Panama Hat made for Harry Truman

Panama hats sold on a street market in Ecuador

A Panama hat or just Panama is a traditional brimmed hat of Ecuadorian origin that is made from the plaited leaves of the toquilla straw plant (Carludovica palmata). Straw hats woven in Ecuador, like many other 19th and early 20th century South American goods, were shipped first to the Isthmus of Panama before sailing for their destinations in Asia, the rest of the Americas, and Europe. For some products, the name of their point of international sale rather than their place of domestic origin stuck, hence “Panama hats.”^[1] The 49ers picked up these hats in Panama, and when President Theodore Roosevelt visited the Panama Canal construction, he wore such a hat, which increased its popularity. They're also known as a Jipijapa, named for a town in Ecuador once a center of the hat trade. The Oxford English Dictionary cites a use of the term as early as 1834.^[2] Panama Hat: Made by Stetson especially for Harry S. Truman. ... Panama Hat: Made by Stetson especially for Harry S. Truman. ... Download high resolution version (1280x960, 316 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1280x960, 316 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... For other uses, see Hat (disambiguation). ... The Oxford English Dictionary print set The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a dictionary published by the Oxford University Press (OUP), and is the most successful dictionary of the English language, (not to be confused with the one-volume Oxford Dictionary of English, formerly New Oxford Dictionary of English, of...

Glorified during the 19^th century, the panama has since been considered the prince of straw hats. Ecuadorian national hero and emblematic figure, Eloy Alfaro helped finance his liberal revolution of Ecuador through the export of panamas. The reputation of the hat was established by Napoleon III, Edward VII, and some other aficionados. A straw hat is a large brimmed hat that is woven out of straw. ... Eloy Alfaro Eloy Alfaro Delgado (June 25, 1842-January 28, 1912) was president of Ecuador from 1895 to 1901 and from 1906 to 1911. ...

Popularity and culture

Panama hats are often seen as accessories to summer weight suits, such as linen or silk. Beginning around the turn of the century, panamas began to be associated with the seaside and tropical locales, such as Brighton or the Caribbean. They are usually preferred over felt hats in such climates for they are light coloured, light weight, and breathable.

Beginning in the late 1960s, hats in general were worn less often. However, the panama seems to be one of the few hats to survive the tests of time. Men can still be seen sporting a panama in the tropics. It is, by no means, as popular as it was during the golden age of hats, but it is still surviving. As a matter of fact, well founded hat companies, such as Dobbs, Stetson and Cavanaugh, now produce more panama styled hats than felt hats, such as fedoras or bowlers. Dobbs is a fictional character in the novel Catch-22 by Joseph Heller. ... The Stetson Cavalry Hat For the university, see Stetson University. ... The bowler hat is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown created for Thomas Coke, 2nd Earl of Leicester, in 1850. ...

In televison, the Panama was worn rarely by the First Doctor (William Hartnell), occasionally by the Fifth Doctor (Peter Davison) in a rolled up style, and most frequently by the Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy), in the long-running British sci-fi show, Doctor Who. The First Doctor is the name given to the first incarnation of the Doctor seen on screen in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. ... For the Californio, see William Edward Petty Hartnell. ... The Fifth Doctor is the name given to the fifth incarnation of the fictional character known as the Doctor seen on screen in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. ... Peter Davison (born Peter Moffett 13 April 1951) is an English actor, best known for his roles as Tristan Farnon in the television version of James Herriots All Creatures Great and Small and as the fifth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, which he played from 1981 to... The Seventh Doctor is a fictional character, the seventh incarnation of the Doctor seen on screen in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. ... Sylvester McCoy (born Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith August 20, 1943) is a Scottish actor. ... This article is about the television series. ...

Legendary NASCAR team owner Jack Rousch is never seen without wearing his trademark Panama Hat.

Quality

Panama hat quality is a heavily disputed subject. There are two main processes in the hat's creation: weaving and blocking. The best way to gauge the quality of the weave is to count the number of weaves per square inch. Fewer than 100 would be considered low quality.^{[citation needed]} There are many degrees of increasing quality, up to the rarest and most expensive hats, which can have as many as 1600-2000 weaves per square inch^{[citation needed]}; it is not unheard of for these hats to sell for thousands of dollars apiece, a $500.00 hat for $30,000 no less.

The quality of the weave itself, however, is more important. A high weave count, even an attractive-looking one, does not guarantee a well-woven hat. It is said that a Panama of true quality can hold water and can be folded for storage without damage.

Even though the panama continues to provide a livelihood for thousands of Ecuadorians, fewer than a dozen weavers capable of making the finest "montecristi superfinos" remain; the UK's Financial Times Magazine (Jan. 2007) recently reported that there may not be more than 15-20 years remaining for the industry in Ecuador, due to the competition of paper-based Chinese-made imitations, especially as a few hat sellers dominate and manipulate the market, literally killing the industry.

17th century interpretation of saint James the Greater by the Peruvian school of Cuzco. The pilgrim hat has become a Panama hat.

Download high resolution version (1688x2296, 369 KB)Saint James the Great as a Moor-killer, painting by unknown artist of the Cusco school, presumably 17th century. ... Download high resolution version (1688x2296, 369 KB)Saint James the Great as a Moor-killer, painting by unknown artist of the Cusco school, presumably 17th century. ... (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... For people and places called Saint James, see the diambiguation page. ... This article is the city in Peru. ...

Bibliography

• Aguilar de Tamariz, María Leonor. Tejiendo la vida… 1988.
• Buchet, Martine and Laziz Hamani. Panama: A Legendary Hat. 2004.
• Domínguez, Miguel Ernesto. El sombrero de paja toquilla – historia y economía. 1991.
• Miller, Tom. The Panama Hat Trail. 1986.

Notes

[WORLDWIDE, ALL PANAMAS HATS ARE WOVEN IN ECUADOR (MONTECRISTI Y CUENCA)][1]

1. ^ The Panama Hat Trail, by Tom Miller, p. 1.
2. ^ Oxford English Dictionary