Papakha
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The papakha (; , ; ; , ; , ; ; ) is a sheepskin hat worn by men throughout the
Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...
and also in uniformed regiments in the region and beyond. The word ''papakha'' is of Turkic origin (''papakh)''. The word ''papak'' is also a component of the ethnonym of a Turkic group of uncertain relation: the " Karapapak" (literally "black papakh" in the
Azerbaijani language Azerbaijani ( ; , , ) or Azeri ( ), also referred to as Azerbaijani Turkic or Azerbaijani Turkish (, , ), is a Turkic languages, Turkic language from the Oghuz languages, Oghuz sub-branch. It is spoken primarily by the Azerbaijanis, Azerbaij ...
).


Styles

There are two different
Caucasian Caucasian may refer to: Common meanings *Anything from the Caucasus region or related to it ** Ethnic groups in the Caucasus ** ''Caucasian Exarchate'' (1917–1920), an ecclesiastical exarchate of the Russian Orthodox Church in the Caucasus re ...
papakhas. One, called a ''papaha'', is a high fur hat, usually made of
karakul sheep Karakul or Qaraqul (named after Qorakoʻl, a city in Bukhara Region in Uzbekistan) is a breed of domestic fat-tailed sheep which originated in Central Asia. Some archaeological evidence points to Karakul sheep being raised there continuously sinc ...
skin. The hat has the general appearance of a cylinder with one open end and is set upon the head in such a way as to have the brim touch the temples. Some examples have ear-flaps which can be folded up when not in use. The other style is called a ''kubanka'', and is similar to the papaha, but shorter and without ear-flaps.


Prevalence

Papaqs are very important to mountainous peoples' of the Caucasus, where a man's hat is considered a very important part of his identity. Papakhi are donned by the
Circassians The Circassians or Circassian people, also called Cherkess or Adyghe (Adyghe language, Adyghe and ), are a Northwest Caucasian languages, Northwest Caucasian ethnic group and nation who originated in Circassia, a region and former country in t ...
,
Chechens The Chechens ( ; , , Old Chechen: Нахчой, ''Naxçoy''), historically also known as ''Kistin, Kisti'' and ''Durdzuks'', are a Northeast Caucasian languages, Northeast Caucasian ethnic group of the Nakh peoples native to the North Caucasus. ...
,
Dagestan Dagestan ( ; ; ), officially the Republic of Dagestan, is a republic of Russia situated in the North Caucasus of Eastern Europe, along the Caspian Sea. It is located north of the Greater Caucasus, and is a part of the North Caucasian Fede ...
is, and other Caucasian tribes. Papakhas are also donned in Georgia mostly worn in mountainous regions of
Pshavi Pshavi ( ka, ფშავი) is a small historic region of northern Georgia (country), Georgia, nowadays part of the Mtskheta-Mtianeti ''mkhare'' ("region"), and lying chiefly among the southern foothills of the Greater Caucasus mountains along t ...
,
Khevi Khevi ( ka, ხევი) is a small historical-geographic area in northeastern Georgia. It is included in the modern-day Kazbegi district, Mtskheta-Mtianeti region ( mkhare). Located on the northern slopes of the Greater Caucasus mountains, i ...
,
Mtiuleti Mtiuleti ( ka, მთიულეთი; literally, "the land of mountains") is a historical province in eastern Georgia, on the southern slopes of the Greater Caucasus Mountains. It primarily comprises the White Aragvi Valley, and is bordered b ...
, and
Tusheti Tusheti ( ka, თუშეთი, tr; Bats: თუშითა, romanized: tushita) is a historic region in northeast Georgia. A mountainous area, it is home to the Tusheti National Park. By the conventional definition of the Europe-Asia boundar ...
. In 1855, after the campaigns in the
Caucasus Mountains The Caucasus Mountains * * Azerbaijani: , * * * * * * * * * * * is a mountain range at the intersection of Asia and Europe. Stretching between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, they are surrounded by the Caucasus region ...
, the Papakha was introduced in the
Russian army The Russian Ground Forces (), also known as the Russian Army in English, are the Army, land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces are the protection of the state borders, combat on land, ...
as an official part of the uniform for the
Cossacks The Cossacks are a predominantly East Slavic languages, East Slavic Eastern Christian people originating in the Pontic–Caspian steppe of eastern Ukraine and southern Russia. Cossacks played an important role in defending the southern borde ...
, and later for the rest of the cavalry. Papaq is also very common in
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
,
Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...
,
Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...
,
Uzbekistan , image_flag = Flag of Uzbekistan.svg , image_coat = Emblem of Uzbekistan.svg , symbol_type = Emblem of Uzbekistan, Emblem , national_anthem = "State Anthem of Uzbekistan, State Anthem of the Republ ...
, as well as among the
Uyghurs The Uyghurs,. alternatively spelled Uighurs, Uygurs or Uigurs, are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the general region of Central Asia and East Asia. The Uyghurs are recognized as the ti ...
.


