Karakul (hat) Karakul (hat) A karakul (or qaraqul) hat (Pashto/Persian: قراقلی) is a hat made from the fur of the Qaraqul breed of sheep. The triangular hat is part of the costume of the native people of Kabul which has been worn by many generations of men in Afghanistan. The fur from which it is made is referred to as "Astrakhan", "broadtail", "qaraqulcha", or "Persian lamb". Qaraqul means black fur in Turkic, similar types of hats are common among Turkic peoples. The hat is peaked, and folds flat when taken off of the wearer's head. The qaraqul hat is typically worn by
Karakul (hat) Cap as he waits at his in-laws house for his bride to accompany him home. In the Kashmiri Muslim diaspora the Karakul cap is now only worn at important moments. Karakul caps became popular among Africans and African-Americans in the 1960s. African Presidents such as Modibo Keïta of Mali and Ahmed Sékou Touré of Guinea, who were themselves both of pre-colonial African royal descent, wore the karakul cap to show their independence from European colonial power. The karakul cap is often worn by African and African-American Christians and Jews. Both the velvet and faux fur versions are worn by men