Wikipedia, the free, on-line encyclopedia, says:
A hat is a head covering. It may be worn for protection against the elements, for religious reasons(such as the Papal tiara), for safety, or as a fashion accessory. In the past, hats were an indicator of social status. In the military, they denote rank and regiment.Regarding hat-wearing customs,
The general rule with removing hats in Western culture is that men do so frequently, while women do not, because they traditionally wore much more complex headgear, often requiring hatpins to hold down, making removal hard. Men remove their hats when entering a Christian church, for example, and women do not.Will of course does not take off his hat when he is indoors, a habit which marks him as challenging convention a little.
An older custom in fact requires women to cover their heads in church, often with a scarf, which is still followed in some places, such as Germany or southern America. Similarly, when being introduced or talking to a woman, a man would always remove his hat, and "tip" it (a brief touch to the brim) when briefly acknowledging a lady but not conversing or meeting another man.
Hats are removed by men when indoors, except in public or open places, such as stations, stairwells, lobbies or shops. Removing a hat can also be a sign of respect, so it was traditionally required in various other situations, such as public speaking outdoors.
In Eastern Orthodox cultures, it is customary to remove one's hat in the presence of a religious icon. Traditionalist Catholic women wear a headscarf or veil when entering a church or, more generally, during prayer. Religious Jews wear a head covering at all times, indoors and out. When entering a synagogue, men and married women must cover their heads. Upon entering an Islamic place of worship or religious learning, headscarves are required for women.
Because of changing associations of hats, for example their use as gang indicators, they may now be forbidden in certain contexts, such as schools.
I've done some informal counts, and except in Winter when it is cold, the small minority, perhaps 10%, of men wear hats at all.
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Writing is for me an entrepreneurial activity. For my entrepreneurship blog, to go www.hatman2.blogspot.com and for entrepreneurial real estate go to www.yourstopforrealestate.com/blog
Ian Kearney, the director of the Kearney Music School, an elite musical training school in Philadelphia, dies after a fall from a balcony during a recital. World-famous cellist, Henry Harrier, recently forced from the faculty, returns to investigate Ian's death when his prized former student is arrested. Henry shows through his brilliant and single-minded pursuit of the truth that, as usual, they have it all wrong. This Sherlock Holmes-type mystery leads the reader through the world of classical music and lays bare the conflicts which dominate the lives of talented adolescents when placed under the pressure of studying for a demanding, stressful, and often elusive career as a classical music performer. Henry Harrier is part John Le Carre's George Smiley, part Arthur Conan Doyle's Holmes, and part Orlando Cole the beloved teacher, renowned chamber musician, and until his own retirement, the premier cellist of the Curtis Institute.
Tim was born in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, on January 30, 1946. In 1951 he moved with his family to Schenectady, New York, where he lived through high school. He attended Baldwin-Wallace College, Berea, Ohio, from 1964 to 1968. He graduated in 1968 with a B.A. in history and philosophy. He received his Ph. D. in history in U.S. history in 1980 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison after spending 2.5 years in the U. S. Army. Most of his army service was completed in Wuerzburg, Germany, from 1969-1971. In 1972 he returned to Madison to complete his doctoral study. His dissertation, Those Who Moved; Internal Migrants in American 1607-1840, combined the statistical analysis of genealogical and biographical data with the study of traditional literary diaries, letters, and journals.
