What’s in a name?

You must have heard about the iconic Panama Hats. Yes then, as many others, you may think that the Panama Straw Hats are made in Panama. Is this true? Actually it’s not. The fact is the Panama Hat is not from Panama but from Ecuador. The finest of all the Panama Straw Hats comes from the town of Montecristi. All the authentic, skillfully craft Panama Straw Hats are made in Ecuador but why name it Panama Hats. Well the name got twisted with history and the story goes like this.

The Panama Straw Hats were crafted in Ecuador but were sold in Panama. The buyers didn’t know where the fine quality Straw Hats were made so, they named it after the place where it was sold. The Panama hat became popular and in great use during late 1800s. However, most likely responsible for the misnomer is the construction of the Panama Canal. The durability and high quality of the straw hat made it quite popular with the workers who arrived for the project. The name struck when President Theodore Roosevelt dubbed the name as the ‘Panama Hat’.

The main center where the Panama Straw Hats are traded is in Cuenca and Montecristi, in Ecuador. Scattered in the place are many Panama Hat weavers and shops. People from the small town of Montecristi are mostly all, involved in growing, harvesting, weaving and selling the fine Straw Hats. In Montecristi, there are very few master weavers who hand weave excellent quality Straw Hats. The finer the Montecristi Hats, the fewer will be the number. Since each of the Montecristi Hats is handmade, one by one, it takes months to weave a single hat. Hat aficionados look at the number of weaves per square inch of a Straw Hat in order to establish the quality of a Montecristi Hat. Though, the name does not give full credit to the people of Ecuador but they don’t seem to mind. They are more happy to meet the challenges of weaving the hat and finishing it with the finest touch.