Russian and Soviet army uniforms

Shortly after the
Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...
of 1917, papakhas were removed from the new
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...
uniform because of their association with the old Tsarist regime and the fact that many Cossack regiments of the Tsarist army fought against the
Bolsheviks The Bolsheviks, led by Vladimir Lenin, were a radical Faction (political), faction of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party (RSDLP) which split with the Mensheviks at the 2nd Congress of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party, ...
. During the
Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...
, many Bolshevik cavalrymen and officers (like
Vasily Chapayev Vasily Ivanovich Chapayev (; 5 September 1919) was a Russian soldier and Red Army commander during the Russian Civil War. Biography Chapayev was born into a poor peasant family in a village called , now part of Cheboksary. During World War I ...
) wore papakhas or kubankas because many of them were Cossacks and the hat had been part of the cavalryman's uniform. Papakhas became part of the uniform again in 1935, but in 1941, were reserved exclusively for full colonels, generals and marshals, thus becoming a symbol of status and high rank. Much later, during
Andrei Grechko Andrei Antonovich Grechko (; ; – 26 April 1976) was a Soviet military commander and Marshal of the Soviet Union during the Cold War. He served as the Soviet minister of defence from 1967 to 1976. Born to a Ukrainian peasant family near Rosto ...
's tenure as a Defence Minister, the Navy followed suit, introducing their own distinct version resembling a smallish "kubanka" with a visor, which was nicknamed "шапка с ручкой" ("the hat with a handle") by the troops. In 1994, they were once again removed from military use. Allegedly this was by request of the wearers, who found the hat inefficient. (As the papakha is a relatively short hat that does not protect the ears well, it might be well suited to the mild climate of the Caucasus, but not to lower temperatures elsewhere. The act of removing the papakhas was seen in some quarters as an attempt by the
Boris Yeltsin Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin (1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician and statesman who served as President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1961 to ...
regime to abandon earlier Soviet traditions and symbolically demonstrate the country's commitment to a new political course. In 2005 however, papakhas were reinstated. Papakhas have also been used by the Russian backed Luhansk People's Militia in both the
War in Donbas The war in Donbas, or the Donbas war, was a phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War in the eastern Donbas region of Ukraine. The war Timeline of the war in Donbas (2014), began in April 2014, when Russian separatist forces in Ukraine, Russian para ...


Contemporary papakha

The Papakha's heritage comes from Central Asia and the Caucasus and is worn across the entire region, including Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, and North Caucasus, as well as Russia and Ukraine, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan (called '' telpek)'' and also Persia.


