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A niqab (Arabic: نِقاب niqāb , "veil" or "mask"; also called a ruband ) is a cloth which covers the face as a part of sartorial hijab. It is worn by some Muslim women in public areas and in front of non-mahram adult males. The niqab is worn in the Arab countries of the Arabian Peninsula such as Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, and the UAE. Various forms of niqab are also worn in countries such as Somalia, Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Egypt, India, some parts of Israel, southern provinces of Iran, and other areas with sizeable Muslim populations.
Because of the wide variety of hijab worn in the Muslim world, it can be difficult to definitively distinguish between one type of veil and another. The terms niqab and burqa are often incorrectly used interchangeably; a niqab covers the face while a burqa covers the whole body from the top of the head to the ground.
Women who wear the niqab are often called niqābīah ; this word is used both as a noun and as an adjective. However, the correct form منتقبة muntaqabah / muntaqibah (plural muntaqabāt / muntaqibāt ) as niqābīah is used in a derogatory manner (much as with ḥijābīah versus محجبة muḥajjabah ). Colloquially, women in niqab are called منقبة munaqqabah , with the plural منقبات munaqqabāt . The word niqabi is commonly used in English to refer to a woman who wears a niqab.
It is sometimes alleged that the face-veil was originally part of women's dress among certain classes in the Byzantine Empire and was adopted into Muslim culture during the Arab conquest of the Middle East. However, although Byzantine art before Islam commonly depicts women with veiled heads or covered hair, it does not depict women with veiled faces. In addition, the Greek geographer Strabo, writing in the first century AD, refers to some Persian women veiling their faces;[not in citation given] and the early third-century Christian writer Tertullian clearly refers in his treatise The Veiling of Virgins to some pagan women of "Arabia" wearing a veil that covers not only their head but also the entire face. These primary sources show that some women in Arabia and Persia veiled their faces long before Islam. Some interpretations say that a veil is not compulsory in front of blind, asexual or gay men.
Niqab in Islam 
Views of the Madhhabs 
There is a difference of opinion amongst scholars in Islam as to whether or not covering the face is obligatory (fard). The niqab has continued to arouse debate between Muslim scholars and jurists both past and present concerning whether it is fard (obligatory), mustahabb (recommended/preferable), or cultural. The opinions of the four traditional Sunni schools of jurisprudence are as follows:
- Maliki: In the Maliki madhhab, the face and the hands of a woman are not awrah; therefore covering the face is not obligatory. However, Maliki scholars have stated that it is highly recommended (mustahabb) for women to cover their faces.
- Hanafi: The Hanafi school does not consider a woman's face to be awrah;however it is still obligatory (wajib) for a woman to cover her face. While the Hanafi school has not completely forbidden a male’s gaze towards a female’s face when there exists absolutely no fear of attraction, the woman has no way of knowing whether the gazes directed towards her are free of desire or not, especially when she is out in public. The Hanafi school has thus obliged women to cover their faces in front of strangers. 
- Shafi'i: The Shafi'i school has had two well-known positions on this issue. The first view is that covering the face is obligatory at all times when in presence of non-mahram men.  The second view is that covering the face is preferred in general, but obligatory only in a time of fitnah (where men do not lower their gaze; or when a woman is very attractive) 
- Hanbali: According to the Hanbali school, the awrah of a woman is her entire body including her face and her hands. Hence, covering the face is obligatory (fard) in this madhhab.
- Salafis : Salafi scholars (with the only exception of Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani) state that it is obligatory for a woman to cover her entire body (including her face) when in public or in presence of non-mahram men. 
 Salafi women in several countries, including Saudi Arabia, veil their faces because they believe the face of a woman is considered awrah. Wearing the niqab, however, is not exclusive to the Salafi movement and other Muslims whether Sunni Sufi, Shi'a or Ibadi, regard niqab either as obligatory or as mustahabb (recommended, an additional act of worship).  In the Shi'a Ja'fari school of fiqh, covering the face is not obligatory.
