The special white robe some Jews wear on Yom Kippur is called a kittel.
A kittel is traditionally a simple white garment, often made of linen or cotton. In Ashkenazi communities, married men commonly wear one in the synagogue on Yom Kippur, although customs differ by community and some congregations extend the practice to women or to other worship settings.
The garment’s white color is associated with purity and spiritual renewal. Its plain design also recalls burial clothing: in many traditions, Jews are buried in simple white garments. That connection gives the kittel a sober reminder of mortality, humility, and the seriousness of Yom Kippur.
The kittel is not the same as a tallit, which is a fringed prayer shawl. A mitpachat is a head covering, while a shtreimel is a fur hat worn by some Hasidic men on Sabbaths and festivals. Kittels can also appear at weddings and Passover seders in some communities.