An ushanka (Russian: уша́нка, IPA: [ʊˈʂankə], literally "ear flap hat"), also called a ushanka-hat (Russian: ша́пка-уша́нка, IPA: [ˈʂapkə ʊˈʂankə]), is a Russian fur cap with ear flaps that can be tied up to the crown of the cap, or fastened at the chin to protect the ears, jaw and lower chin from the cold. An alternate manner is to bend the flaps back and tie them behind the head, which is called "ski-style" — this offers less protection from the elements, but much better visibility, essential for high-speed skiing. The dense fur also offers some protection against blunt impacts to the head.

Hats with fur earflaps have been known in Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Germany for centuries. The standard modern ushanka with a perfectly round crown was developed in the 20th century. During the Russian Civil War, the ruler of Siberia, Aleksandr Kolchak, introduced a winter uniform hat, commonly referred to as a kolchakovka, c. 1918. It was similar to the ushanka. In 1933, W. C. Fields wore a kolchakovka in the short film The Fatal Glass of Beer. However, Kolchak and the White Army lost the war, and their headgear was not adopted in the new Soviet Union.

Red Army soldiers instead wore the budenovka, which was made of felt. It was designed to resemble historical Bogatyr helmets, and did not provide much protection from the cold.

During the Winter War against Finland, organizational failures and inadequate equipment left many Soviet troops vulnerable to cold, and many died of exposure. The Finnish army had much better equipment including an ushanka-style fur hat, the turkislakki M36, introduced in 1936. In 1939, shortly before the Winter War, the slightly improved turkislakki M39 was introduced, and is still in use today.[2] After the winter war, the Red Army received completely redesigned winter uniforms. Budenovkas were finally replaced with ushankas based on the Finnish example.[3] Officers were issued fur ushankas; other ranks received ushankas made with plush or "fish fur".[1] When they experienced the harsh Russian winter, for example during the Battle of Moscow, German soldiers started to wear ushankas and other Soviet-type winter gear, as their uniforms did not provide adequate protection.[4] WW2 ushanka presented in the Army museum (Russia) and Saumur tank museum [5] (France).

The ushanka became a symbol and media icon of the Soviet Union and later the Russian Federation. Photographs of U.S. President Gerald Ford wearing the cap during a 1974 visit to the Soviet Union were seen as a possible sign of détente.