Figure 1.--Here we see European girls sporting berets, overcoats, and long stockings during the Winter. We are not sure about the country. It is probably Yugoslavia, but white berets were widely worn in Romania because they were part of the national youth group uniform. The photograph is not dated, but looks like the 1930s to us. The boy is wearing a sailor. The children are dressed up for some kind of formal occssion, but notice no one is wearing a hat.

Girls wore a variety of headwear, nre varied than what boys wore. . Popular types included berets/tams, bonnets, caps, hats, and stocking caps. The popularity of the various types as well as headwear itself varied over time. Headwear was a very important part of both girls and boys dress througout the 19th and first half of the 20th century. Much more important than is the case today. Hats were especially important in the 19th century and when dressing up in the 20th century. A change in the popularity of girls' headwear may have been, at least in part, a craze for huge hair bows which occurred in the 1910s and continued into the 20s. We see many quite elaborate, heavily decorated hats. Some were plain like the hats worn by men and boys, but often the hats worn by women and girls were heavily decorated. We do not note a lot of girls' hats that were national styles, except for folk costumes which were commonly localized. At least in Europe and North the Americas the styles were country specific. This was somewhat less true of the caps worn by boys, in part because of the military and sports influences. We mostly see girls wearing hats in the 19th century. We see some caps, but not very many. The caps we do see were mostly sailor styles. This began to change with the turn of the century, especially after World War I. We see some caps, but berets often called tams became very common in both America and Europe (1920-30s). After World War II, hats were not commonly worn, except when dressing up for church or special occssions. Stocking caps were common during the winter. At this time we have country pages on America, England, and Germany.

Berets

Berets often called tams in merica became very common in both America and Europe (1920-30s). The snapshot here probbly takjen iun the 1930s is a good example (figure 1). After World War II, hats were not commonly worn, except when dressing up for church or special occssions.

Bonnets

Bonnets were nostly worn by girls and women. It was a meieval term for headwear worn by men and women. It was a term used for a wide range of headwear types. Gradually it became more assiciated with female headwear whuch was th case (by the 18th century). The exception swas Scotland. Scottish bonnets are the exceotion, but they hve no reltionship to the bonnets worn by girls and women in the 18th and 19th century. Generally speaking the bonnerts on by girls and wonen were done in material and did not have easily destinguishvle brims as they were done in such soft material, although the flounncy mateial might be considered a type of brim. A mahor teature associated wuth bonnets is unlike caps and hats, the forehead was left uncovered, but the back of the head was covered. This probably related to a medieval function of headwear for momen -- to modestly cover a woman's hair. This was a European term. The term oruginated in France abd was amony French bterms intriduced by the Normans. The term in French originally referred to a type of material which was used to produce headwer. modern binnets were a style wirn by fashionable, largeky well to-do women. Gradually the term beame fashionble and wirn by a wider social group (18th century). It was a term widely used for women's headwear in general, a lingusustic twist which continued inti the 20th centuyry--such as 'Easter bonnet'. 'Bonnet' became the dominant term used for female hats. But this us thus not a useful in assessinjg the style. What we choose to call a bonnet, is also what we see pooionner women ewearing or flonvy headwear wirn by midtly elderly womn. The style is rekated to nmore modern baby bonnets.

Caps

We see some girls wearing caps, but not very many. Caps were primarily a boys' garmnt. They were much more common for boys. The caps we do see were girls wearing were mostly sailor styles. This began to change with the turn of the century, especially after World War I. We see some caps, but berets were much more common. An exception here was winter cold weather wear. We are not entirely sure what kind of headwear girls wore during the winter. The German girls here are ewering berets as winter headwear (figure 1). .

Hats

Hats were standard wear for boys and girls in the 19th century. Some boys wore casps, but hats were more common and for girls fairly stndard. We do see some girls wearing bonnets, but hats were much more common. Straw hats became very common at mid-centurty. It is at this tine that the 49ers headed for the gold fields of California came into contact with high-quality Panama hats (actually made in Ecuador). Wide brimmed sailor hats became popular in the late-19th century. We see boys wearing caos in the 9yh century, but girls usually wore hats. We see many large, quite elaborate, heavily decorated hats around the turn of the 20th century. Some hats were plain like the hats worn by men and boys, but often the hats worn by women and girls were heavily decorated. We do not note a lot of girls' hats that were national styles, except for folk costumes which were commonly localized. At least in Europe and America the styles were country specific. This was somewhat less true of the caps worn by boys, in part because of the military and sports influences. We mostly see girls wearing hats in the 20th century. After the turn of the 20th century, boys increasingly began wearing caps. Girls cointunued wering hats. Hair bows became popular in the 1910s and berets (tams) in the 1920s, but hats were still fairly important. Hairbands were popular in the 12960s. Girls until the late-20th century did not usually wear caps. An exceotion was Scottidh styles. We still girls wearing hats at mid-century, at least when dressing up. Headwear was beginning to become less common for boys and girls. We see American girls wearing baseball caps in the late-20th century.

Hair Bands

Hair Bows

A change in the popularity of girls' headwear may have been, at least in part, a craze for huge hair bows which occurred in the 1910s and continued into the 20s. Hair bows are not hnerlly see as a typoed of headwear becayuse they were normally so small, What wse see especilly in the 1910s.

Head Scarves

The headscarf is of ancint origins. It was cimmon because of its simplocity -- a pice of simple unworked cloth. And it served a utilitarin purpose, protecting the head and hair from sun and rain as well as a matter of sanitation. We do not have detasiled informtion on ncient soicieties, but head scarves were worn in Mesopotamia. Of course in the sun-baked Middle East, sun was more of an issue than rain. Th first written vidnce comes from Assyria (13th cntury BC). The authorities required that women, daughters and widows cover their heads as a sign of piety. The same law prohibited the lower classes and prostitutes from wearing headscarves. Punishmnt could entail public humiliation or arrest. There seems to have developed the idea yhg a head covring was assovcited wih being a respectable person. [Deihl] The headscrve was a common grment in the Middle East. It was thus foped by the Abrahamic religions (Jewish, Christian relgions that orighinated in the Levant. Head scrves and veils became part of the standard dress. They becme associated with the religions, but not mentiond specofically in the Torah, Bible, or Koran. There are references to modesty, but nit to speciufic garmnets. Head scarves were worn in Arabia before Islam. [Shirazi] Islam became later than both Judism and Chrtistianity. We also see had scarves in India, but we re not sure when they first appeared. Had scarves were very common in Cztholic Southern and Eastern Europe. They were less commoin in Western Europe, especially Protestsnt countries. Head scarves were not commom in America. Women in Ameican and England wore bonnets, but we see them being worn by immigrant girls and women arriving from Europr in the 19h and early-20th century. By the 20th century head scrves began to decline even in Estern and Southern Europe, akthugh they persisted in the Islanuc world along wuith much more severe appriosaches such as full body coverings, By mid centyry in Euope and nericahey were either worn in Church (mostly by Catholics) or as fashion accesary. Jacki Kennedy was fmous fir her head scrves. There was also practical use, worn during inclemrt weather or when wind might spoil a hirdo.

Stocking Caps

Stocking caps were common during the winter.

Sources

Deihl, Nancy. New York University. Deihl is a fashion and textile historian.

Shirazi, Faegheh. The Veil Unveiled: The Hijab in Modern Culture.

Created: 5:13 AM 10/30/2018
Last updated: 3:29 PM 6/13/2022