What is a tarbouche (fez hat)?

The hat everyone calls a "fez" is, in Morocco, the tarbouche — and yes, the English name comes straight from the city of Fes, which was historically the great centre of its manufacture. Picture it: a stiff, round, brimless cylinder of deep red felt, flat on top, usually finished with a black silk tassel hanging from the crown. The colour traditionally came from a crimson dye, and Fes's craftsmen were renowned for producing them. It's one of the most recognisable symbols of Moroccan and wider North African dress.

Here's the honest part visitors should know: the tarbouche is not an everyday hat you'll see Moroccan men wearing down the street today. Its heyday as common headgear has passed. Now it lives mostly in formal and ceremonial settings — worn by a groom at a traditional wedding, by men in folkloric music and dance troupes, by some palace and ceremonial officials, and as part of dignified traditional dress for special religious or national occasions. So if you see one in daily life, it's usually a deliberate nod to heritage rather than just keeping the sun off.

I enjoy giving guests the brimless detail, because there's a reason behind it. The lack of a brim is partly practical for prayer — it lets the forehead touch the ground during the Muslim prostration without a hat getting in the way — which is one reason brimless caps and the tarbouche took hold across the Islamic world. The tarbouche also spread far beyond Morocco historically, becoming standard across the Ottoman lands, which is why you'll see near-identical hats associated with Turkey, Egypt and beyond. But the name "fez" ties it firmly back to this one Moroccan city.

As a souvenir it's a fun, characterful buy, and Fes is naturally the place to get a good one. You'll find them in the souks in various qualities — check the felt is firm and the shape holds — and they make a striking, very Moroccan gift or display piece. Just set expectations if you're picturing locals in fezzes everywhere: you'll more likely spot the tarbouche at a wedding, in a museum, or on a traditionally dressed musician than on the man buying his morning bread.