Purdah

Purdah (Urdu, Persian: پردہ ; also transliterated as 'purda') is the practice of requiring women to cover their bodies so as to cover their skin and conceal their form.

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Purdah is prevalent in Islamic societies, but is also observed by other communities in the Indian subcontinent. The usual garment worn to accomplish this is termed a burqa, which may or may not include a veil to conceal the face, a yashmak. The eyes may or may not be exposed.

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Purdah was rigorously observed under regimes such as that of the Taliban in Afghanistan, where women had to observe complete purdah at any time they were in public. Only their husbands, fathers,sibling, children, and other women were allowed to see them out of purdah. In other societies, purdah is often only practiced during certain times of religious significance.

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In historically Islamic Arab countries, such as Saudi Arabia, purdah has more cultural than religious significance, being a custom. Even in the United Arab Emirates, where women can wear skirts and similar modest garments, Arab women often observe purdah.

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A form of purdah is also seen in other religions such as Christianity and Judaism - it is not unknown for certain Christian and Jewish denominations to require women to be 'covered' whilst worshipping (if only by a hat or similar symbolic object).

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Persian: Persian can refer to:...

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Indian subcontinent: The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent and other terms, is a region of the Asian (and, in turn, the Eurasian) continent on the Indian tectonic plate south of the Himalayas, forming a land mass which extends southward into the Indian Ocean....