A French word for “cap” and the name of this type of hat is beret. A beret is a soft, usually round and flat-topped cap without a projecting brim, traditionally made from wool felt.
The word is associated with French style, but the hat’s deeper history reaches across the Pyrenees. Beret-making became industrialized in the 19th century in the Basque Country, where similar headwear was already common. In French, béret is the usual spelling, with an accent; English normally drops the accent and uses beret.
Berets became especially prominent as military headgear. French Chasseurs Alpins adopted a large military beret in the late 19th century, and Britain’s Royal Tank Regiment adopted a black beret in 1924. The style later became associated with artists, revolutionaries, and popular images of France. A beret is not the same as a beanie or flat cap: its defining features are the soft, brimless, flat crown and close-fitting band.