Linen glossary

Fouta

The fouta is the traditional flat towel of the Maghreb — we keep the darija word untranslated: a rectangle of woven cotton, often in waffle weave or a flat weave with fringes, used at the hammam, at the beach and increasingly in decoration (as an armchair throw or a tablecloth). In Moroccan darija, "fouta" (فوطة) actually means any towel — the hammam one as much as the bathroom one.

Compared with a terry towel, a fouta dries very fast, slips into any bag and takes endless washing — but absorbs less. In a riad or guesthouse it shines as an accessory: a hammam fouta offered to guests, a poolside wrap, a local touch on a white bed. For the daily bath station, 550 g terry remains the reference.