Religious Head Coverings Guide

The wearing of chapel veils was part of the early Christian tradition. It signified humility and modesty. This tradition continued into the early Catholic church. Though not as common today, veils are still worn by some Catholic women. Covering is no longer required at Mass, so those who wear a veil or mantilla do so by choice. The tradition is not about a woman displaying inferior status to men. Rather, the veil (or mantilla) covers what is sacred and cherished, and for many women who choose to wear one it is a symbol of humility, reverence and devotion. The clergy in the Catholic church still wear several types of head coverings.

veils

• In the Roman Catholic church, veils are part of the habit worn by some orders of nuns or religious sisters.
• Veils come in different sizes and shapes depending on the religious order.
• Some are elaborate and cover the entire head, while others are pinned to the hair.

kamilavka & epanokamelavkion

• The kamilavka is a cylindrical hat worn in Eastern Orthodoxy. The epanokamelavkion is the veil laid over it.
• Monks and bishops wear the hat with its veil. Orthodox nuns usually wear a veil, called an apostolnik, rather than the hat.

miters

• Worn by bishops in the Roman Catholic Church.
• A tall, peaked hat with a deep cleft on both sides.
• The two peaks are traditionally said to symbolize the Old and New Testaments.

hijab

• Hijab is an Arabic word for a cover or screen. Today it usually means the headscarf some Muslim women wear as part of modest dress.
• Hijabs are scarves that conceal the head and neck area. The face and lower body are exposed.
• A chador covers a woman from the head down, revealing only her face. Chadors are often black, and are worn especially in Iran.

niqab

• The niqab is a facial veil. It covers the face, with an opening for the eyes, and is worn with a separate head covering and modest clothing.
• The half niqab is created with a head scarf and a facial veil which allows the eyes and part of the forehead to be seen.

burqa

• The entire body and face are covered.
• The wearer sees through a mesh screen that covers the eyes.
• It is most closely associated with Afghanistan, where it is also called a chadri.

Some Muslim women cover their heads, and some also cover part of the face, in accordance with the Islamic principle of dressing modestly. How much is covered varies by the woman, her culture and her religious practice. Some of the garments cover the hair, ears, and throat, although the face is exposed.

Some Muslim women wear an abaya with their head covering. An abaya is a loose fitting garment that conceals the body, worn especially in parts of the Arab world. Black is common, but abayas come in many colors.

The tagelmust is a cotton scarf several meters long, sometimes more than ten, worn by Tuareg Berber Muslim men throughout western Africa. The tagelmust covers the head and is pulled up over the mouth and nose to protect against windblown sand. When the cloth is dyed indigo blue, it often rubs off on the skin, which explains the nickname for the Tuareg, "blue men of the desert." Among the Tuareg, face veiling is traditionally associated with men rather than women.

sheitel

• A wig worn by Jewish women to cover the head.
• Many wigs worn by Jewish women come with kosher certification, to ensure that the hair does not come from rituals that would be considered idolatrous by the faith.
• Sheitels are avoided by some Hasidic groups as they could give the impression that the woman's head is not covered.

tichels or head scarves

• Tichels are scarves that are worn either over a wig or their own hair.
• The word Tichel is Yiddish in origin, and a tichel is also called a head wrap. The Hebrew words used to describe tichels are "mitpachat" and "kisuy rosh."
• Some Jewish women cover their heads in synagogue. A tichel is one option.

kippah or yarmulke

• The practice of men wearing yarmulkes, also called kippahs or skull caps, is an ancient tradition for Jewish men and boys that honors God's presence.
• In traditional Jewish practice, following halakha, men and boys cover their heads for prayer, Torah study, and in synagogues and Jewish cemeteries.

In many Orthodox Jewish communities, married women cover some or all of their hair as part of a modesty-related dress and behavior standard known as tzniut. The guiding principle is that neither men nor women should dress in a provocative manner overly emphasizing their physical attributes. Women may use a tichel, a hat, a snood or a sheitel. For many it is also a quiet, everyday way of saying to the world that she is married. The exact practice varies by community and by woman.

In Orthodox Jewish communities, men and boys commonly wear a kippah, also called a yarmulke, all the time, except when swimming, showering, and sleeping. In some Hasidic communities, males may even wear one while sleeping. In other Jewish communities, a yarmulke may be worn mainly for prayer, synagogue services and other religious occasions. Some Jewish women also wear kippot.

Sikhism began in the 15th century in the Punjab region, in what is today northern India and Pakistan. Sikh men and women view the dastar (a type of turban) as an article of faith representing honor, self-respect, courage, spirituality, and piety. Wearing a dastar is also practical because it keeps long, uncut hair covered. Sikhs call that uncut hair kesh, and keeping it is one of the articles of faith. A dastar is not put on like a hat. It is a long length of cloth, wound fresh each day. Turbans are more commonly worn by men, and many Sikh women cover their heads with a chunni, a long, light scarf, especially in the gurdwara.

Biblical scriptures, in particular 1 Corinthians 11:5-6, explain the tradition among Amish women of covering their heads with a simple prayer covering, often called a kapp. Amish women pin their long hair up underneath these prayer head coverings, removing them in the evening. A kapp is different from a bonnet, which is a larger outer covering sometimes worn over it. The style, shape, and color of the cap varies by community, and in many communities the color says whether a woman is married: black for unmarried girls, white once she marries. It matters because the Amish do not wear wedding rings. Amish men wear distinctive hats too, straw in summer and felt in colder weather, a distinguishing feature common to the various sects of Amish people.

The commonality in most religions is that head coverings are viewed as a sign of modesty, and they embody both religious customs and practical purposes.

Head covering is not limited to the faiths above. A few others come up often.

• Mennonite and other Plain churches. A prayer covering much like the Amish kapp, often finer and sometimes a small mesh cap, worn for the same reason in 1 Corinthians 11:5-6.
• Hindu. Many women draw the end of a sari or dupatta over the head in a temple or in the presence of elders, a gesture called ghoonghat.
• Latter-day Saints. Temple clothing includes a head covering, a cap for men and a veil for women, worn only inside the temple.
• Rastafari. A knitted tam or a wrapped cloth covers locked hair, which is itself part of the practice.
• Buddhist monastics. The head is shaved rather than covered, though hats are worn in cold climates and in some traditions for particular ceremonies.

The names come from a dozen languages, so here they are in one place. Each one is covered in more detail in the sections above.

Practice varies by community and by person. The sections above give the detail behind each row.

Religious head coverings are an intensely personal choice, so you'll want to be thoughtful when deciding upon fabric. At Headcovers, we use only the best materials to deliver head coverings that feel amazing and last for years. Here's what you need to know:

The correct method to care for your religious head covering depends on the material it's made of. Check the package and attached label to see if care instructions were included.

In general, cotton and bamboo can be machine-washed on a delicate cycle with a small amount of fragrance-free detergent. Silk should usually be hand-washed to help avoid tears and to preserve the sheen of the fibers. To dry, hang or lay the piece flat, and only tumble dry low if the care label allows it.

Our Caring for Hats & Scarves guide has the step-by-step instructions, fabric by fabric.

My mother Carol and I started Headcovers in 1995, after she lost her hair to breast cancer treatment and could not find anything she wanted to wear. We have been making and fitting head coverings ever since.

Along the way we learned that women come to us for all sorts of reasons, and faith is one of the oldest of them. A scarf that has to sit a certain way, cover a certain amount, and still look like something you chose is a real request, and we like getting it right.