A Panama hat is a traditional brimmed hat

Hat

A hat is a head covering. It can be worn for protection against the elements, for ceremonial or religious reasons, for safety, or as a fashion accessory. In the past, hats were an indicator of social status...

 of Ecuadorian origin that is made from the plaited leaves of the toquilla straw plant (Carludovica palmata). Straw hat

Straw hat

A straw hat is a brimmed hat that is woven out of straw or reeds. The hat is designed to protect the head from the sun and against heatstroke, but straw hats were also used in fashion and as a decorative element of a uniform.- Manufacture :...

s woven in Ecuador

Ecuador

Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...

, like many other 19th and early 20th century South American goods, were shipped first to the Isthmus of Panama before sailing for their destinations in Asia, the rest of the Americas and Europe. For some products, the name of their point of international sale rather than their place of domestic origin stuck, hence "Panama hats." The 49ers

California Gold Rush

The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...

 picked up these hats in Panama

Panama

Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...

, and when President

President

A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...

 Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore Roosevelt

Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...

 visited the Panama Canal construction, he wore such a hat, which increased its popularity. They're also known as a Jipijapa

Jipijapa

Jipijapa may refer to:*Cyclanthaceae, a palm tree*Panama hat, a hat made from the leaves of that treeJipijapa as a place name:*Jipijapa, Ecuador, a town in Ecuador...

, named for a town in Ecuador, one of the centers of the hat trade. The Oxford English Dictionary

Oxford English Dictionary

The Oxford English Dictionary , published by the Oxford University Press, is the self-styled premier dictionary of the English language. Two fully bound print editions of the OED have been published under its current name, in 1928 and 1989. The first edition was published in twelve volumes , and...

 cites a use of the term as early as 1834.

Glorified during the 19th century, the Panama has since been considered the prince of straw hat

Straw hat

A straw hat is a brimmed hat that is woven out of straw or reeds. The hat is designed to protect the head from the sun and against heatstroke, but straw hats were also used in fashion and as a decorative element of a uniform.- Manufacture :...

s. The Ecuadorian national hero and emblematic figure Eloy Alfaro

Eloy Alfaro

José Eloy Alfaro Delgado was the President of Ecuador from 1895 to 1901 and from 1906 to 1911. He became one the strongest opponents of pro-Catholic conservative President Gabriel Garcia Moreno...

 helped finance his liberal revolution of Ecuador through the export of panamas. The reputation of the hat was established by Napoleon III

Napoleon III of France

Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte was the President of the French Second Republic and as Napoleon III, the ruler of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon I, christened as Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte...

, Edward VII

Edward VII of the United Kingdom

Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...

, and some other aficionados.

Usage

Panama hats are often seen as accessories to summer-weight suits, such as linen or silk. Beginning around the turn of the 20th century, panamas began to be associated with the seaside and tropical locales, such as Brighton or the Caribbean. They are usually preferred over felt hats in such climates, for they are light colored, light weight, and breathable. The Panama is preferred for travel because its design allows it to return to its original shape after being folded in a suitcase.

Beginning in the early 1960s (with the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy

John F. Kennedy

John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....

), hats in general were worn less often. However, the Panama seems to be one of the few hats to survive the test of time. Men can still be seen sporting a Panama in warm climates. It is by no means as popular as it was during the golden age of hats, but it is still surviving, for instance, as sported by MCC

Marylebone Cricket Club

Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...

 members, singer Jason Mraz

Jason Mraz

Jason Thomas Mraz , also known as Mr. AZ and Mr. Raz, is an American singer-songwriter. Mraz released his debut album, Waiting for My Rocket to Come, which contained the hit single "The Remedy ", in 2002, but it was not until the release of his second album, "Mr. A-Z", in 2005, that Mraz achieved...

, or actors Sean Connery

Sean Connery

Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...

 and Anthony Hopkins

Anthony Hopkins

Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...

. As a matter of fact, well-founded hat companies, such as Dobbs

Dobbs

Dobbs may refer to:*Dobbs People*Alfred Dobbs*Arthur Dobbs*Betty Jo Teeter Dobbs*Farrell Dobbs*Harold Dobbs*John Wesley Dobbs*J. R. "Bob" Dobbs*Lou Dobbs*Mattiwilda Dobbs*Michael Dobbs*Tyrone Dobbs*Matthew A. Dobbs*Laci D. DobbsPlace...

, Stetson

Stetson

Stetsons are the brand of hat manufactured by the John B. Stetson Company of St. Joseph, Missouri.Stetson eventually became the world’s largest hat maker, producing over 3.3 million hats a year in a factory spread over . Today Stetson remains a family-owned concern...

 and Cavanaugh, now produce more Panama hats than felt hats, such as fedoras or bowlers

Bowler hat

The bowler hat, also known as a coke hat, derby , billycock or bombin, is a hard felt hat with a rounded crown originally created in 1849 for the English soldier and politician Edward Coke, the younger brother of the 2nd Earl of Leicester...

.

Quality

Panama-hat quality is a heavily disputed subject. There are two main processes in the hat's creation: weaving and blocking. The best way to gauge the quality of the weave is to count the number of weaves per square inch. Fewer than 100 would be considered low quality. There are many degrees of increasing quality, up to the rarest and most expensive hats, which can have as many as 1600–2500 weaves per square inch; it is not unheard of for these hats to sell for thousands of dollars a piece. Such a hat is known as the Montecristi, named after the Ecuadorian city that produces the best Panamas. The second best type is the Cuenca, again, named for an Ecuadorian city.

The quality of the weave itself, however, is more important. A high weave count, even an attractive-looking one, does not guarantee a well-woven hat. It is said that a Panama of true quality (a "superfino") can hold water and when rolled for storage can pass through a wedding ring. However, Ecuadorian milliners disagree on how to rate the lesser-quality hats.

Although the Panama hat continues to provide a livelihood for thousands of Ecuadorians, fewer than a dozen weavers capable of making the finest "Montecristi superfinos" remain. The UK's Financial Times Magazine (13th January 2007) recently reported that there may be no more than 15–20 years remaining for the industry in Ecuador, due to the competition of paper-based Chinese-made imitations, especially as a few hat sellers dominate and manipulate the market.
Panama hats can take up to 4 months to weave. They usually take 2 months to weave.