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Cultural Context

Worn by Hakka women, sometimes worn by Cantonese women.

History Of Use

Worn while working outdoors to protect wearer from sun and dust. Often considered an identifying feature of Hakka women in this region. The band, Hakka women wear as an ornament on their hats, indicates their marital status (by colour) and place of origin (by length and material of tassels, by colour combinations, and mode of wearing). (collector)

Iconographic Meaning

Black colour of band indicates that the wearer is either elderly or unmarried.

Description

A flat hat of twill-weave straw with natural yellow and yellow-green colours and varnished. Hat is disc shaped with a round hole in the centre and finished with a band of black cloth with two diametrically opposed black cloth loops. Outer circumference is finished with a double rim of split bamboo affixed to the upper side of the hat with split rattan. Two pieces of thin, black cotton, 18 cm. wide, finely pleated and joined together with loose stitches of red and green thread.

Narrative

This hat was new when collected in Yuen Long Old Market, Hong Kong, in 1976. Hakka people are one of the two original land-dwelling groups that settled the area that became the New Territories of Hong Kong. Their spoken language, and some customs, differed from those of the other original group, the Cantonese or Punti. The Cantonese arrived first and settled on the best rice-growing lands, while the Hakka began to arrive after the late 17th century and settled the more hilly lands.