---
node: fashion_pahlavi
type: fashion
slug: pahlavi_iran_fashion
title: "Fashion in Pahlavi Iran"
lead: "In Pahlavi Iran, Westernising dress reforms changed dress sharply: Reza Shah mandated Western dress and the \"Pahlavi hat,\" and later banned the veil; Western fashion spread in the cities."
published: 2026-07-28
updated: 2026-07-28
change: "Created as a fashion sub-page under the history section (iran region)"
requester: internal
reason: "Per the owner's decision, fashion lives under each history era"
---

## Overview

Under this dynasty, which pursued the building of a modern nation, dress became a matter of Westernisation and state control.

## Key garments and style

In the 1930s Reza Shah required men to wear Western dress and the brimmed "Pahlavi hat," and in 1936 issued a decree banning the veil (chador). Western fashion spread among the elite, but this coercion also drew resistance from conservatives.

## Transition

With the 1979 revolution and the Islamic Republic, dress — women's dress above all — turned sharply again.