Traditional headgear used in UAE and middle east is the following. First and the foremost headgear is "kaffiyeh"​. That's the classic "Arab headdress" which you see in the movies. It is typically worn by bedouin peoples and travelers in the desert to keep the sun off your neck and scalp.  On some places you may find the words of "Shora" and "Egal" as well for the same headgear. The Saudi princes often wear a plain white one with a gold or black band to hold it in place, as a symbol of status. Checkered kaffiyeh were made popular by Yassir Arafat. Different patterns/ colors have different meanings. Next is what we call a kufi. That's a round head piece with a flat top. They can be plain or decorated, but are usually white, black, or dark blue. Nigerians often wear kufi, as well as many Arabic-speaking peoples; they're even common in Malaysia and Indonesia. Many Egyptians and Moroccans wore the fez up until recently, but that's more of a Turkish thing, brought to North Africa by Ataturk. Usually crimson, with a gold tassel. Then there's the turbin, not to be confused with a Sikh headdress of India. Most Arab turbins are entirely round, tightly-bundled, and a plain white one often indicates that the person wearing it has studied more texts. People in Pakistan and Afghanistan may wear a pakol, which is like an adjustable beret made of burlap. In some areas, the sombrero is really catching on. And then of course, for women, there is the hijab, which has its routes in the Jewish scriptures (notice that most Christian depictions of Mary also show her wearing this garment.) It is worn out of respect and modesty to cover the hair.

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In Pakistan, in addition to Kufi (generally used as a prayer cap) Sindhi, Kandahari, Nuristani, Muscati (from Muscat), Uzbeki (from Uzbekistan), Tajiki (from Tajikistan), Kashmiri (from Kashmir) and Chitrali caps are used on formal and informal occasions.