not support the state of Israel because it is too secular, people wearing knit kepot are often fiercely patriotic. They also, as a rule, serve in the army, whereas the black hatters, as a rule, do not. Obviously there are exceptions to both rules. I will go in into the culture surrounding the knit kepah in more depth when I get around to giving them their own entry.

2

This larger kind of knit kepah (above) often is worn by people of a more spiritual bent, and often somewhat more leftist.

I don't know if the man above should really be included. He was walking his dog past the polling place, but as of when I spoke to him, he wasn't sure yet if he was going to vote.

3

The charming hats above seem to be worn by the older generation. I admit to not knowing what flavor of religion they go with.

And...presenting the secular men! Secular Jewish men are easier to spot than secular women. No hat = secular. Here are a few varieties.

The people sporting this particular style (above) are commonly referred to as arsim. (s. ars). As headwear goes, the ars can be identified by his short spiky hair and copious gel. This subgroup is secular, in general, though they do sometimes follow various rules as part of family tradition.
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And the women. It's harder to tell religiousness with the women, because single religious women do not cover their hair. However, as a guideline, the religious single women generally do not have hair dyed colors that do not appear in the population naturally. So here is a hodgepodge, with no identification attempted.

And welcome to new mayor, Nir Barkat! Called in bbc.com a "champion of secular Judaism", he does not wear a hat.

Yafo St.

2008-11-11T19:18:00.003+02:00

Yafo St, one of the main thoroughfares through the center of town, is currently ripped to shreds as Jerusalem gets ready for a Light Rail. It should arrive some time in the next century - I can't wait. In the meantime, my usual 15 minute bus ride to town is more like 45 minutes. And today, it was an hour and 15. To keep myself entertained, I took pictures of headgear. Here is a sampling of the headgear you will find on a few blocks of Yafo, in the city center, if you sit on a stationary bus for an hour. By pure chance, I ended up with exactly 100 pictures, though I pruned some because they were similar to the others, and because I got tired. There are some varieties we've already covered, and some that will be discussed later. I haven't commented individually because there is too much bulk. Take your time, it took me over an hour.

tourists

2008-11-11T10:29:00.009+02:00

I am so excited! I was checking www.jerusalemite.net because I figured they would tell me how to find out where to vote in the Jerusalem municipal elections. (Elections today!) And I found an article about...my blog! Yes, if you scroll down to the second story (as of right now), there I am! This very hat blog! Imagine my shock and pleasure.

I already liked this website, because it is funny, if biased (it never claimed to be objective), and because they have a great listing of cultural events in the area. But now I'm a fan for life!

The Jerusalemite site requests the stories of how various sects came to choose their hats. Answer: I have absolutely no idea. But I will try to find out. Anything for my fans. If any of you know, or can think of a way to get more information about it, please let me know!

This post will be tourist headgear. Our visitors have to protect themselves from the sun, and they do so in any number of ways. Enjoy!

N.B. I should point out, for all but one of these subjects, I don't know for sure that they are tourists. I am just guessing based on my experience as a dweller of the city. But it is possible I have miscast some of them. If so, I apologize.

Pretty in Pink - this was taken at Machane Yehuda. For those not in the know, Machane Yehuda is one of the two shuks in Jerusalem. (Unless there is also one in East Jerusalem - I admit to ignorance on that count.) Machane Yehuda is primarily Jewish - Arabs work there, but Hebrew is the language of the place, and most stands are kosher, though not all. The majority of the stands sell food, but there is also houseware and some clothes. Of late, cafes have been springing up, and some higher end clothing stores, a trend I vigorously oppose. This is supposed to be the market of the proletariat! Most egregious, Aroma, the Starbucks of the Holy Land, has opened a franchise in the main avenue of the market. Blasphemy! But back to the subject, the market attracts hordes of tourists, especially the uncovered section, which is prettier, doesn't have raw meat featured in it, and has most of the tourist trap items offered. It isn't just for the tourists however, not by a long way. Many locals do their shopping here, as many things, particularly bread and produce, are fresher and cheaper here than anywhere else.

This was taken at the Western Wall, another major tourist attraction, though again, most definitely not only for tourists. This picture illustrates a common phenomenon here - the organized tour group. These people can be identified by their ubiquitous tour buses and the uniformity of age, among other things. Many of the groups are people in their late teens and early 20s, in large part because of the Birthright Israel program, which brings young Jews to Israel for free for about ten days, in the hopes of fostering an affinity between the youth of the diaspora and the Jewish homeland. This particular group doesn't seem to be a Birthright trip, as the participants are too old. They do, however, demonstrate an important feature of tour groups: the identifying article of clothing. Generally shirts, it seems this group has chosen hats as a way of marking themselves. Dorky? Maybe so, but it means the tour guides can find them more easily, and they are less likely to end up wandering the city, lost and alone.

