Fez

The fez is a piece of headwear, made from pressed wool, worn primarily by Muslim men in the regions of the former Ottoman Empire. The fez likely originated from the urban centers of the Balkans, where the fez-like hat has deep historical roots; it was subsequently adopted and refined by adding the tassel and red color by Ottoman Muslim Mediterranean sailors and merchants in port cities along the Mediterranean coast. Its name is derived from the Moroccan city of Fez, which became an important production center for the headwear. The fez afforded its users with several practical religious advantages over the ubiquitous turban: It was convenient (not necessitating the time-consuming wrapping), it allowed the forehead to be pressed to the ground during daily prayers, and it was accompanied by an air of fashion-forward respectability. The fez came into style, in earnest, in the late 1820s, when Mahmoud II phased out the turban, in an attempt to distance himself from the specifically Arab influence in the empire's religion. It was resisted heavily by the powerful conservative Jannisaries, but soon it won widespread, even enthusiastic, acceptance all across the Ottoman lands and became a symbol of Orientalism for the West.

In the Ottoman system, society was divided into millets (the main millets being Muslim, Jewish, and Orthodox) according to religious affiliation; each millet enjoyed considerable self-governance in return for loyalty to the Porte (the Ottoman administration). The fez was valuable as a distinguishing symbol in the millet system in the 19th century; it should be noted, however, that the fez was worn by many who wanted to enjoy the benefits of Islamic affiliation without conversion. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the father of modern Turkey, banned the fez in 1925, after the dissolution of the empire, as a [Page 402]key aspect of his Westernization program. Many in Turkey were profoundly offended when Atatürk singled out the seemingly innocuous fez as the symbol of Ottoman backwardness. Especially among community religious elders, the fez was central to Ottoman Islamic identity against European secular ways and its apostate “Western hat.” It is no surprise then that the ban resulted in riots in the eastern districts of Turkey, to which Atatürk responded with strong troop deployments, military tribunals, and a media flurry celebrating the advantages of the Western hat. Nonetheless, Atatürk's attitude has prevailed in modern Turkey, where the fez is rarely worn and is derisively associated with being quintessentially Ottoman.

Today, the fez is worn by many in the former Ottoman Empire, most prominently among Balkan Muslims and Moroccans, whereas in other areas of the former empire, it is a symbol of Ottoman domination. The fez was a symbol not only of Ottoman affiliation but also of religious adherence to Islam. The fez became a more pronounced cultural symbol in 20th-century Morocco against French dominance and is still favored among the royal court of Morocco. Nonetheless, during the nationalist revolutions of the 20th century, the fez was more or less viewed derisively as monarchist and foreign. Even among Moroccans, and others fond of the fez, it is used less and less and is viewed as a relic of the past.

...