The Panama Hat

A "Panama" hat is a reference to the straw material that a hat is made from. It is neither a style nor a quality, but simply a hat - in any style and of any quality - made from the plant Carludovica palmata (aka "Toquilla palm"), which grows in the coastal lowlands of western South America (not Panama). Therefore, genuine "Panama hats" come in a range of styles, colors, and qualities - all artisanally handwoven using Toquilla palm straw. 

The term "Panama" hat is, in fact, a misnomer - genuine Panama hats are traditionally handwoven in Ecuador by expert artisans. The term was largely adopted after the construction of the Panama Canal in the early 1900s. Many photographs sent around the world during and after its construction included men donning the traditional "white" (i.e. bleached) straw hat adorned with a black ribbon band, including then U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt.

President Roosevelt discussing America's task with workmen at Bas Obispo, Panama Canal (1906).*

The traditional men's Panama hat is oftentimes blocked into pinch or teardrop crown fedora styles, however, the quintessential Panama hat style is the Optimo - characterized by a ridge along the center of its crown. The ridge forms naturally after the hat is folded in half into itself and then rolled for easy storage. This, of course, can only be achieved with high-quality Panama hats of grades 20 or better. However, many Optimo styles can now be purchased with the ridge "built-in" during the blocking process.

Panama hats are now available in all sorts of styles - both unisex and not - and remain to this day, a sought-after symbol of elegance and sophistication in warm weather. 

*Underwood & Underwood, Publisher. President Roosevelt discussing America's task with workmen at Bas Obispo, Panama Canal. New York: Underwood & Underwood, publishers. Photograph. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/2010649456/>.

By G. Realpe
Copywriter, Village Hat Shop