Hats of the Himalayas: From the Flying Black Hat to the Red Hat of Mongolia
An old man in a Kangda hat appears in an image supplied by the Ethnical Clothing Museum. The well-known contemporary Tibetan artist Ando Qiangba wore a modern short top hat while creating his celebrated painting of Songtsen Gampo. In Tibetan, that hat is called a "jagaksha hat," meaning "India hat." The red headscarf that the artist wrapped around Songtsen Gampo in the painting is where the Tibetan hat originates. During the last century, wearing a Jia'ka summer hat among Tibetan men represented a kind of culture.
A Tibetan proverb states, "Do not put a black hat on a person of innocence"（མི་དཀར་པོར་ཞྭ་མོ་ནག་པོ་མ་གཡོག） and "A smooth person loses their hat"（མགོ་བདེ་པོས་ཞྭ་མོ་བརླག）, indicating the profound cultural importance of the hat. In fact, the hat's role extends far beyond Tibet: throughout human society and history, it has moved past its original practical purpose to become a key emblem within folk costume culture, carrying not only aesthetic value but also a distinctive cultural appeal.
Tibet's hat culture is certainly long-standing and varied, particularly when set against that of many other ethnic groups around the world. In earlier times, nobles wore distinct headgear. Modern scholars estimate that approximately 140 different hat types existed in Tibet alone during the past. Traditionally, hats are divided broadly into summer hats (དབྱར་ཞྭ) and winter hats (དགུན་ཞྭ) according to the seasons. In addition, Tibetan hats may be classified by occupation—such as the monk's hat, artist's hat, official's hat, and so forth.
The origins of Tibetan hats extend back to the Tubo period, exemplified by Songtsen Gampo's cloth-wrapped head. In the monk's hat category alone, designs vary by sect and rank; official hats similarly change with rank, and individuals may also wear different hats for different occasions. The late celebrated performer Tudeng La donned a distinctive hat for his shows. As for the Zanpu, he is depicted with a Buddha on his head and his turban.
Recorded in the "Zhu Jian Shi", a legend widely known and deeply trusted among Tibetans tells that Guanyin Bodhisattva chose to incarnate as the Tubo Zanpu in order to educate the local people, and was thus reborn as Songtsen Gampo. What is especially astonishing is that a head of Amitabha Buddha grew in Songtsen Gampo's dense black hair. Alarmed that people outside might misinterpret this extraordinary sight, his father King Nari Songtsen wrapped the Amitabha Buddha image on his head with a red silk band during the day.
In his 'White History,' modern scholar Gendun Qunpei observed that Persia was the nation most closely connected to Tibetans at that time. Among its people, Buddhism not only prospered, but they were also considered the most learned and virtuous. The Tibetan king and his ministers seem to have been influenced by Persian ways, as indicated by legends of King Songtsen wrapping his head with red silk, wearing a cloak of colorful satin, and sporting sharp leather shoes—all of which bear resemblance to Persian customs.
The Dunhuang Mogao Caves contain several well-known murals that portray the Tubo chieftain under the title "Tubo Chieftain Offering to the Buddha," and in these paintings, the chieftain appears with a red headgear. While literature frequently states that the chieftain's headgear is red, many later sculptures show it in white instead; one explanation for this is that white helps emphasize the features of the Buddha positioned atop the head. Image source: Rubin Museum.
Although there is some debate, scholars call this headdress the "Zanskar Hat" or the "Morning Glow Crown," and it is clear that the two forms are similar. In any case, it can be affirmed that early Tubo royals and nobles wrapped scarves into cylindrical or tower-like headdresses, a practice that was not exclusive to Tibet and had a long tradition of cultural exchange and spread.
Clothing culture, like other aspects, was influenced by regional exchanges that resulted from dynastic changes, and such exchanges drove diverse cultural developments. More importantly, this headgear represents "a transitional period from headscarves to hats, and a prototype of the development of Tibetan hats" (Wang Hao: "A Study of Traditional Tibetan Hats"). The image of the "Tibetan King Offering to Buddha" imitation from Mogao Cave 159, as well as the red tasseled hat from Mongolia, are both sourced from the Internet.
