Islam and clothing

Muslims have different dress codes for different contexts. Conservative ideas of hijab require people to dress modestly both for outside and religious contexts. Clothing for everyday wear, inside and outside the house is different, and very much depends on the family.

Clothes for men

Muslim men often wear thobes as well as kufi hats.

Clothes for women

A group of women in Adana (Turkey) wearing the niqabs.

An Afghan girl wearing an Islamic style scarf

Islam says that women should dress in a very special way. This dress code applies to women and adolescent girls, but not to children. Usually, women who travel to Muslim countries should also wear such dress.

• Abaya - long flowing outer garment worn over all other clothing.
• Jilbab - garment that may be worn like a dress, usually with trousers underneath.
• Dupatta - a South Asian long rectangular scarf usually worn over the shoulders in front of the neck, or however you prefer. Women will sometimes use a dupatta over their head for a hijab.
• Scarf or veil - the head covering worn by some Muslim women. Some Muslims maintain that the practice (of women covering the head) is not mandated in Islam. The headscarf is a square folded into a triangle or simply a triangle, but also can be a rectangular shape. To wear- bring the two corners together and pin/knot/wrap at the neck.
• Niqab - a veil worn to cover the face. A niqab can be made to leave only the eyes uncovered, only the eyes and forehead uncovered, or to leave the forehead, eyes, and nose uncovered, covering only the mouth.
• Burka - a long, loose piece of clothing covering the whole body from head to feet, worn in public by some women in Muslim countries.