We’ve seen them on runways, in magazines, on celebrities, and at celebrations. But what are “fascinators,” and who invented them? How does this particular hat style relate to the history of headwear? After defining the origins of this fashionable headpiece, and the word itself, we will have a look at some examples of how the fascinator has been in fashion for much longer than we may think…

A good example of what makes a fascinator a fascinator was set out in a recent article from Vanity Fair magazine: “The Irish hat designer Philip Treacy, the artist…says, “A fascinator is a small adornment for the head, attached to a comb, wire, or clip, that perches on the head. No brim, no crown. The term today refers to anything attached to a clip, a headband, or a comb,” (Jacobs).

Stephen Jones, another contemporary celebrity hat designer, who has been the hat designer at Dior for many years, said, ““What happened,” … “was in the early 60s, Mr. John in New York made hats that he called ‘fascinators.’ These were hats made out of veiling which went on top of your beehive. In the 1950s, in America, small hats had been called clip-hats or half-hats, but ‘fascinator’ sounds much more alluring. It was a marketing ploy by Mr. John that was extremely clever,” (Jacobs).

But did Mr. John really invent the word for these small, sculptural hats? A quick look through an etymological lens reveals the root of the word “fascinator” comes from “fascinus (s.) or fascinii (pl.),” a Roman word for a talisman meant to ward off the evil eye. A small accessory worn by adults and even children, the fascinus was a usual symbol in pre-Christian Roman times, (Elhassan).

“Fascinus was the god of masculine regenerative power, whose symbol was a phallus. He was believed to be lucky, so worshippers carried him around in the form of amulets or pendants hanging from their necks… Fascinus’ name gave rise to the Latin verb “fascinare“, which means the power to use the Fascinus, entrance, or cast a spell, … Fascinus is still with us today: the etymology of the modern English word “fascinate” traces back to the Latin word “fascinare“, and the Ancient Roman flying penis god,” (Elhassan).

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Part 2 Coming soon!

Citations:

Elhassan, K. “These 10 Truly Bizarre Beliefs From History Will Keep You Laughing All Night.” History Collection, March 2018. Website: https://historycollection.com/10-truly-bizarre-beliefs-history-will-keep-laughing-night/2/ Accessed Dec. 3 2021.

Jacobs, L. “A Brief History of Fascinators, the Haiku of Hats.” Vanity Fair Magazine, May 2018. Website: https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2018/05/a-brief-history-of-fascinators Accessed Dec. 3, 2021.