sola topi

English

Etymology

From the shola or sola plant (Aeschynomene aspera)—whose pith is used—and topi or tope, Hindi for "hat", popularised by the British colonials who wore them while inspecting farms or travelling.

Noun

sola topi

1. A pith helmet
   • 1988, Alan Hollinghurst, The Swimming-Pool Library, paperback edition, London: Penguin Books, →ISBN, page 96:

     In some Charles appeared, in shorts and sola topi, flanked by robed, shock-headed men of intense blackness.