The claimed rationale of the niqab comes from the Qur'an and Hadith. It was known that the wives of the Prophet Muhammad covered themselves around non-mahram men. However the Quran explicitly states that the wives of the Prophet are held to a different standard. It is claimed that under Islam the niqab is a requirement for all women, since womanhood is mentioned along with the wives of Muhammad in the Qur'anic dictat to cover. The following verse from the Qur'an is cited as support for this:
"O Prophet! Tell your wives and your daughters, and the believing women, to draw their cloaks (veils) over their bodies. That will be better that they should be known (as respectable woman) so as not to be annoyed. And Allah is Ever Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."[Quran 33:59 (Translated by Ahmed Ali)]
This verse was in response to harassment on the part of the "hypocrites", although it does not clearly refer to covering the face itself.
The hadith (Arabic plural: ahādīth) are narrations originating from the words and deeds of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
The Arabic word jilbāb is used in the following traditions:
- Narrated Aisha: The woman is to bring down her Jilbāb from over her head and [then place it] upon her face. Bukhari:6:60:282, Sunnan Abu Dawud 32:4091
- Narrated Aisha: The riders used to pass by us when we were with the Messenger of Allaah in ihrām When they came near, each of us would lower her Jilbāb from her head over her face, and when they passed by we would uncover our faces. 1:1833
- Narrated Aisha: Safwaan ibn al-Mu’attal al-Sulami al Dhakwaani was lagging behind the army. She said, “He came to where I had stopped and saw the black shape of a person sleeping. He recognized me when he saw me, because he had seen me before Hijāb was enjoined. I woke up when I heard him saying ‘Inna Lillaahi wa inna ilayhi raaji’oon (verily to Allaah we belong and unto Him is our return),’ and I covered my face with my Jilbāb Sahih Muslim, 2:2770
- Narrated‘Aasim al-Ahwal: We used to enter upon Hafsah bint Sirīn who had put her Jilbāb thus and covered her face with it, and we would say to her: May Allah have mercy on you. Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “And as for women past childbearing who do not expect wedlock, it is no sin on them if they discard their (outer) clothing in such a way as not to show their adornment” [al-Noor 24:60]. And she would say to us: What comes after that (of the āyah)? We would say: “But to refrain (i.e. not to discard their outer clothing) is better for them”. And so she said: [Referring to, ‘But to refrain is better for them’], “It is to keep the Jilbāb.” Sahih al-Bukhari, 
- Narrated Ibn ‘Abbās: Allah commanded the believing women, when going out of their homes for some need, to cover their faces from above their heads with their Jilbābs, leaving one eye(or both) to see the path.
- From Asmā’ bint Abi Bakr, that she said, “We are used to cover our faces from the men, and cut our hair before that in Ihrām (for Hajj).
- From Asmā’ bint Abi Bakr, We would cover our faces while we were Muhrim, and while doing that we would be with Asmā’ bint Abi Bakr As-Siddeeq.
- From Ibn Abi Khaythamah, We entered upon Umm Al-Mu’minīn on Yawm At-Tarwayah and we said to her, ‘Oh Mother of the Believers! Here is a woman who refuses to cover her face and she is a Muhrimah (in ihrām). So ‘Aa’ishah lifted her Khimār from her chest, and covered the woman’s face with it.
