Alright, it has been awhile since I have done a culture entry on my blog. So after many choices, I decided to do one on something that affects the majority of the girls I teach right now - wearing the hijab.
In Muslim culture, the hijab is the head covering worn by women. It contains a "umtha" worn underneath and then the flowing fabric of the hijab is wrapped around the face and head.
Depending on the sect of Islam you come from, it first is worn at different ages. If you are Shia, then you begin wearing it around/after your 8th/9th birthday. If your Sunni, you usually start wearing it after you hit puberty, but also when you have decided to begin wearing it. I teach grade 9 girls who are 14/15 years old, and only half of them wear hijab right now. When I asked them why they don't, they tell me they are not ready quite yet. As soon as a girl begins wearing hijab, she must always wear it. So the decision of when to begin, can be a weighty one! I have watched 3 of my girls this year decide to wear one and it's been really neat to see them "grow up" before my eyes with regards to the cultural milestone they have now passed.
The questions.........I have had many people from home ask me questions about the hijab, so to answer them, I interviewed some of my girls. I'll let them answer for you! :)
Q - Can you ever take it off?
A - "Hahaha, yes of course! But not in public. A girl or woman can only remove her hijab if she is inside a building and there are no men around."
Q - What about your family? Do you have to wear your hijab in front of your dad and brothers?
A - "No, my immediate family (dad, grandfather and brothers) can see me without my hijab and so can my uncles. Any man I can technically marry obviously can't see me without my hijab, so my guy cousins aren't allowed to see me without it. Once I am married, my husband and my father can see me without it, but my sister's husband cannot."
Q - So what about swimming? Do you have to wear it when you swim?
A - "If I am swimming at a girls only pool or beach then no, but if I am swimming at a mixed pool or beach, then yes. We have a special swimsuit that has one kind of built in. I usually just swim when it's all girls, that way I don't have to wear it. Lol"
Q - Ok, WHY do you wear hijab? Explain the reason and the significance of wearing it.
A - "Hijab includes behavior as well as dress, and is a small part of a whole system. One should not only see a part of the picture, but should see the whole. In our Muslim society, women are very important. Hijab is a way to protect a woman from men who are strangers to her and who don’t deserve to look at her or her beauty. Here is an example, if you have a very precious and beautiful diamond and you own it, are you going to leave it and let everybody look at it and touch it? Or are you going to put it in a box in a safe place and protect it from the outsiders who are not family and who do not have the right to see and touch it? In our society, girls are diamonds and even much more precious than that! Unfortunately, not all of them understand the real meaning of hijab, so they abuse the privilege Allah gave them and use it in a wrong way. Also, if you are wearing hijab, you also need to cover your arms and legs. The only parts that should be uncovered are your hands and your face."
Q - I have noticed a couple different ways of wearing hijab...does that symbolize anything? Do Shia and Sunni wear them differently?
A - "Not really. Some strict Shia believe they must cover their chin, so if you see a girl with a hijab that covers her chin, she's probably Shia. Other than that, no, the style of wearing them is just style. It all depends on how you like to wear them, that's all."
Q - Many people who come from different cultures and do not understand the significance of it, tend to see the hijab as something that hinders your sense of freedom. How do YOU see it?
A - "I personally feel more free when wearing my hijab than not! I feel it protects me from the unwanted looks from men. Sometimes it can get in the way of some activities, but there are many different types that are designed for girls who play sports. I still play soccer and go horse back riding."
Q - Ok, I have seen quite a few women over here who have ENORMOUS bulges at the top of their hijabs.....what is hiding under there? And why do they wear it like that?:
A - "Ok, first of all, they are not supposed to be wearing anything like that because it is drawing unnecessary attention to themselves. That defeats the purpose of wearing hijab! But for those girls who do wear their hijabs like that so that they are high on their heads, the things underneath range from the poofy flower clips to yogurt containers. The funniest one I saw was a KFC bucket container being used. But again, they're not supposed to do that."
Q - If there was anything you could say to help people understand more clearly the hijab, what would you say?
A - "Just because we wear hijab doesn't mean we are any different than a girl who doesn't. We can still do everything they do, we just have to cover our head and wear long sleeves and pants! And as soon as we are in a place where there are only girls, we can take it off with no problems. We even take it off at school when we are in class! (**NOTE: these girls attend a girls only campus**) You get used to it really quickly."
I would like to thank my amazing Grade 9 girls for helping me out with this blog posting and for answering all my MANY questions all year long. Thanks girls for giving me a greater understanding of your culture and your religion. :) **heart!**
A special thank you to: Salma, Reem, Noura, Shaikha, Dana, Walaa and Laila for giving me written responses to these questions and for filming and sharing with everyone how to properly wrap your hijab! :)
Finally, a demonstration on how to properly wrap your hijab!
