A boshiya (also called a bushiyyah or ghatwa) is a
Middle Eastern
The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq.
The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
(specifically
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...
) garment that, though see-through by the wearer, covers the wearer's face completely by a
veil
A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the human head, head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has be ...
without openings for their eyes. It is traditionally worn with an
abaya
The abaya (colloquially and more commonly, ', especially in Literary Arabic: '; plural ', '), sometimes also called an aba, is a simple, loose over-garment, essentially a robe-like dress, worn by some women in the Muslim world including m ...
or other overgarment.
Design
A ''boshiyah'' is essentially a large square of thin cotton gauze-like material with ties at the top that sits at the top of the forehead (either under or over the wearer's headscarf) and drapes down over the entire face. When flipped up, the garment exposes the wearer's face in its entirety. A ''boshiyah'' is normally not as opaque and covering as a traditional
''niqab''; it can also be worn to supplement a half-style ''niqab'' or, if the wearer desires extra
modesty
Modesty, sometimes known as demureness, is a mode of dress and deportment which intends to avoid the encouraging of sexual attraction in others. The word ''modesty'' comes from the Latin word ''wikt:modestus, modestus'' which means 'keeping with ...
, around
non-related males.
Sources
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Islamic female clothing
Veils
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See also
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Burqa
A burqa or burka (; ) is an enveloping outer garment worn by some Muslim women which fully covers the body and the face. Also known as a chadaree (; ) or chaadar (Dari: چادر) in Afghanistan, or a ''paranja'' (; ; ) in Central Asia, the Ara ...
*
Types of hijab
This table of types of hijab describes terminologically distinguished styles of clothing commonly associated with the word ''hijab''.
The Arabic word ''hijāb'' can be translated as "cover, wrap, curtain, veil, screen, partition", among other me ...