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Cowboy hat
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Western cowboy hat is recognized around the world as part of "cowboy" lore. It is the defining piece of attire for farm and ranch workers in the western areas of North America as well as northern Mexico.
The concept of a broad-brimmed hat with a high crown worn by a rider on horseback came primarily from the tradition of the Mexican vaquero. However, the cowboy hat as known today has many antecedants to its design, including Mexican hats such as the sombrero and galan, the various designs of wide-brimmed hat worn by farmers and stockmen in the eastern United States, as well as the design used by the United States Cavalry.
The shape of a cowboy hat once depended very much on the region that it originated from. At one time a person could tell where a working cowboy was from just by looking at the crease in their hat. John B. Stetson is credited with designing and marketing the first "cowboy" hat in the USA, which he called the "Boss of the Plains."
In the early days, the cowboy hat was valued for being functional, with the wide brim protecting working cowboys from the sun and rain. It could be used to signal others, fan a campfire, or pull water out of a stream. Today, while the hats can still serve these purposes, most people wear them for aesthetic value as a part of Western lifestyle. A cowboy hat even appears on the flag of Calgary, Alberta.
Today, classic designs are available in muted colors such as black and various shades of brown and gray, notably a warm light gray known as "silver belly." Styles for men and women are virtually identical, though women's cowboy hats are available in a much wider variety of colors.
The name ten-gallon hat does not refer to use of the hat as a container. In Mexico, the Spanish term tan galan means "so gallant" and refers to a galan, meaning a "gallant" or young, upper-class "leading man", who customarily wore such hats (as opposed to the Mexican sombrero).
Timothy Anna et al, Historia de México. Barcelona: Crítica, 2001.