The Tyrolean hat (german: Tirolerhut, it, cappello alpino), also Bavarian hat or Alpine hat, is a type of

headwear Headgear, headwear, or headdress is the name given to any element of clothing which is worn on one's head, including hats, helmets, turbans and many other types. Headgear is worn for many purposes, including protection against the elements, ...

that originally came from the

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

in the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

, in what is now part of

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

and

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

. It is an essential and distinctive element of the local folk costume, or ''

tracht ''Tracht'' () refers to traditional garments in German-speaking countries and regions. Although the word is most often associated with Bavarian, Austrian, South Tyrolian and Trentino garments, including lederhosen and dirndls, many other German- ...

''.

Description

A typical Tyrolean hat is made of green

felt Felt is a textile material that is produced by matting, condensing and pressing fibers together. Felt can be made of natural fibers such as wool or animal fur, or from synthetic fibers such as petroleum-based acrylic or acrylonitrile or wood ...

, which originally had a crown tapering to a point and a brim roughly the width of a hand, something that was especially common in the

Zillertal The Ziller Valley (german: Zillertal) is a valley in Tyrol, Austria that is drained by the Ziller River. It is the widest valley south of the Inn Valley (german: Inntal) and lends its name to the Zillertal Alps, the strongly glaciated section o ...

, a Tyrollian valley in Austria. In addition to varying in shape and width of brim, the hats are characteristically decorated with a coloured, corded hatband and a spray of flowers,

feather Feathers are epidermal growths that form a distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on both avian (bird) and some non-avian dinosaurs and other archosaurs. They are the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates and a premie ...

s or "brush" at the side of the crown. The traditional "brush", known as a ''gamsbart'', is made of the beard of the chamois goat. A large and showy one may contain thousands of individual hairs, and cost between $2,500 and $3,000. It takes a variety of forms, and may often be combined with feathers.

History

In the 19th and 20th centuries, Tyrolean costumes developed a certain degree of uniformity in their appearance. In the local village costumes of the Tyrol, the various styles of Tyrolean hat have survived since the 1830s/1840s, albeit similar to those of contemporary fashion. These original forms vary from the tall, relatively narrow-brimmed hats of North Tyrol which were dented on top, to the small, wide-brimmed hats of the South Tyrolean wine country. Later the Tyrolean hat became the image bearer of "Tyrolean culture" as a tourist symbol, very popular at folk gatherings and beer festivals, such as the

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

Oktoberfest The Oktoberfest (; bar, Wiesn, Oktobafest) is the world's largest Volksfest, featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival. It is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. It is a 16- to 18-day folk festival running from mid- or ...

, and influenced by folk music bands who wore fanciful "local" costumes. The musician, Billy Mo, wrote a song in 1962 called "

Ich kauf' mir lieber einen Tirolerhut Ich kauf' mir lieber einen Tirolerhut is a 1962 schlager song, which became successful both as an original recording, as well as a cover-version in other languages. German The original version, ''Ich kauf’ mir lieber einen Tirolerhut'', was rec ...

" ("I Prefer to Buy a Tyrolean Hat"), which reinforced the link between the hat and traditional Alpine (brass band) folk music. In 1965, a comedy musical appeared under the same title. The Tyrolean hat became even better known thanks to

Edward VIII Edward VIII (Edward Albert Christian George Andrew Patrick David; 23 June 1894 – 28 May 1972), later known as the Duke of Windsor, was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Empire and Emperor of India from 20 January 1 ...

of Great Britain, who, after his abdication, frequently stayed in Austrian

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered ...

and often wore a hat of Tyrolean style, although it did not come from there. It is said that the Tyrolean hat was the inspiration for the homburg, a style popularized beyond its native Germanic region by his grandfather,

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second chil ...

Gallery

File:Petzenburg Knabe mit Tirolerhut und Äffchen.jpg, ''Boy with Tyrolean hat and monkey'' (''Knabe mit Tirolerhut und Äffchen''). Oil on canvas, c. 1834 File:Andreas hofer mit hut.jpg,

Andreas Hofer Andreas Hofer (22 November 1767 – 20 February 1810) was a Tyrolean innkeeper and drover, who in 1809 became the leader of the Tyrolean Rebellion against the Napoleonic and Bavarian invasion during the War of the Fifth Coalition. He was subs ...

, wearing the typical, broad-brimmed flat hat of the South Tyrolean type (posthumous portrait, mid-19th century) File:Lovis_Corinth_-_Selbstportraet_mit_Tiroler_Hut_1913.jpg, ''Self portrait with Tyrolean hat'' (''Selbstporträt mit Tiroler Hut''),

Lovis Corinth Lovis Corinth (21 July 1858 – 17 July 1925) was a German artist and writer whose mature work as a painter and printmaker realized a synthesis of impressionism and expressionism. Corinth studied in Paris and Munich, joined the Berlin Sec ...

File:Tyrolean hat.jpg, Simple, party version of the Tyrolean hat File:Chapeau tyrolien.jpg, Grey variant of the Tyrolean hat

References

{{Hats Austrian clothing German clothing Swiss clothing Italian clothing Hats

Description

History

Gallery

See also

References