Pakol Hat Cap Traditional Hat of Afghanistan and North West Pakistan Pashtun Pathan Topi Massoud Donut Beret

Today it has become an integral part of Afghan culture all over the world.

The hat originated in the Nuristan region. However, its ancestor is perhaps the remarkably similar ancient Macedonian kausia worn by men in ancient Southeast Europe.^[2] It gained popularity among the northeastern Pashtun people in the early twentieth century. In the recent two decades it gain popularity in the Great tribal areas of Pakistan where it become their culture along with wasket particularly in winter.

The patti is first sewn into the shape of a cylinder, about a foot or more long. One end of the cylinder is capped with a round piece of the same material, slightly wider than the cylinder itself. The woolen cylinder is then inverted and fitted onto a round wooden block. The rim of the woolen cylinder is then rolled up to the top. The flat top protrudes a little over the rolled-up edge to give the cap a tiny brim. Otherwise, all Afghan headwear, unlike Western hats, is brimless. This is because Muslims pray with their heads covered. A brimmed hat would interfere with the sajdah (act of prostration during prayers). The little brim of the pakol, however, presents no such problem.

In Gilgit-Baltistan, the white color pakol is more popular and is sometimes worn with a peacock plume stuck in the folds, like a badge, on the front or the side of the cap. The deep blue and green of the peacock feather, set against the white of the cap, is quite eye catching.

Because of the woolen material, the pakol is basically a cold weather cap. In particularly chilly weather of Nuristan, the cap can be unrolled and pulled down over the ears, like a ski cap. Worn this way, it may look sloppy but is effective against the cold. The Afghan military leader Ahmad Shah Massoud is often shown in photographs wearing a pakol.