The keffiyeh/kufiya (Arabic: كوفية, kūfiyyah, plural كوفيات,
kūfiyyāt), also known as a ghutrah (غُترَة) or shemagh (شماغ),
and also known by some as ḥaṭṭah (حَطّة), mashadah (مَشَدة), or
in Persian chafiye (چَفیِه), and in Kurdish cemedanî ( جه مه
داني), is a traditional Arab headdress fashioned from a square,
usually cotton, scarf. It is typically worn by Arab men, as well
as some Kurds. It is commonly found in arid regions to provide
protection from direct sun exposure, as well to protect the
mouth and eyes from blown dust and sand. Its distinctive woven
check pattern may have originated in an ancient Mesopotamian
representation of either fishing nets or ears of grain, but the
true origin of the pattern remains unknown. The keffiyeh has
been worn by Arabs residing in regions in Arabia, Jordan, and
Iraq for over a century, but its prominence increased in other
regions in the 1960s with the beginning of the Palestinian
resistance movement and its adoption by Palestinian politician
Yasser Arafat. The keffiyeh