Pardah or purdah is a religious and social practice of gender partition prevalent among some Muslim and Hindu communities. It takes two forms: social partition of the sexes and the requirement that women cover their bodies so as to cover their skin and conceal their form. A woman who practices purdah can be referred to as pardanashin or purdahnishan. The term purdah is sometimes applied to similar practices in other parts of the world.
Ladies of Caubul (1848 lithograph, by James Rattray) showing the lifting of purdah in zenana areas – Oriental and India Office Collection, British Library.
Photograph of a Rajput royal silver zenana carriage in the princely state of Baroda, India. 1895, Oriental and India Office Collection, British Library
Picture of a meeting of the All-India Muslim League in Lahore in 1940 showing a woman in a body length burqa.
Protest against non-representation of women
A veil is an article of clothing or hanging cloth that is intended to cover some part of the head or face, or an object of some significance. Veiling has a long history in European, Asian, and African societies. The practice has been prominent in different forms in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The practice of veiling is especially associated with women and sacred objects, though in some cultures, it is men, rather than women, who are expected to wear a veil. Besides its enduring religious significance, veiling continues to play a role in some modern secular contexts, such as wedding customs.
Roman statue of a veiled Vestal Virgin
Greek bronze statuette of a veiled and masked dancer, 2nd–3rd century BC.
Depiction of Isabeau of Bavaria, queen of France, wearing veiling
Coptic Christian woman wearing a veil (1918)