The Moroccan Fez (Tarboush): Arab-Islamic Roots Before Ottoman Popularization
Many people know the fez (tarboush) as an Ottoman-era hat, but its strongest historical name association points to the Moroccan city of Fez.
Founded under the Idrisid dynasty, Fez became one of the major centers of Arab-Islamic civilization in North Africa. It developed into a city renowned for scholarship, crafts, trade, and urban culture. Over time, Fez gained a reputation for producing red brimless caps that became associated with the city itself, which is why many languages came to call the hat the "fez."
Fez was also deeply shaped by migrations from al-Andalus, especially after successive waves of Andalusian settlement. These communities brought skills in craftsmanship, textiles, urban arts, and learned traditions that further strengthened the city's cultural prestige.
Because of Fez's commercial importance, styles associated with the city circulated beyond Morocco. In later centuries, the fez/tarboush was widely adopted across the Ottoman world, including the Levant, Egypt, the Balkans, and Anatolia, where it became a recognizable form of official and urban dress.
So while the fez became globally famous through Ottoman usage, its name and one of its most important historical associations remain Moroccan: the city of Fez, one of the great centers of Arab-Islamic civilization in the western Islamic world.