Coloured hat

Coloured hats are sometimes used to symbolise attitudes towards various abstract concepts.

In Tibetan Buddhism, several sects are distinguished by the colour of their hats:

• Yellow Hat - the Gelug sect
• Red Hat - the Nyingma, Sakya, and Kagyu sects
• Black Hat - the Karma Kagyu sect

In computing slang, hackers and crackers are identified according to their intentions.

• White hat hacker, who hacks for beneficial purposes
• Black hat hacker, who hacks for malevolent purposes
• Grey hat hacker, who hacks with ambiguous ethics

Also in computing is a business company called Red Hat.

In the educational theories of Edward de Bono, six coloured hats represent six thinking states.

• White hat – Facts & Information
• Red hat – Feelings & Emotions
• Black hat – Critical Judgement
• Yellow hat – Positive
• Green hat – New Ideas
• Blue hat – The Big Picture

In Chinese culture, a green hat symbolises a cuckold. This issue is addressed in the movie, Green Hat.