Warbonnets

• Warbonnets are full feather headdresses that are often shown in movies and television. Despite their widespread use in Hollywood, they were not nearly so widespread throughout the Native American Nations. They were worn by the tribes of the Great Plains, such as the Sioux. After Europeans came to America, other tribes also began wearing warbonnets, due to their forced move west as well as tourist expectations. Only male warriors and chiefs wore these headdresses. A few tribes wore horned warbonnets, and they were used only for spiritual ceremonies, donned by male warriors of high distinction.
  
  

Roach Headdresses

• Roach headdresses, also called porcupine roaches or artificial roaches, were a much more common form of headdress. Roaches were familiar to most of the tribes east of the Rocky Mountains. They were made of animal hair, such as moose or deer, or even porcupine spines attached to a base of leather or bone. The hair stood straight up like a crest or mohawk, which is where the word mohawk originates. This style of headdress was worn by dancers as well as warriors. Roaches were likewise only worn by men.
  
  

Basket Hats

• West of the Rocky Mountains, basket hats were the dominant form of headdress. They were created with different materials and in different styles, varying by tribe. The Hupa, a Californian tribe, used coiled sumac to form rounded hats. Tribes in northern California used fibers from spruce root and cedar bark to create larger hats with brims. In the Californian Plateau tribes, only women wore basket hats as a form of decoration. Among the Northwestern Californian tribes, both genders used the hats to convey status, clan and achievements.
  
  

Feather Headbands

• Though feather headbands were often shown in classic movies, they were only common amongst the Northeastern woodland tribes. This type of headdress was created from woven or beaded deerskin bands. Eagle feathers, crane, egret, hawk or turkey feathers were tucked into the back of the band. Feather headbands were worn by both genders, and they had no war-time significance. Additionally, the designs and number or type of feathers held no specific meaning, as these headbands were worn primarily for their beauty.