I was watching an old movie on TCM yesterday, “Ah, Wilderness!”. It was made in 1935 and takes place in 1906. I love looking at the period costumes/clothing in old movies. My question is, what other item of clothing has stuck around as long as the necktie has? The width and length has changed many times over the years, but men continue to wear them. I’m not talking basic shirts, pants and dresses (they’ve all been around forever) - but more of a certain style or type of clothing. I guess I would include jeans in my list too.
I would say that polo/tennis/golf shirts have had that sort of appeal. They became more than sports apparel in the 1930’s and have stayed that way ever since.
Stetson, Levi’s, union suit, poncho, night shirt/gown, baseball cap, trench coat, stocking cap, mittens.
ETA: fedora’s, game vests, cowboy boots, biker style leather jackets, sunglasses, chaps, coveralls, bib overalls, bandannas.
Does it have to be American culture? Because I’ll bet a lot of the headgear worn by specific groups in different parts of the world (such as Saudi Arabia) has been worn with little change over centuries.
Kimonos.
Hijabs.
Burkas.
Decorative (as opposed to functional) headwear has been around for al-o-n-g time.
If you want to get more specific, the custom of using bird feathers to decorate one’s head runs through a lot of different cultures.