a head covering or veil worn in public by some Muslim women From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The word hijab is used in the Qur'an to denote a partition, or a curtain,[1][2] but in modern usage often refers to a woman's headscarf. This is often done amongst Muslims for females over the age of puberty.[3][4] For most Muslims, the headscarf, a symbol of hijab, is worn in the presence of adult males outside their immediate family; it is not necessary when females or males are within their immediate family. However, some Muslim scholars and activists maintain that the practice of covering the hair with a hijab is not mandated in Islam.[5][6][7][8]
The word ḥijāb, or a derivative, appears eight times in the Qur'an and never connotes any act of piety or headscarf.[9] It appears as an "obstacle" (7:46), a "curtain" (33:53), "hidden" (38:32), a "wall of separation" (41:5, 42:52, 17:45), "hiding" (19:14) and "prevented" or "denied access to God" (83:15).[10]
The "hijab" as a headscarf can come in several different types, such as an ordinary veil (which only covers the head), a niqab, a burka also known as an abayah, which covers the entire body, and any form of covering used to veil.[11] There are many styles to wear. The Quran however has no requirement that women cover their faces with a veil, or cover their bodies with the full-body burqa or chador.[12]
The "hijab" as a headscarf is currently required by law to be worn by women in Iran and Afghanistan.[13] It is no longer required by law in Saudi Arabia since 2018.[14][15][16][17][18][19] In Gaza, Palestinian jihadists belonging to the Unified Leadership (UNLU) have rejected a hijab policy for women.[20] They have also targeted those who seek to impose the hijab.[20] Other countries, both in Europe and in the Muslim world, have passed laws banning some or all types of hijab in public or in certain types of locales.
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