- Narrated Aisha: "When (the Verse): "They should draw their veils over their Juyubihinna," was revealed, (the ladies) cut their waist sheets at the edges and covered their faces with the cut pieces. Sahih al-Bukhari, 
- Narrated 'Aisha: The Apostle of Allah used to offer the Fajr prayer and some believing women covered with their veiling sheets used to attend the Fajr prayer with him and then they would return to their homes unrecognized Sahih al-Bukhari, 
- Narrated Um 'Atiya: We were ordered to bring out our menstruating women and veiled women in the religious gatherings and invocation of Muslims on the two 'Eid festivals. These menstruating women were to keep away from their Musalla. A woman asked, "O Allah's Apostle ' What about one who does not have a niqab?" He said, "Let her share the veil of her companion." Sahih al-Bukhari, 
- From Anas that the Muhammad said: And if one of the women of Paradise looked at the earth, she would fill the whole space between them the earth and the heaven with light, and would fill whatever is in between them, with perfume, and the veil of her face is better than the whole world and whatever is in it."Sahih al-Bukhari, 
- Narrated Thabit ibn Qays : A woman called Umm Khallad came to the Prophet while she was veiled. She was searching for her son who had been killed in the battle. Some of the Companions of the Prophet said to her: You have come here asking for your son while veiling your face? She said: If I am afflicted with the loss of my son, I shall not suffer the loss of my modesty. The Apostle of Allah said: You will get the reward of two martyrs for your son. She asked: Why is that so, oh Prophet of Allah? He replied: Because the people of the Book have killed him."Sahih al-Bukhari, 
- All of a woman is awrah. Whenever she leaves her home Satan reaches by her."2:311
Sheikh Muhammad Sayyid Tantawy, previous dean of Cairo's Al-Azhar University, called full-face veiling a custom that has nothing to do with the Islamic faith. “The niqab is a cultural tradition and has nothing to do with Islam.” The decision came from an incident in which he forced a school girl to remove her niqab during a visit to an Al-Azhar school, when Tantawy reportedly said that he would call for an official ban for the face veil in Islamic schools. Tantawy's decision stems from his views that more younger Muslims have lost touch with traditional Islamic scholarship and have come under the influence of extremist imams who have little or no formal training in Islamic scholarship.
In Europe, the niqab is controversial, and it has been banned in public in France, Belgium and The Netherlands.
There are many styles of niqab and other facial veils worn by Muslim women around the world. The two most common forms are the half niqab and the gulf-style or full niqab.
The half niqab is a simple length of fabric with elastic or ties and is worn around the face. This garment typically leaves the eyes and part of the forehead visible.
The gulf-style or full niqab completely covers the face. It consists of an upper band that is tied around the forehead, together with a long wide piece of fabric which covers the face, leaving an opening for the eyes. Many full niqab have two or more sheer layers attached to the upper band, which can be worn flipped down to cover the eyes or left over the top of the head. Contrary to common belief, eyeveils do not generally restrict vision any more than a dark pair of sunglasses would. While a person looking at a woman wearing a niqab with an eyeveil would not be able to see her eyes, the woman wearing the niqab would be able to see out through the thin fabric.
Other less common and more cultural or national forms of niqab include the Afghan style burqa, a long pleated gown that extends from the head to the feet with a small crocheted grille over the face. The Pak Chador is a relatively new style from Pakistan, which consists of a large triangular scarf with two additional pieces. A thin band on one edge is tied behind the head so as to keep the chador on, and then another larger rectangular piece is attached to one end of the triangle and is worn over the face, and the simple hijāb wrapped, pinned or tied in a certain way so as to cover the wearer's face.
Other common styles of clothing popularly worn with a niqab in Western countries include the khimar, a semi-circular flare of fabric with an opening for the face and a small triangular underscarf. A khimar is usually bust-level or longer, and can also be worn without the niqab. It is considered a fairly easy form of headscarf to wear, as there are no pins or fasteners; it is simply pulled over the head. Gloves are also sometimes worn with the niqab, because many munaqabāt believe no part of the skin should be visible other than the area immediately around the eyes or because they do not want to be put in a position where they would touch the hand of an unrelated man (for instance, when accepting change from a cashier).
In different countries 
The niqab in Egypt has a complex and long history. On 8 October 2009, Egypt's top Islamic school and the world's leading school of Sunni Islam, Al-Azhar, banned the wearing of the niqab in classrooms and dormitories of all its affiliate schools and educational institutes.
