Taqiyah

The taqiyah (Arabic: طاقية‎, ALA-LC: ṭāqīyah[note 1]) or araqchin (Persian: عرقچین‎) is a short, rounded skullcap. It is often worn for religious purposes; for example, Muslims believe that the Islamic prophet Muhammad used to keep his head covered, therefore making it mustahabb (i.e., it is commendable to cover the head in order to emulate him).[1] Muslim men often wear them during the five daily prayers.

When worn by itself, the taqiyah can be any color. However, particularly in Arab countries, when worn under the keffiyeh headscarf, they are kept in a traditional white. Some Muslims wrap a turban around the cap, called an ʿimamah in Arabic, which is often done by Shia and Sunni Muslims. In the United States and Britain, taqiyas are usually referred to as “kufis”.

Topi is a type of taqiyah cap that is worn in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and other regions of South Asia. Many different types of topi caps include the Sindhi cap, worn in Sindh, and the crochet topi that is often worn at Muslim prayer services.

The topi cap is often worn with salwar kameez, which is the national costume of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Taqiyah is the Arabic word for a Muslim skullcap. In the Indian subcontinent, it is called a topi (Hindi: टोपी, Urdu: ٹوپی‎, Bengali: টুপি) which means hat or cap in general. Pakistani, Indian, and Bangladeshian men usually wear the topi with kurta and paijama. In the United States and Britain, many Muslim merchants sell the prayer cap under the name kufi. Sephardic Jews adopted the Bukharan from the Kufi.

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