Moroccan Caftan or Moroccan Kaftan is a long dress that Moroccan women wear in special events such as weddings and birthdays

What Is A Moroccan Caftan ? What Is A Takchita ?

Posted on March 26, 2013 by Almoravide — No Comments ↓

Moroccan Caftan or Moroccan Kaftan is a long dress that Moroccan women wear in special events such as weddings and birthdays. Moroccan Kaftans gained popularity after they have been introduced to the World by the biggest clothing lines and stylists through fashion shows.

What is the difference between a Moroccan Caftan and a Takchita ?

Oftentimes non-Moroccan designers confuse Moroccan Caftan with Takchita, therefore they don’t make a difference between a Takchita and a Caftan, they call them both Moroccan Caftan. The truth is that in Moroccan culture women and stylists make a difference between these two:

Takchita : is a two piece dress composed of two parts, a Tahtiya as the first layer (a caftan traditionally simple with no ornaments) , and Fouqia or Dfina as the second layer, a kaftan which is often open and transparent with a lot of beautiful embroidery and ornaments.

A Takchita is usually worn with a Mdamma (belt), either made of silk or made of gold or silver decorated with precious stones (diamond, ruby, sapphire and emerald)

Caftan : is a one piece dress usually worn loosely without a Mdamma (Belt).

History

Moroccan Caftan finds its roots in Persian heritage introduced to North Africa by Arab conquerors. Moroccan caftan is a cultural heritage resulting of the multiple civilizations that took over in Morocco during the past centuries. Several cultures had contributed in the creation of Moroccan Culture; Berber culture, Arab culture, Andalusian culture.

Women in North Africa, especially in Morocco and Algeria, wear Moroccan kaftan both daily at home and occasionally at special events. Moroccan Caftan is the equivalent of Abaya in the Middle East.

Popularity 

Princess Lalla Salma wrearing a Moroccan Caftan

Before the 1990’s Moroccan Caftan was unknown to the World, but it gained popularity thanks to :

Moroccan diaspora:Moroccan emigrants and their descendants estimated to be 4.5 million living abroad. These emigrants brought Moroccan Kaftan with their culture to Western countries.

Fashion Shows: Countless Fashion Shows held across the globe introduced Moroccan Caftan and Takchita as the main theme of the night . Amongst those shows :

- Caftan 2009: Televised on Fashion TV

- Caftan 2012: Held at Palais Des Congrès Marrakech. This event has been televised on national Moroccan TV station 2M.

- Moroccan Kaftan Show : Held in London

Stylists and Designers: The first Haute Couture stylists to import Moroccan caftans and Takchitas into their catalogs were Yves Saint Laurent, Kenzo, JP Gautier and Christian Lacroix.

Moroccan Royal Family: The Royal Family is known to be very proud of Moroccan Caftan and Takchita, especially in international official events where cameras are pointed to them. Most of Moroccan people consider Princess Lalla Salma or Lalla Selma to be the greatest shining star from the royal family representing the culture of Moroccan Kaftan across the globe.

Now that Moroccan Caftan and Takchita have been introduced to the World, designers and stylists are rushing to include them into their catalogs.

The Golden Age Of Moroccan Caftan and Takchita

After Moroccan Caftan made its breakthrough in the world of fashion, numerous stars appeared wearing it in big events.

Hillary Clinton Wearing Moroccan caftan

Hillary Clinton with The King Of Morocco Mohammed VI

Hillary Clinton and Princess Lalla Meyem wearing Moroccan Caftan

While she was visiting The Kingdom Of Morocco Hillary Clinton has enjoyed her discovery of a new clothing style, the Moroccan Caftan.

Beyonce wearing a beautiful red Moroccan traditional caftan

Beyonce wearing a beautiful red Moroccan traditional caftan

American star Jessica Simpson wearing a beautiful black Moroccan Caftan for Halloween 

American star Jessica Simpson wearing a beautiful black Moroccan Caftan for Halloween

American actress and Academy Award winner Susan Saradon  wears a beautiful blue traditional Moroccan Caftan

Celebrities Wearing Moroccan Caftan and Takchita

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The Future of Woman's Clothing in Morocco:

The Future of Woman's Clothing in Morocco:

Morocco is a very progressive Muslim culture, and the way of dress for women and hijab is much less strict than in other Islamic countries. There have even been governmental and cultural movements in Morocco to "modernize" the dress code for women in an effort to seem more open to international appeal. In the 1970's and 80's these movements were very popular with the county's upper classes, but today the steam seem to have worn off a little, as "traditional clothing" seems to be very much in style now.