The Niqab was traditionally worn in Southern Iran from the arrival of Islam until the end of the Qajar era. There were many regional variations of Niqab, which were also called Ruband or Pushiye. Traditionaly Iranian women wear Chador long time before islamic arrival
The 20th century ruler, Reza Shah, banned all variations of face veil in 1936, as incompatible with his modernistic ambitions. Reza Shah ordered the police to arrest women who wore the niqab and to remove their face veils by force. This policy outraged the clerics who believed it was obligatory for women to cover their faces. Many women gathered at the Goharshad Mosque in Mashhad with their faces covered to show their objection to the niqab ban.
Between 1941 and 1979 wearing the niqab was no longer against the law, but it was considered by the government to be a “badge of backwardness." During these years, wearing the niqab and chador became much less common and instead most religious women wore headscarves only. Fashionable hotels and restaurants refused to admit women wearing niqabs. High schools and universities actively discouraged or even banned the niqab, though the headscarf was tolerated.
After the new government of 'Islamic Republic' was established, the niqab was not enforced by officials.
In modern Iran, the wearing of niqab is not common and is only worn by certain ethnic minorities and a minority of Arab Muslims in the southern Iranian coastal cities, such as Bandar Abbas, Minab and Bushehr. Some women in the Arab-populated province of Khuzestan still wear niqab.
Saudi Arabia 
Saudi women are not required by a secular law to wear the niqab. However, the niqab is an important part of Saudi culture and in most Saudi cities (including Riyadh, Mecca, Medina, Abha, etc) the vast majority of women cover their faces. Saudi women are expected to wear a face-veil in public and they may be harassed by the religious police if they do not cover their faces. Dammam and Jeddah, as the most liberal cities of Saudi Arabia, are exceptions.
The Saudi niqab usually leaves a long open slot for the eyes; the slot is held together by a string or narrow strip of cloth. Many also have two or more sheer layers attached to the upper band, which can be worn flipped down to cover the eyes. Although a person looking at a woman wearing a niqab with an eyeveil would not be able to see her eyes, she would still be able to see out through the thin fabric. In 2008, the religious authority in Mecca, Mohammad Habadan called on women to wear veils that reveal only one eye, so that women would not be encouraged to use eye make-up.
According to Saudi Arabia's Shariah law, women's clothing should meet the following conditions:
- Women must cover their entire body, but they are allowed to expose one or both eyes in necessity.
- Women should wear abaya and a headscarf thick enough to conceal what is underneath, and the abaya should be loose-fitting.
- Women should not wear brightly coloured clothes or clothes that are adorned so that they may attract men's attention.
1,200 niqab-wearing teachers were transferred to administrative duties in the summer of 2010 in Syria because the face veil was undermining the secular policies followed by the state as far as education is concerned. In the near future, other ministers are expected to do the same as Ali Saad, the Syrian Minister of Education. Also, in the summer of 2010, students wearing the Niqab were prohibited from registering for university classes. The ban was associated with a move by the Syrian government to re-affirm Syria's traditional secular atmosphere.
On 6 April 2011 it was reported that teachers would be allowed to once again wear the niqab.
Since antiquity, the Arab tradition of wearing the niqab has been practiced by women living in Yemen. Traditionally, girls begin wearing veils in their teenage years.  Acceptance of the niqab is not universal in Yemen. Senior member of the Al-Islah political party, Tawakel Karman, removed her niqab at a human rights conference in 2004 and since then has called for "other women and female activists to take theirs off".
Enforcement, encouragement and bans 
Non-governmental enforcement of niqab is found in many parts of the Muslim world. In Saudi Arabia, all Saudi Muslim women are required to wear the niqab in cities such as Mecca, Medina and Taif. In other cities such as Dammam and Abha, women are not required to wear it by law but it remains de facto obligatory. In southern cities also, most women observe niqab. The Saudi niqab usually leaves a long open slot for the eyes; the slot is held together by a string or narrow strip of cloth. In 2008, the religious authority in Mecca, Mohammad Habadan called on women to wear veils that reveals only one eye, so that women would not be encouraged to use eye makeup.
