Brunei Indonesia ) wearing peci as part of their uniform Traditionally, songkok is usually associated as a cap worn by Muslim men, during religious, formal or state occasions. However, in
Indonesia, the songkok has become the national headress, with secular nationalist connotations made popular by
Sukarno. and Indonesian male presidents have worn peci as part of their official presidential attire ever since. Indonesian official palace guards also wore peci as part of their uniform. The
Paskibraka (Indonesian:
pasukan pengibar bendera pusaka) or flag raising squad in Indonesian independence day ceremony also wear peci, and there is even female peci version with curved back. The
Betawi people wear the Songkok as their traditional headdress usually colored dark red. Catholic and Protestant
Betawi of Kampung Sawah regularly wear peci as part of traditional attire during church service.. The Christian
Torajan peoples also wears peci on their village traditional events.
Malaysia In Malaysia, traditional male Malay attire consists of a songkok, shirt, matching pants, and waist wrap that is called a
songket. In a
Dewan Undangan Negeri (State Legislative Assemblies) or in
Dewan Rakyat (Parliament), all members (regardless of race or religion) within the legislative assembly, are required to wear the songkok (with a gold middle stripe) as a formal custom, at every State Customary Opening of Parliament (or respective State Legislative Assemblies), held once annually, in order to comply with the dress code of each legislative assembly opening. This is done to ensure decorum whenever the respective Head of State (Yang di-Pertuan Agong for the Parliament of Malaysia, respective Sultans or Yang diPertua Negeri for each State Legislative Assemblies) is present to open the legislative assembly proceedings for the year. Similarly, all recipients of honorific
orders bestowed by either the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (for federal honorific orders) or the Sultan (for each respective state honorific orders), are required to wear the gold-striped songkok along with the official customary attire in Malaysia, to receive their honorific orders in person. The
Speaker of the Dewan Rakyat themselves wears a songkok in place of the colonial
wig, as are also judges in their
court dress. The latter was pioneered by future-
Chief Justice of Malaya Hashim Sani Yeop during his then chairing of the Ipoh High Court in 1978; his choice was seen as highly contentious and transgressive among more senior judges at the time who wanted to abide by English court tradition.
Singapore In Singapore, the songkok is not allowed to be worn in government schools, as part of the school uniform, as Singapore is officially a secular state and all religious headgear is not allowed to be worn. It is part of the standard uniform at
madrasahs (Islamic religious schools).
Philippines In the
Philippines, the songkok, known as
kopiah or
kupya, plays a role in the heraldry of the
Sultanate of Sulu, and is part of the traditional wear of
Bangsamoro men. It is part of the traditional formal clothing of
Muslim Filipino men in general, along with a local Mindanaoan variation of the
Baju Melayu and native
malong (
sarung). Some non-Muslim
Lumad Filipino
datu also wear the kopiah, as a result of being historically influenced by the fashions and customs of Muslim Filipinos. The kopiah is worn by Muslim Filipino men throughout the archipelago as a formal cap for prayers, and for religious and social functions. Kopiah with gold-string embroidery, or cuts of
inaul or fabric with
okir designs are gaining popularity alongside the conservative black velvet version. A red and white checkered Saudi-style
ghutrah worn draped over a kopiah is a traditional indicator in the Southern Philippines of a
hajji or male pilgrim who has been to
Makkah as part of the
hajj. ==Gallery==