juxoza    … Just for Women

A Cashmere Pashmina By Any Other Name

A cashmere pashmina is actually a redundant phrase, because the term "pashmina" actually refers to a specific type of cashmere wool from Himalayan goats that yield extremely soft and fine hairs. Pashmina doesn't only refer to a cashmere shawl as it once did, though. The term has become synonymous with many different types of summer and winter shawls that are embroidered or made of silk.

The original cashmere pashmina, however, comes from a special breed of goat found in the high altitudes of the Himalayan mountains with a special type of fleece. People have been using this fleece to make winter shawls for thousands of years. Entire villages of people would search along the mountainside for the finest fleece.

The cashmere shawl has been manufactured in Kashmir and Nepal for thousands of years, but the Indian people never called them a cashmere pashmina. They were actually called Kashmiri wool shawls. Pashmina is actually a Nepalese word that only became popular after the winter shawls that were woven in Nepal became popular in the west. What are commonly thought of as pashminas originated in Nepal, where a hand-woven cashmere shawl with fringing and hand dyeing is as common as T-shirts are in the west.

They have become more popular in the United States, but not everything that goes by the name is the real thing. A quality cashmere pashmina should be warm, smooth and lightweight enough to pass through a ring.

Back to Articles