The niqab has had a significant role for women in the West Bank during the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Many Palestinian women, especially students, have worn white niqabs during protests against Israel's actions. These women often wear green banners with Arabic messages in them. Female candidates from the Hamas party in the 2006 Palestinian parliamentary elections campaigned in niqabs, even in photographs. Since Hamas took over Gaza strip during the Battle of Gaza (2007), women have been wearing Niqab in large numbers.
Sultaana Freeman gained national attention in 2003 when she sued the U.S. state of Florida for the right to wear a niqab for her driver's license photo. However, a Florida appellate court ruled that there was no violation in the state requiring her to show her face to a camera in a private room with only a female employee to take the picture, in exchange for the privilege of driving.
In 2005, a non-Muslim student at Eastern Michigan University spent a semester wearing a niqab for a class project (she referred to the face veil as a 'burqa', a term which can be used to describe both the full, "gulf-style" niqab she wore and the Afghan style head-to-toe garment). Her experiences, such as feeling like no one wanted to be near her, led her to conclude that conservative Muslim dress is disapproved of in the United States.
The niqab is outlawed in Azerbaijan, Tunisia and Turkey, where the overwhelming majority of the population is Muslim. Niqabi women, just like women wearing hijab, cannot work as public servants, neither can they continue studies at schools, including the private schools. Although there is no single law banning niqab at private companies, it would be nearly impossible for a niqabi woman to find work .
In February 2010, an Arab country's ambassador to Dubai had his marriage annulled after discovering that his bride was cross-eyed and had facial hair. The woman had worn a niqab on the occasions that the couple had met prior to the wedding. The ambassador informed the Sharia court that he had been deliberately deceived by the bride's mother, who had shown him photographs of the bride's sister. He only discovered the problem when he lifted the niqab to kiss his bride. The court annulled the marriage, but refused a claim for compensation.
Although the burqa is a more emphatic symbol, the niqab has also been prominent in political controversies on Islamic dress in Europe.
On 29 April 2010, the Belgian Chamber of Representatives adopted a law prohibiting people to wear "attire and clothing masking the face in such a way that it impairs them to be recognizable". The penalty for violating this directive can run from up to 14 days imprisonment and a 250 euro fine. Even though there is no direct mention of the burqa or niqab, this decision practically does prohibit its use in public spaces. This new law has spurred a lot of anger amongst members of the traditional Islamist community.
In the United Kingdom, comments by Jack Straw, MP started a national debate over the wearing of the "veil" (niqab), in October 2006. This was further inflamed by extensive media coverage of the case of Aishah Azmi, a teaching assistant in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, who lost her appeal against suspension from her job for wearing the niqab while teaching English to young children whose first language is different. It was decided that being unable to see her face prevented the children from learning effectively. Azmi argued that it was helping the children understand different people's beliefs.
On 13 July 2010 France's lower house of parliament overwhelmingly approved a ban on wearing burqa-style Islamic veils. The legislation forbids face-covering Muslim veils in all public places in France and calls for fines or citizenship classes, or both. The bill also is aimed at husbands and fathers — anyone convicted of forcing someone else to wear the garb risks a year of prison and a fine, with both penalties doubled if the victim is a minor. In Italy, a law issued in 1975 strictly forbids wearing any dress or supply that could hide the face of a person. Penalties (fines and imprisonment) are provided for such behaviour.
In 2012 in Norway, a professor at the University of Tromsø denied a student's use of niqab in the classroom. The professor claimed that Norway's parliament has granted each teacher the right to deny the use of niqab in his/her classroom.
North America 
United States 
The niqab in its extreme forms is uncommon in the US, though sometimes seen in larger cities. In 2002, Sultaana Freeman, (aka Sandra Keller, who converted to Islam in 1997 when marrying a Muslim man) sued the U.S. state of Florida for the right to wear a niqab for her driver's license photo. However, a Florida appellate court ruled that there was no violation in the state requiring her to show her face to a camera in a private room with only a female employee to take the picture, in exchange for the privilege of driving. The prevailing view in Florida is currently that hiding one's face on a form of photo identification defeats the purpose of having the picture taken, although 15 other states (including Arkansas, California, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, and Louisiana) have provisions that allow for driver's licenses absent of an identifying photograph in order to accommodate individuals who may have a religious reason to not have a photograph taken.