The Red Tassel Hat is a representative example of Tibetan hats in the Mongolian style. These hats appeared when a great deal of Mongolian culture reached Tibet during the Yuan Dynasty. Before that, following the fall of the Tubo Dynasty, the Ali Kingdom enjoyed a brief spell of prosperity, and through its fusion with neighboring Central Asian ethnic groups, it created a distinctive ethnic attire.
At the Ethnic Clothing Museum of Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, a red tassel hat is preserved. Referred to as "Sosha" (སོག་ཞྭ། Mongolian hat) by Tibetans, this headgear was initially favored by nobles and aristocrats, yet it later became, remarkably, the headwear of knights and servants. These hats can still be seen today at Tibetan festivals. Moreover, during his travels in Tibet, the Qing Dynasty figure Yunli noted in "Chronicles of Tibet" the attire worn by the prominent Tibetan Polona.
Polona, a local prince, had different headwear for the seasons. In winter he wore a round hat of fox fur, which could be red or embroidered. His summer hat was made of cotton and looked like an autumn hat: it stood six to seven inches tall, had a flat silk tassel on top, a rolled edge two inches wide, and slits on each side. The outer surface was fashioned from python silk or fine cloth, trimmed with a narrow band of mink fur. As for general attire, fur and wool garments were worn, and the wealthy added silk and fine cloth.
Even earlier, the Han Chinese official hierarchy and dress culture had considerable sway in Tibet, thanks largely to exchanges between the hinterland and Tibet throughout the Ming and Qing dynasties. The Qing emperor at that time set the rule that the colors of Tibetan dukes' garments had to match those of Qing officials. For all that, this splendid attire still embodies the typical, even primitive, Tibetan style, with animal skins used as decoration. "The Tibetan Chronicles" Original Text
Furthermore, the Fifth Dalai Lama encouraged noble ceremonial dress and strict clothing standards, marking a high point for the emergence of hat culture in Tibetan areas, particularly in Ü-Tsang. During this era, hats such as the Kangda hat (ལྕགས་མདའ), the Bo hat (འབོག་ཞྭའམ་ཞྭ་འབོག), the earlier Tubir hat (ཐུ་པི་ལི) influenced by Mongolia, and the later Gesang Sezhuo hat (བསྐལ་བཟང་བསིལ་གྲིབ) came into existence. The Kangda hat, whose name is a Tibetan transliteration, can literally be rendered as the iron ring hat based on its meaning.
The Boma, a round hat crafted from yellow wool, functioned as the official headgear for Tibetan officials below the fifth rank in ancient times and first found popularity across the western parts of Tibet. Meanwhile, another hat—flat and circular with a red tassel atop—served as a summer headpiece for former high-ranking officials, specifically those holding a rank of at least four grades in the Han Chinese official system, and also appeared in the costumes of emperors and princes in Tibetan operas. Che Renjing Mei wears a Kangda hat.
Originally a Mongolian military hat, the Tubi hat was adopted by Tibet during the 17th century and worn by the noble elite of that period. Over time, it became the attire for noble officials at horse racing events. Its design began as wide, but was later refined into a small, compact form—wide at the top and narrow at the bottom. Chen Renjin appears wearing a Boma, with image credit to Wikidata. A traditional Mongolian Tubi Hat is shown in an image from the internet. Gesar Tsering, translated from Tibetan, means "lucky canopy.
The Tsereing Kyin (ཚེ་རིང་སྐྱིན་ཁེབ), essential traditional dress for today's Amdo region activities, is another prevalent Tibetan hat, even more famous and representative. As for the hat said to be designed by and named after the Seventh Dalai Lama, its name suggests it is mainly for the hottest summer months. Meanwhile, the lucky canopy hat, with clouds drawn on it, appears in an image sourced from the internet.
The Tsereing Kyin hat features four brims shaped like petals, with the front and rear brims being wider than the side ones. Its crown is adorned with a variety of auspicious motifs stitched in gold thread, while gold thread or gold brocade trims the edges. Crafted from premium Tibetan wool and fur, it is embellished with gold thread bands or colorful brocade. The name Tsereing Kyin translates to "longevity in gold thread.
