Sunday, 9 June 2013

Why Different People Wear Middle Eastern Turbans

By Mara Boone


Middle Eastern turbans are worn for specific reasons. There are some who don them for cultural purposes while for some, these headgears have a lot of religious significance. Today, these are not just worn for those reasons only. Cancer patients who have undergone chemotherapy and lost their hairs in the process put them on also. For others, headgears are meant to complement their looks.

Among the people to whom these turbans have the deepest religious significance is the Sikhs. These people mainly used the headgears to cover their hair, which is never cut because it is a creation of God. To the more devout Sikhs, even the beard is never touched but only combed and then tucked in these turbans. Therefore, these are worn only for the purpose of religion.

The significance as well as the reason for wearing these headgears will vary from one area to another within the Middle East. How they are called will also depend on the region in which a person is. In Yemen, for example, Muslim elders are the main wearers. They are known locally as kalansuwa. These will normally take different shapes, being either spherical or conically shaped. Color wise, they also have great variations.

Afghanistan people also wear a turban, and these are found in great varieties. There existed difference even in the now defunct Taliban regime. Some people would be found putting on the long types, while others preferred putting on solid black headgears which they tie just above their foreheads. But for some people from the same country, these headgears have no meaning; instead, these folks wear afghan hats.

For Iranians, black or white turban is the most common. In fact, the origin of the word turban can be traced to these people. Initially called dulbands, they were worn by people who lived in Persia, which is the modern Iran.

Apart from the Middle Eastern regions, Indians are also notorious for wearing these headgears. In this country, the turban has different connotations. They show the religion of a person, caste, profession and power in the society. The last one is especially of the turbans that are made of more fancy clothes, and which have been festooned with jewels.

Still in the Middle East, there is another type of turban, although, technically speaking, it is not exactly a turban. Its name is kaffiyeh and it looks more like a cap than a headgear. Normally, this is folded diagonally and then worn on the head. This, unlike the turban you know, is not wound but rather folded. It was mostly associated with Yasser Arafat, the former leader of Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), who liked to wear it.

In desert regions like northern parts of Africa, Muslims there have another reason for wearing these Middle Eastern turbans. This is especially for protection of their heads from sand. Nomads do wear them for disguise. By just merely seeing the color, it is possible to tell from which region a man comes.




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