Elections Canada, an independent agency responsible for elections and referendums, stated that Muslim women can cover their faces while voting. The decision was criticized by all major political parties of Canada except the New Democrats who did not oppose this decision.
More recently the Conservative Government has introduced legislation which would bar citizens from voting if they show up at polling stations with a veiled face. This law was proposed in the wake of the Government's recent dispute with Elections Canada, which has refused to bar people with veiled faces from polling places. The niqab became an issue in the 2007 election in Quebec after it became public knowledge that women wearing the niqab were allowed to vote under the same rules as electors who did not present photo ID, namely, by sworn oath in the presence of a third party who could vouch for their identity. The chief electoral officer received an overwhelming number of complaints that this policy was too accommodating of cultural minorities (a major theme in the election), and had to be accompanied by bodyguards due to threatening phone calls. All three major political parties were against the policy, with the Parti Québécois and Action démocratique du Québec vying for position as most opposed. The policy was soon changed to require all voters to show their face, even if they did not carry photo ID. However, Quebec residents who wear the niqab stated that they had no issue with showing their faces for official purposes, such as voting. Salam Elmenyawi of the Muslim Council of Montreal estimated that only 10 to 15 Muslim voters in all of the province wear the niqab, and that since their veils have become controversial, most would probably not vote.
In October 2009, the Muslim Canadian Congress called for a ban on burqa and niqab (though not the hijab), saying that they have "no basis in Islam." Spokesperson Farzana Hassan cited public safety issues, such as identity concealment, as well as gender equality, stating that wearing the burqa and niqab is "a practice that marginalizes women."
In December 2011, Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced a policy directive that Muslim women must remove niqabs throughout the citizenship ceremony where they declare their Oath of Allegiance.
See also 
- French ban on full length Islamic veils
- Islamic dress in Europe
- List of types of sartorial hijab
- Niqab in Egypt
- How to Hijab: Face Veils Modern Muslima and Saraji Umm Zaid Retrieved 16 April 2007.[dead link]
- See for instance F.R.C. Bagley, "Introduction", in B. Spuler, A History of the Muslim World. The Age of the Caliphs, 1995, X; for a different view T. Dawson, "Propriety, practicality and pleasure : the parameters of women's dress in Byzantium, A.D. 1000-1200", in L. Garland (ed.), Byzantine women: varieties of experience 800-1200, 2006, 41-76.
- Geography 11.13.9-10.
- The Veiling of Virgins Ch. 17. Tertullian writes, "The pagan women of Arabia, who not only cover their head but their whole face, so that they would rather enjoy half the light with one eye free than prostitute the face, will judge you. (Judicabunt vos Arabiae feminae ethnicae quae non caput, sed faciem totam tegunt, ut uno oculo liberato contentae sint dimidiam frui lucem quam totam faciem prostituere)."
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Further reading 
- Khan, Kamillah (2008). Niqaab: A Seal On The Debate. Kuala Lumpr: Dar Al Wahi Publication. ISBN 978-983-43614-0-2.
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to: niqab|
|Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: niqab|
- In Defense of Niqab in Islamic Law
- Niqab Page
- Religion and Ethics - Beliefs: Niqab, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), 13 April 2007.
- Modesty Gowns for Female Patients, BBC, 5 September 2006
- The Veil and the British Male Elite, Social Science Research Network (SSRN)
- The Obligation of Veiling
- Niqab is Not Obligatory
- The Last Straw!
- A dissertation on 'Niqaab- its Islamic ruling and controversy in the West'
- Why the Veil Liberates Women
- Niqab Debate in Egypt: Divided Scholars