The Probert Encyclopaedia of Costume

PANAMA HAT

A Panama hat (properly a Jipijapa hat) is a type of hat made in imitation of a style of hat worn in South and Central America where the hats are called Jipijapa hats in honour of the town in Ecuador where they were first made. Panama hats were made from straw or the fan-shaped underdeveloped leaves of the stemless screwpine plant (Carludovica palmata) or in Central America where they were first made, from the plaited leaves of the Jipijapa palm. The term Panama hat was first used in Britain around 1833 and in 1858 Simmonds Dictionary of Trade refers to the Panama-hat as being made in Central America.
Research Panama hat