Contemporary turbans come in many shapes, sizes, and colours.
- Middle Eastern, Central Asian, South Asian, and Sikh turban wearers usually wind it anew for each wearing, using long strips of cloth. The cloth is usually five meters or less. However, some elaborate South Asian turbans may be permanently formed and sewn to a foundation. Turbans can be very large or quite modest dependent upon region, culture, and religion.
- Traditionally, "turban" has been the name of a type of headwear worn by women in Western countries. The wear of such turbans by women in Western societies is less common than it was earlier in the 20th century. They are usually sewn to a foundation, so that they can be donned or removed easily.
- Women in many parts of Africa and the West Indies often cover their heads with intricately tied scarves which may be called scarves, head wraps, or turbans.
- Men of the Tuareg, Berber, Songhai, Wodaabe, Fulani, and Hausa peoples of North and West Africa wear turbans, often veiling the face to block dust.
- People of Kenya tie a distinct style, sometimes called "valeti style".[citation needed] The cloth they tie it with is sometimes starched and the finishing normally includes a sharp point. This style is most commonly tied in the UK and in Kenya.
Kurdish turbans
Kurdish people wear a turban which they call a Jamadani. The Jamadani is worn in many different ways across Kurdistan depending on the style of the locality e.g. the Barzani Kurds are a tribe which wear the turban in a colour (red and white) and style which is typical of their clan. Mostly Kurdish turban consists of a length of striped cloth known as kolāḡī wound around a conical hat; the tassels that border the kolāḡī are allowed to hang down over the face.
Afghan turbans
Afghan men wear a variety of turbans, known as Lungee. Lungee is worn in Afghanistan and theKhyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, especially in the tribal areas. The lungee is usually worn in tribal meetings, but a majority of Pashtuns prefer to wear it in everyday life too.
Indian turbans
Main article: Pagri
In northern India, turbans are referred to as a Pagri. The word specifically refers to the headdress that is worn by men and needs to be manually tied. There are several styles which are specific to regions, religion, etc. A Pagri is a symbol of honour and respect across all regions where it is a practice to wear one. It is also why almost all of these will honour important guests by offering them one to wear.
In British period, The Muslim elites of South Asia especially of western Punjab used to wear long pagri which was also a symbol of nobility, honour and respect. In Punjab and Sindh members of the landed aristrocray always wore this pagri. This pagri was a part of full formal dress and was used to wear with Sherwani.
The Sikh turban, known as the Dastar, is mandatory for all Khalsa Sikhs to wear. The Pheta is worn in Maharashtra and also has regional variants like Puneri and Kolhapuri pheta. In Mysore and Kodaguthe turban is known as the Mysore Peta. The Rajastani turban is commonly called the Pagari. It will vary by caste, class, religion and region. It also serves practical functions like protecting from the elements, used as a pillow, blanket or towel. When unravelled, it is used like a rope where it is tied to a bucket to draw water from the well.
The Pagri will also vary in shape, size and colour. The colour will vary related to occasion it will be worn. For example, Saffron (associated with valour) is worn during rallies, White (associated withpeace) is worn by elders, Pink (associated with spring) is worn during the spring season or marriage ceremonies, etc.
[edit]Western countries
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Turbans have been worn by men and women since the 17th century, without ever becoming very common. PoetAlexander Pope is sometimes depicted wearing a turban.
Now that hats are infrequently worn, turbans too are relatively uncommon. They are worn primarily by women of West Indian descent, Karinas. Some women wear them to make a statement of individuality, such as the Britishsocial entrepreneur Camila Batmanghelidjh, who usually wears a colourful matching turban and robe.
Ethiopian Orthodox Christians usually wear short white turbans made of thin cotton, as do the Ethiopian Muslims[citation needed]. Although the turban is mentioned in several translations of the Bible, such as in Zechariah 3:5, Christians in general do not see wearing turbans as part of their religious practice[citation needed].
[edit]Muslim majority countries
The men of many Islamic cultures have worn or wear a headdress of some sort that may be considered a turban. Islam considers the turban as being a Sunnah Mu'akkadah (Confirmed Tradition) . Head wraps that men wear are called several names and worn in different ways dependent on region and culture. Examples include Amamah (Arabic: عمامة) in Arabic, dastār(Persian: دستار) in Persian.
- Many types of head wrap are worn by Islamic scholars in many Muslim countries. Islamic scholars meaning specifically Muslim scholars who study the religion of Islam, most likely beingSheikhs or Imams.
- In Shi'a Islam, many people believe that wearing a black head wrap, around a small white cap is a claim to status as a descendant of Muhammad. Wearing a black turban symbolizes a well educated person in the Shi'a school of thought.
- Green turban is a distinctive feature of a Hajji.
- In Sudan, large white headdresses are worn; they generally are meant to connote high social status.
