The square of paper or hemmed fabric that we know as a ‘handkerchief’ was originally termed a ‘kerchief’, from the French words couvrir (‘to cover’) and chef, meaning ‘head’. Throughout the Middle Ages kerchiefs were generally worn as head-coverings, reflecting Christian notions of modesty and humility, King Richard II of England (1377-99) reportedly being the first recorded person to use a square cloth kerchief to wipe his nose. By the 1500s Europeans were carrying kerchiefs in a bag or pocket, for mopping their brow or wiping their nose, and these acquired the prefix hand – handkerchief – to distinguish these personal items from conventional head-coverings or kerchiefs.

Handkerchiefs can be fashioned from linen, cotton, silk, mixed textiles or synthetic materials, their fabric, ornamentation and manner of display or concealment reflecting the status of the user. They have often been fashionable additions to an outfit, especially when perfumed, lace-edged, or fashioned from fine lawn or silk

and held delicately in the hand or protruding from within a garment. In the Victorian era pocket handkerchiefs – also called pocket squares – often had rolled edges and became genteel male accessories, peeping out from the top jacket pocket of the three-piece lounge or business suit. These remained fashionable especially between the 1880s and 1960s, their effect flamboyant or discreet, according to the preferences of the wearer.

Over time handkerchiefs have also performed many practical purposes, besides aiding personal hygiene and creating a stylish effect. They have substituted for bags and purses as receptacles for carrying small items, for instance a workman’s lunch, even serving as makeshift bandages for minor injuries, as tourniquets or arm slings, as well as being used for polishing shoes, wiping the hands, as sweatbands or nose/mouth protection against dust inhalation. The stereotypical Englishman at the seaside wearing a handkerchief with tied corners on his head became a classic early/mid-20th-century image, often pictured on humorous postcards or lampooned in the media. White, black or coloured cotton squares have also functioned as casual neckerchiefs for generations of labouring men. Although disposable paper tissues have largely replaced traditional cloth handkerchiefs today, some users prefer fine fabric handkerchiefs. They also remain important accessories in the traditional folk dances of many nations, including English Morris Dancing.