Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Niqab: The Face Veil

Today I like to share with you Niqab. You know what is Niqab? Niqab (Hijab) is an Arabic world which is also known as “Veil” in other countries. Niqab covers the face, worn by some Muslim women as a part of sartorial hijāb. Most commonly thing in Arab countries are Hijab, In Arab countries of the Persian Gulf such as Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, and the UAE. It is also commonly used in Pakistan and among Muslim women and girls in the United Kingdom.

The dispute over whether niqab is fard or not has been going on among the scholars since the earliest centuries of Islam, and will probably still be going on at the end of time. Nobody can claim to have a definitive answer to this question.

Girls or Women who wear the Hijab are often called “Niqābīah”. Niqabiah word is used both as an adjective and as a noun. However, some prefer the participial form munaqqabah (plural munaqqabāt) as "niqābīah" may be used in a derogatory manner (much as with "hijābīah" versus muhajjabah).

Niqab can be difficult to definitively distinguish between one type of veil and another, Because of the wide variety of hijab worn in the Muslim world. The terms niqab and burqa are often used interchangeably. Muslim girls are advised by some schools of Islam to wear the niqāb starting at puberty.

2 comments:

Nathalie H.D. said...

This is an interesting post Nailah, on a topic that makes many Western women uncomfortable. It is hard for us not to see the niqab as a way for men to enforce control over women.

But there's one sentence I don't understand:

When you write "The dispute over whether niqab is fard or not has been going on among the scholars since the earliest centuries of Islam" - what to you mean by FARD? Do you mean "face painting"? And if so, what does the sentence mean? Is the scarf considered a way for a woman to enhance her beauty?

I hope you will answer me.

Mrs Bubu said...

Hi, 'fard' = mandatory/must. Makeup is forbidden if the intention of the woman is to beautify. If your face is causing the breakdown of your self-esteem and depression due to ba acne scars or skin diseases, a bit of coverage might be alright. Then again, wearing a niqab is a much cheaper alternative to buying tons of concealer and foundation. (:
I read somewhere that the arabic term in one of the surah in the Al-Quran, khimaar, can either mean head-cover or face veil. But no one can really confirm which. However, Rasullulah saw 's wives wore the niqab along with their sartorial hijab. So to some, a face veil seems to be more appropriate following the order in the Holy Al-Quran. On the other hand, Rasullulah saw also mentioned a number of times that a women has to cover everything but her hands and FACE.

So yeah, a debate is inevitable. For those who live in a modern environment, face-veiling might interfere with their lifestyles where expression is of utmost important. (e.g. Jobs where you discuss with clients comfortably and not knowing who's behind the veil might be unsettling to most people such as customer service, wedding planners and business project presenters) And so, face-veiling is seemed as a more extreme take of the hijab and women who want to actually contribute to their own Westernized community ( non-western first world countries such as Singapore and Japan). So. As of right now, the "khimaar" is a very subjective term and cannot be confirmed as fard. Especially if it does not necessarily help many women excel and contribute significantly to their community.

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