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Kuwait Male Attire
Most
Kuwaitis men wear a dishdasha, a floor length robe with
a center robe opening which is but on over the head.
Because it is so well suited to the climate, this basic
garment has changed little in the last few hundred
years, though the collar, front button fastening and
buttoned cuffs are 20th century innovations introduction
by Indian tailor.
The three-part headdress of the Kuwait male is also very
functional. It provides shade during summer, it can be
wrapped across the face during sandstorms, and it’s end
can be twisted up like a turban if the wearer is doing
manual work. The gutra is a square piece of cloth which
is folded into a triangle and then placed centrally on
the head so that the ends hang down equally over the
shoulders. It is held in place by an ogal, a double
circlet of twisted black cord, which is placed firmly
over the head. Often a gahfiah, a close fitting skull
cap, is worn under the gutra to stop it from slipping.
The headdress can be worn in various ways, ranging from
the stiffly formal to the downright rakish, depending on
the wearer’s mode and the social occasion, In the most
dignified style the gutra is centered on the head and
pulled down well over the forehead so that two pointed
ends are arranged on each side of the face, the other at
the back, and the ogal is set straight on the head just
slightly tilted back from the forehead. The possible
variation on this basic positioning are endless. The ogal can be pushed backwards towards the top of the
head, pulled down over the forehead, tilted to the side
or pulled down over an eye. And once the ogal has been
exactly positioned, the gutra can be arranged in various
symmetrical and asymmetrical ways.
Once his headgear is settled to his liking, all a
Kuwaiti has to complete his dress is to slip on a pair
of leather sandals as he goes out the door. In the old
days he would properly have girded himself in a leather
belt with shoulder strap to hold a sheathed saef (sword)
and khanjar (dagger) with possibly a sakeen (dirk) up
his sleeve, but today’s Kuwaiti has replaced these manly
accessories with those modern necessities, a mobile and
pager. Kuwaiti wears white or cream dishdash, with
matching gutras, most months of the year.
During winter somber coloured heavier cloths are used
and the gutras is changed to a red and white check. In winter, most
Kuwaitis also wear a heavy bisht, a cloak made of
traditional thick dun-coloured camel hair or of heavy
modern wool, over their dishdash, though the shebab tend
to favour thick leather wool-lined zipped jerkins. On grand occasion, a semi-transparent bisht with zari,
special gold braiding, is worn by the rich and powerful,
The embossed look of the zari is created by first
hand-embroidering the bisht with gold threads and then
hammering the threads so that they become fused.
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