A Turkish cap is an informal cap worn by men in Turkey, where it is referred to as hacı takkesi ("pilgrim's cap"). It is mostly associated with religious, rural and older men. The Turkish cap is made of cotton fleece or a wool blend. Traditional caps have a zig-zag pattern, and a pom-pom on top. Some caps are plain. The cap is worn with the seam facing the ear. Wearing the seam at the back of the head is improper and uncomfortable.
The cap is worn by Muslims in the United States of all ethnicities. In the United States, the cap is sold as a Turki koofi, Turkish kufi, or Islamic knit cap.
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In West Africa, the Turkish cap is worn by people of all religious faiths including, Christians, Muslims, and African Jews. Along with a variety of caps (such as the Fez) the Turkish cap is worn as a variant of the Muslim Taqiyah, in religious obligation to cover the head. Senegalese writer and filmmaker Ousmane Sembène and Guinea-Bissau revolutionary leader Amílcar Cabral frequent sporting of the hat added to its popularity worldwide in the 1970s. In West Africa it is often associated with religious leaders, rural notables, urban shopkeepers, members of the Mouride brotherhood, and the Fula people