Kerchief
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A kerchief (from the French couvre-chef, "cover the head") is a triangular or square piece of cloth tied around the head or around the neck for protective or decorative purposes. The popularity of head kerchiefs may vary by culture or religion, as among Amish women, Orthodox Jewish women, Muslim women, and older Orthodox Christian women.
A "handkerchief" or "hanky" primarily refers to a napkin made of cloth, used to dab away perspiration, clear the nostrils, or, in Victorian times, as a means of flirtation. A woman could intentionally drop a dainty square of lacy or embroidered fabric to give a favored man a chance to pick it up as an excuse to speak to her while returning it. Handkerchiefs were sometimes scented to be used like a nosegay or tussy-mussy, a way of protecting those who could afford them from the obnoxious scents in the street.
Bandanna
A bandanna or bandana (from the Hindi: बन्धन bandhana, "to tie") is a type of large, usually colorful, kerchief, usually worn on the head.[3] Bandannas are frequently printed in a paisley pattern. Bandanas are most often used to hold hair back, either as a fashionable head accessory, or for practical purposes:
- Cowboys would typically wear bandanas around their face to keep dust out and keep the scent of their horse's manure away as they traveled slowly.
- Outdoor workers, such as farmers and cowboys, wear them around the neck to wipe the sweat off their faces and keep dust out of their collars.
- Wildland firefighters wear them over the mouth and nose to lessen inhalation of dust and fumes.
- Dancers and other athletes wear them during practice as a simple way of keeping hair and sweat out of their faces, or as part of their costume/uniform.
- Soldiers wear them to keep their own sweat and blood out of their eyes.
- Kitchen staff may wear them to keep hair from falling into the food that they prepare.
Bandanas are also traditionally used as handkerchiefs by manual laborers and outdoorsmen, since they more practically hide stains than a white handkerchief. Thus they have come to symbolize social revolutions. Anarchists participating in a black bloc, as well as other protestors, may wear a bandana over their face to conceal their identity and provide some protection against tear gas and pepper spray.
Colors, and sometimes designs, can be worn as a means of communication or identification, as with the prominent California criminal gangs, the Bloods, the Crips, the Norteños, and the Sureños. In the so-called hanky code, sexual subcultures, particularly gay men, signal their preferred sexual practices by wearing a particular bandana color or design in one of their pockets.
In gang subcultures, the bandana could be worn in a pocket or, in some cases, around the leg. In the late 1980s/early 1990s, the Bloods and the Crips, wore red or blue paisley bandanas as a signifier of gang affiliation.
See also
- Ascot tie
- Do-rag
- Cravat
- Fichu
- Hachimaki
- Handkerchief
- Handkerchief code
- Headband
- Headscarf
- Hijab
- Scarf
- Neckerchief
- Veil
Reference
External links
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