Gallery

File:Brooklyn Museum - Two Persian Peasants and Two Persian Officers Gambling One of 274 Vintage Photographs.jpg, Two Persian peasants and two Persian officers gambling, between 1876 and 1933; the standing peasant is wearing a papakha.
Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 500,000 objects. Located near the Prospect Heig ...
File:Georgische Familie.jpg, Georgian poet and writer
Vazha-Pshavela Vazha-Pshavela ( ka, ვაჟა-ფშაველა), simply referred to as Vazha ( ka, ვაჟა) (14 July 1861 – 10 July 1915), is the pen name of the Georgian poet and writer Luka Razikashvili ( ka, ლუკა რაზიკა ...
(centre) wearing a Georgian papakha with his family File:Habib bey Salimov (cropped).jpg, Habib bey Salimov, first Chief of Staff of
Azerbaijani Armed Forces The Azerbaijani Armed Forces () is the military of the Azerbaijan, Republic of Azerbaijan. It was re-established according to the country's Law of the Armed Forces on 9 October 1991. The original Azerbaijan Democratic Republic's armed forces were ...
wearing a traditional papagh. File:Andranik hat.png, Armenian military commander
Andranik Andranik Ozanian, commonly known as General Andranik or simply Andranik (25 February 186531 August 1927), was an Armenian military commander and statesman, the best known '' fedayi'' and a key figure of the Armenian national liberation moveme ...
wearing a papakha File:Tat people from Adur (Azerbaijan).jpg, Tat men wearing papakha File:Khinalugian Suleyman 2007.jpg, A man from Khinalug with a papakha File:Gurtnyyaz Nurlyyewic Hanmyradow and Shinzo Abe 20151023.jpg, Japanese Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe Shinzo Abe (21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020. ...
(right) wearing a papakha ( telpek) next to rector of the Magtymguly Turkmen State University Gurtnyyaz Nurlyyewic Hanmyradow (left) File:Dmitry Medvedev in Turkmenistan 21 October 2010-3.jpeg, Turkmen boy wearing a papakha ( telpek) with Russian President
Dmitry Medvedev Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...
at Turkmenbashi International Airport File:Turkmen supporter of FC Rubin Kazan.jpg, Turkmen football fan with a papakha (right) File:Azerbaijani old man in Papakh.jpg, Azerbaijani old man in Papakh File:Allan Ramsay - Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712 - 1778) - Google Art Project.jpg, 1766 portrait of
Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher ('' philosophe''), writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects ...
wearing an Armenian papakha and costume,
Allan Ramsay Allan Ramsay may refer to: *Allan Ramsay (poet) or Allan Ramsay the Elder (1686–1758), Scottish poet *Allan Ramsay (artist) Allan Ramsay (13 October 171310 August 1784) was a Scottish portrait Painting, painter. Life and career Ramsay w ...
File:Azerbaijan tradition.jpg, Traditional
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
i clothing and musical instruments File:Махмуд Эсамбаев.jpg,
Makhmud Esambayev Makhmud Ḣelasoltiyn voḣ Esambayev (15 July 19247 January 2000) was a Soviet and Chechen dancer, ballet master, choreographer and actor. Makhmud was regarded as one of the most famous dancers of the Soviet Union. People's Artist of the US ...
, known for his papakha, which he referred to as his "crown"


See also

* Busby *
List of hat styles Hats have been common throughout the history of humanity, present on some of the very earliest preserved human bodies and art. Below is a list of various kinds of contemporary or traditional hat. List See also *List of headgear References ...
* Kalpak *
Karakul (hat) The Karakul hat (), also known by other names, is a hat made from the fur of the Karakul breed of sheep. It originally comes from Bukhara, Uzbekistan. The fur from which it is made is referred to as ''Astrakhan'', ''broadtail'', ''qaraqulcha'', o ...
*
Ushanka An ushanka (, , from , ), also called an ushanka-hat (, ), is a Russian fur hat with ear-covering flaps that can be tied up on the crown of the cap, or fastened at the chin to protect the ears, jaw, and lower chin from the cold. An alternativ ...
, Russian fur hat with "ear flaps"


References


External links

* {{Hats 1850s fashion 19th-century fashion 20th-century fashion 21st-century fashion Armenian clothing Azerbaijani clothing Clothing of Georgia (country) Russian folk clothing Hats Military organization of Cossacks Uniforms Turkish inventions