The sombrero vueltiao or sombrero vueltiado (Colombian Spanish

Colombian Spanish

Colombian Spanish is a term that refers to the varieties of Spanish spoken in Colombia. The term is of more geographical than linguistic relevance, since the dialects spoken in the various regions of Colombia are quite diverse...

 for hat with laps) is a traditional hat

Hat

A hat is a head covering. It can be worn for protection against the elements, for ceremonial or religious reasons, for safety, or as a fashion accessory. In the past, hats were an indicator of social status...

 from Colombia

Colombia

Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...

 and one of its symbols. It is made out of Gynerium sagittatum

Gynerium sagittatum

Gynerium sagittatum, known locally by various common names, is a tall grass that grows up to five meters long. It is a very vigorous species that grows into a considerably dense mass of vegetation. It is harvested as a semi-crop in some localities to be distributed commercially, mainly in Latin...

known locally as caña flecha, a type of cane that grows in the region. The word vueltiao is a Colombian regionalism from the northern Caribbean Region

Caribbean Region

The Caribbean Region or Caribbean Coast Region is a natural region of Colombia mainly composed of eight Departments located contiguous to the Caribbean. The area covers a total land area of including the San Andres Island Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina in the Caribbean...

 and the area surrounding the Magdalena River

Magdalena River

The Magdalena River is the principal river of Colombia, flowing northward about through the western half of the country. It takes its name from the biblical figure Mary Magdalene. It is navigable through much of its lower reaches, in spite of the shifting sand bars at the mouth of its delta, as...

 basin that originates in the word for "lap" (Spanish:vuelta), and arose due to the way the hat is made. Vueltiao is correctly spelled volteado; however, the altered spelling reflects the actual pronunciation. The quality of the hat is determined by the number of "laps" used and its bending flexibility. The more flexible the hat is, the higher quality it is.

The making of the hat originated amongst the Zenú

Zenú

The Zenú or Sinú are an Amerindian tribe in Colombia whose ancestral territory comprises the valleys of the Sinu and San Jorge rivers as well as the coast of the Caribbean around the Gulf of Morrosquillo...

 tribes of Colombia. The Colombian delegation to the 2004 Olympics wore the vueltiao during the opening ceremony. It is also traditionally worn by cumbia

Cumbia

Cumbia is a music genre popular across Latin America. The cumbia originated in the Caribbean coast of Colombia, where it is associated with an eponymous dance and has since spread as far as Mexico and Argentina...

 dancers and vallenato

Vallenato

Vallenato, along with cumbia, is currently a popular folk music of Colombia. It primarily comes from the Colombia's Caribbean region. Vallenato literally means "born in the valley". The valley influencing this name is located between the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta and the Serranía de Perijá in...

 artists.

Making a Sombrero Vueltiao

Making a sombrero vueltiao is a lengthy process. First, the caña flecha leaves must be dried and the veins removed using a knife and a piece of leather to obtain uniform, sturdy strips. The strips are then dried in the sun until they turn from green to beige or white, and are sorted according to color. The beige, or "dirty strips" (Spanish:sucias) are then soaked in sand-free black mud. After about three or four days in the mud, the colored strips are washed thoroughly with cold water and boiled in vija, another wild plant, for at least a couple of hours. After this, the tinted strips are again dried in the sun for several days, and the coloring process is repeated until they have reached a uniform black color.

After the desired colors are obtained, the caña flecha strips are woven into the braids that are used to form the sombrero. This can take many days, depending on the desired quality. The olma, or central part of the top of the hat, is the first part of the hat to be woven. The crown of the hat and later the wings are made. Once the manual part of constructing the hat is finished, the hat is completed by using a foot-driven sewing machine to sew the hat together.

Types of Sombreros

The Quinciano is the most commercially available Sombrero Vueltiao and also the cheapest. These hats are made in just three days, are loosely woven together, and only use fifteen pairs of caña flecha strips to make the weave.

The Diecinueve, as the name suggests, uses nineteen pairs of caña flecha strips to produce a finer braid that will result in a softer and finer sombrero. They can take up to a week to produce by hand.

The Veintiuno uses twenty-one pairs of caña flecha strands per weave and is finer than the Quinciano and the Diecinueve. These hats are usually custom-made to order and take ten to fifteen days to produce by hand.

The Veintitres is made of twenty-three pairs of caña flecha strips. The Veintitres, like the Veintiuno, is very fine and notably softer and lighter than its predecessors. It takes from twelve to twenty days to make this sombrero from scratch..

The Veintisiete are the finest sombreros available and use twenty-seven pairs of caña flecha. They can be folded up and put in a pocket without being damaged. The weave is very dense, and is soft to the touch. The Veintisiete is the most expensive sombrero vueltiao and can take up to a month to produce by hand.

National Symbol of Colombia

The sombrero vueltiao is no longer just for Colombian peasants, as its popularity has sharply risen. The increase in demand has also increased the price, such that the original farmers can no longer afford some of the finer hats. The sombrero has also become an admired and appreciated work of art appreciated both by Colombians and foreigners.

Most of these handmade hats are produced by entire Zenú

Zenú

The Zenú or Sinú are an Amerindian tribe in Colombia whose ancestral territory comprises the valleys of the Sinu and San Jorge rivers as well as the coast of the Caribbean around the Gulf of Morrosquillo...

 families located in the Departments of Cordoba

Córdoba Department

Córdoba is a Department of the Republic of Colombia located to the north of this country in the Colombian Caribbean Region. Córdoba faces to the north with the Caribbean sea, to the northeast with the Sucre Department, east with the Bolívar Department and south with the Antioquia Department...

 and Sucre

Sucre Department

Sucre is a department in the Caribbean Region of Colombia. The department ranks 27th by area, and it has a population of 772,010, ranking 20th of all the 32 departments of Colombia...

.

This iconic symbol of Colombia has been sported by hundreds of personalities, including Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II

Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...

 when he visited Colombia in 1986, and former President of the United States Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton

William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...

 when he visited Cartagena

Cartagena, Colombia

Cartagena de Indias , is a large Caribbean beach resort city on the northern coast of Colombia in the Caribbean Coast Region and capital of Bolívar Department...

, Colombia in August 2000.