This is the other major shuk in Jerusalem - the Arab shuk. It is in the Old City, and is bigger and exponentially more confusing than its West Jerusalem Jewish counterpart. This is the sort of bazaar that one would imagine from reading Arabian Nights or the like. Walking around in it, you feel Aladdin's lamp might be hiding somewhere amidst the piles of junk, most of which, if you check carefully, announces that it is made in China. This market is frequented mainly by Arabs and tourists, and the predominant language is Arabic, though any salesman worthy of the name will have enough English to entice customers and drive hard bargains. Really anything can be found here, from rotten tomatoes to diamonds (or at least they claim to be diamonds. I'm pretty sure the rotten tomatoes are authentic.) Not that the salesmen need the hats to know these are tourists, but it does pretty much guarantee that they will pay at least four times the price that a local Arab would pay for the same item.

Another from the Arab shuk.

This is another important group - tourists (or secular Israelis) trying to show proper respect at the Western Wall. These people wear variations on traditional religious headwear, but manage to look incredibly uncomfortable while doing so. This is a classic example. Note the cheap fabric - probably a party favor from a bar mitzvah where guests weren't expected to have their own kepot, and the strong creases, which cause it to perch precariously on the top of the head, from years of being kept in a suit coat pocket. This is one group where it is very hard to tell true tourists from native Yerushalmis who are simply not part of the religious scene.

This is the one person I can guarantee is a tourist, as she volunteered to have her picture taken. Her hat is an authentic boonie hat (actual name), courtesy of the US Army. She stole it from her husband, who served in Iraq. I imagine it gives good protection from the elements; it was designed specifically for this area of the world.

This is the female version of the Non-Religious-Jew-At-The-Wall. It's possibly her own scarf, but even more likely, one of the ones the soldiers have on hand to give to those who arrive without sufficient coverage. I included this picture already in the scarf centered entry, but I felt it deserved another showing here.

And this one, well, it was just too good to pass up.

Jewish scarves

2008-11-08T19:07:00.002+02:00

religious women's hats

2008-10-28T10:17:00.002+02:00

Not all religious women wear wigs. In fact, I'd say it is a minority. There are a number of other ways of following this rule. Often women when they dress up wear hats. Some wear them all the time, some only when they are feeling fancy. Here are a few I've captured. Most of the fancy hats I've seen have been on Shabbat or holidays, because that is when people dress up, so I haven't been able to take pictures. So there aren't too many of these. Hopefully I'll get some more.

This woman, I am guessing, is not in the habit of covering her hair, but is doing so to show respect at the Western Wall.

Another non-fancy hat wearer. This woman was begging at the Wall. What the thought process behind this hair covering fashion is, I'm not sure.

I've observed that the older generation is often more partial to hats than the modern kids.

How elegant!

I have no idea on this one, if she's even religious, or just keeping the sun off, or what.

These knit caps seem to be getting popular, I'm seeing them around more and more.

And a few others, with no commentary:

Up next, Jewish scarves!

wigs

2008-10-25T18:57:00.002+03:00

Orthodox Jews believe that married women must cover their hair. The next few posts will be devoted to various ways women choose to do that.

Wigs, or shaetls (It's Yiddish, and I have no idea what the real spelling is) are common among the Ashkenazi, Orthodox, married women. Sepharadim do not believe that wigs constitute a legal way of covering the hair.

(Ashkenazim come mainly from Eastern Europe, Sepharadim mainly from the Middle East. While they observe the same rules, they interpret the details of some rules differently.)

Shaetls can easily cost a few thousand dollars, and those made with human hair (the majority) generally cost at least a thousand dollars. Some women try to make them look as much like real hair as possible, while others have less believable ones, either because they are cheaper or because they want it to be obvious that they are indeed covering their real hair. Some wear shaetls and then cover them with something.

Above are a few examples. I apologize for the blurriness.

The Black Hat

2008-10-25T10:19:00.000+03:00

Later on, I will present pictures as I take them, but first, I will display my current collection according to category. Today, the ever popular black hat. Black hats may seem the same at first glance, but in fact, there are many different kinds. Different sizes, different heights, different styles, and they can be worn at different angles and with different attitudes. So here is a sampling, not at all complete, of black hats I have seen in my travels around the city.

** I did not specifically ask permission of these people to take their photos. Many may not have realized they were being photographed. They were all in public places, and no pictures were taken on Shabbat or holidays. If anyone said or indicated they didn't want their picture taken, I deleted it, and it is not published here.

More to come, I'm sure, but that's what I have for now. I hope you enjoyed!

Introduction

2008-10-25T10:13:00.000+03:00

As I walk the streets of Jerusalem, where I have lived for two years now, I am constantly amazed by the variety of headwear. Here, more than anywhere else I know, people express their identity through their hair and head coverings. There are the black hatters, the knitted kepah wearers, and all manner of variations. There are wigs and scarves for the ladies, both Jewish scarf wearing styles and Muslim scarf wearing styles. There are nuns' habits and Eastern Orthodox hats, and the occasional monk wearing a hood. And that doesn't even include the secular element, who, though they don't have religious significance, still flaunt their individuality through their head adornment, from outrageous dye jobs to the latest haircuts and styles.

And so I present to you my pet project, my photoblog: Jerusalem Headgear.

Enjoy!