[From Terai (Hindī tarāī moist (land), f. tar moist, damp), name of a belt of unhealthy marshy and jungly land, lying between the lower foothills of the Himalayas and the plains, where this form of hat was first worn by hunters and travellers.] A wide-brimmed felt hat with double crown and special ventilation, worn by travellers, hunters, and white men generally in sub-tropical regions where the heat is not so intense as to necessitate the use of the sola topee or pith sun-helmet. More fully terai hat.
1879. C. M. MacGregor, Khorassan, App. I. 201. The best sort of hat is undoubtedly a Terai hat, as it wants no care to keep in shape, and affords excellent shade for the face.
1899. F. V. Kirby, Sport E. C. Africa, xix. 207. Nothing beats a broad-brimmed terai, with double crown, well-ventilated with holes at the sides.
1899. Warner, Capt. of Locusts, 188. Replacing on his head a ‘Terai’ hat.
1904. D. Sladen, Lovers in Japan, xi. Silk puggarees folded to a hair round their broad brimmed grey terai hats.