In an article in the BBC's World News website the headline reads, Morocco Moves to Drop Headscarf, and is about how the Moroccan government is slowly removing some images of women in headscarves from school textbooks. But this movement has not yet gone beyond superficial trimmings, as woman's dress is a major issue in Islamic cultures, and any teetering of this balance could provoke a wide-spread fundamentalist movement to counter any government sanctioned changes to women's clothing. But this effort to Westernize women's dress does not seem to have much of an effect on the youth of Morocco, as young women have found ways of combining hijab with modern fashions. As Pamela Windo wrote in an article for Newsweek:

"Although they [headscarves] are made of colorful fabrics with pretty clips at the back, what most struck me was the blatant dichotomy between the hijab and their other clothes. While a few women wear it with a subdued djellaba, and others with their everyday modern suits, skirts and coats, a startling number of young Moroccan women combine the hijab with figure-revealing blue or black jeans, elaborate glittering belts, modern sexy tops and designer sunglasses. Equally striking is the glossy-magazine-style make-up, heavy on the lipstick and black kohl eye-liner" (Newsweek, Hijabs and High-heels).  

This is an interesting phenomenon and is on par with a traditional Islamic revitalization that is taken place throughout the Muslim world. "In more secular Muslim nations, such as Turkey, Iraq, and Egypt, many women are choosing to wear the Hijab, Burqa, Niqab, etc. as an act of defiance against the secularization of society, but also because of the widespread growth of the Islamic revival in those areas[citation needed]. Similarly, increasing numbers of men are abandoning the Western dress of jeans and t-shirts, that dominated places like Egypt 20 to 30 years ago, in favour of more traditional Islamic clothing such as the Galabiyya" (Wikipedia entry on Hijab). Many young people in these regions seem to be going back on the "modernizing" efforts of their parents and are reveling in their Muslim identity, as least as far as in the way they dress. This can be said of Morocco, as the majority of the young women that I observed in the streets seemed to at least referenced traditional Islamic dress in their clothing, even if the look that they portrayed was overwhelmingly modern.

Examples of hijab mandated Muslim women's fashions are below:

Examples of hijab mandated Muslim women's fashions are below: 

Various examples of hijab throughout the Muslim World. Photo courtesy 
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Hijab and its effect on Moroccan women's fashion:

Hijab and its effect on Moroccan women's fashion:

The idea of hijab - to cover or provide privacy - is a central factor in any discussion of Moroccan women's clothing. "In some Arabic-speaking countries and Western countries, the word hijab primarily refers to women's head and body covering, but in Islamic scholarship, hijab is given the wider meaning of modesty, privacy, and morality" (Wikipedia Hijab). Thus being, the essential philosophy behind Moroccan women's clothing is to cover the body with clothing which preserve for the wearer an impression of modesty, piety, and highly reserved sexuality. The Qur'an (24:31) states that:

“And say to the believing women that they cast down their looks and guard their private parts and do not display their ornaments except what appears thereof, and let them wear their head-coverings (khimars) over their bosoms (jaybs), and not display their ornaments except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women, or the slaves whom their right hands possess, or male servants free of physical needs, or small children who have no sense of the shame of sex . . . "

In practice, hijab means that women must keep the essential forms of their womanhood covered from view with clothing that does not provide much of an indication of the shapes and graces found within when in public or in the company of men that are not of their family. This means that the women of Morocco tend to publicly wear long and loose robes (djellaba), button-up blouses which extend down to the knees or the ankles (kafkan), and headscarves (khimar) which cover most of the hair, the ears and the neck. Young girls in Morocco are except from the practice of hijab until the time of puberty, when they too are required to begin donning the concealing clothing of their mothers.

Although hijab - the wearing of modest clothing - is highly regarded in Morocco it is not compulsory for a woman to dress this way. It is becoming fairly common in Morocco for women to go out in public without wearing headscarves, long sleeves, and in Western style clothing. But for formal occasions, such as weddings or religious festivals, the principles of hijab prevail and women tend to wear traditional style Moroccan clothing (Wikipedia).  


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Moroccan Jelaba

Moroccan jelaba, jellaba or djellaba is a unique Moroccan item of clothing.  It is worn in most Moroccan cities and towns by both men and women, and is basically a long, loose fitting hooded robe with full sleeves. 

 

The jelaba is available in multiple colors and fabrics, and as can be expected, there are more choices for women who can select from a wide range of designs, colors and shapes.  Styles also vary depending on region within Morocco.  Married women in Morocco typically wear more conservative, less colorful jelabas than those worn by single women. 

 

A white jelaba is the dress code for men during Friday prayers throughout the mosques and for special occasions such as marriage ceremonies and holidays celebrations.  It is usually baggy with one plain color. Every single Jelaba includes a “cob” hood which is usually used for protection against rain, sun, and wind.  Jelabas are made of cotton or coarse wool, which can be tailored to customer’s specification.  As a result, tailors can be found in most neighborhoods in Morocco.

 

If you are shopping for a traditional Moroccan Jelaba most markets have shops where they can be purchased. Prices start at $25 around 200DH for a very simple style jelaba. 

 

 

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