According to Wang Hao, young men typically fold up the front and side brims of the hat, leaving only the back brim visible, which gives them a handsome and refined appearance. Women, on the other hand, usually fold the front and back brims while keeping the side brims exposed, lending them a fresh and attractive look. As for the elderly, they tend to leave all four brims spread out, creating an image comparable to a bird in flight or an inverted flower bud.
According to legend, Princess Wencheng once attended a dance banquet at the Potala Palace. The Longevity golden cap, a type also called the 'golden flower hat', is housed in the National Costume Museum of Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. As previously stated, Porone's summer hat in the earlier text is of this type, and the period of his wearing it represented the hat's greatest popularity. Nevertheless, the golden flower hat's roots in Tibet go back to the Tubo period, far earlier than the Qing Dynasty.
The practice of telling Tibetan sects apart by their hats' colors is something we often hear about. This simple distinction, frequently criticized, is nonetheless not wholly unjustified. As for the hat itself, it originated from her observation of distant mountains, where a few wisps of cloud were interwoven, prompting her to conceive of wearing clouds atop her head. Golden silk cap for longevity. Image source: internet. A flying black hat.
A black hat woven from the hair of ten thousand Dakinis over countless eons was once placed on the rare pleasure master by Avalokiteshvara, according to a magical legend. Because their leader, the Gyalwa Karmapa, wears this unique black hat, the Gelug sect is also called the "Black Hat sect". Since that time, every incarnation of the master has worn the hat. It is believed that the hat will fly away if its owner does not hold onto it tightly. The 16th Gyalwa Karmapa is currently grasping his black hat.
Image source: internet. The second Karmapa Lama was welcomed by the Yuan emperor, while the fifth Karmapa Lama received an invitation from the Yongle Emperor. Indeed, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, Tibet and the mainland engaged in significant cultural exchange, with Tibetan lamas sometimes invited to the mainland to impart Buddhist teachings.
The common belief holds that the second Karmapa Lama received the black hat from the Mongol Khan of the Yuan Dynasty, yet the literary evidence remains ambiguous. Instead, stronger indications point to Rangjung Dorje, the third Karmapa Lama, as the initial wearer of the black hat—a view advanced by Xie Jisheng, who cites the "Red History" as support.
Besides the Black Hat, another prominent sect is the Gelug order, also known as the Yellow Hat sect. Its name derives from the order's distinctive yellow hat, which has a fan-shaped chicken crest. Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug order, instituted this hat, but its origins go back to the time just after the Tubo Kingdom's collapse. The image source is Himalayan Art for 'Yellow Hat of Rigorous Discipline,' a 17th-century work by the Third Karmapa Rangjung Dorje.
Ten monks from Ü-Tsang journeyed to seek teachings at that time, aiming to revive Buddhism, and returned with a yellow hat conferred by the master for Lume, one of their number. The master explained that the hat drew inspiration from the ancient Bon religion, in which blue hats had yellow soil applied over them, and that it should serve as a sign of firm commitment to the teachings and discipline. Tsongkhapa preserved this tradition, employing the hat to sustain the strict code of morality.
Handmade in Tibet, the Panchen Lama wears a special ceremonial hat. In addition, the National Costume Museum at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology holds a cockade hat of the Gelugpa. While the Sakya, Nyingma, Gelug, and Kagyu sects each possess many distinctive hats, that subject is too extensive to be fully addressed here.
This text has been translated from Jiangbaixirao's blog. Regarding the hat as a cultural symbol, the cited works are: Wang Hao, "Study on Traditional Tibetan Hats"; Xie Jisheng and Caireng Zhuoma, "A Study on the Origin of Black Hats of the Gama Jushang Shi in Tibetan Buddhism"; Roujin Cuomao, "Interpretation of Monk Hats in Tibetan Buddhism"; Bai Yufen, "Tibetan Folk Culture"; Shang Erbin, "Tibetan Clothing in the Historical and Geographical Environment of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau"; Yun Li, "Tibetan Chronicles".
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