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Traditional chapan of Afghanistan
President Hamid Karzai, Afghanistan, wearing a chapan and karakul
Chapan (variant of caftan) is a coat worn over clothes, usually during the cold winter months. Usually worn by men, these coats are adorned with intricate threading and come in a variety of colors and patterns. It is worn in Central Asia, including Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and other surrounding countries. Outside of Afghanistan, readers may be familiar with the chapan cape often worn by Afghan president Hamid Karzai. The chapan is ethnically Uzbek. President Karzai is himself a Pashtun, and so traditionally would wear a turban, however the gray karakul cap he often wears instead is Tajik. Thus his donning the chapan and karakul when travels abroad and serves as the public image of the Afghan government is an homage to Afghanistan's disparate ethnic groups.
