Islamic fashion
Islamic Fashion as a phenomenon stemmed from the combination of a set of Islamic practices (in which the need to cover a specific set of body parts is present) and of the rising need and desire to include these specific clothing items in a broader
The most recent developments in the field have caused a varied
Islamic Fashion market nowadays presents the rapidly expanding niche that is still relatively empty in a global scale. Big
History of Islamic fashion
To understand the controversy over Islamic fashion and how it has evolved, it's vital to understand the historical and religious meaning behind the clothing. It's important to remember that the specific styles of clothing vary among time periods and across geographical regions. Arabic dress dates back to the 13th century—men and women from this time period both wore a simple tunic dress with a loose garment over their head. The difference between the genders was that women had to cover more of their body, and usually had more accessories and embellishments. Another region that largely influenced modern Islamic dress is Turkey. It was different from Arabic dress in that " traditional Turkish ensemble for either men or women consisted of loose fitting trousers (şalvar, don) and a shirt (gömlek), topped by a variety of jackets (cebken), vests (yelek), and long coats (entâri, kaftan, üç etek)."[2] Something these two regions had in common with their dress is that what people wore was an indication of their social status. In Arabic regions such as Iraq and Palestine, the way men covered their heads, turban or shawl, was related to their status. In Turkey, they also used headgear to show status in addition to layering clothes and using certain "richer" materials. Since Arabic clothing came long before Turkish and other regions' clothing, it's clear it had a large influence on Islamic fashion for all the subsequent cultures. A big part of the current Islamic fashion market is women's headdresses. Although men and women were both supposed to dress modestly, "The veil is a vehicle for distinguishing between women and men and a means of controlling male sexual desire".[3] There are four main styles of wearing a veil or headscarf in Islamic tradition. The first, is named the Hijab. The hijab is made with one or two scarves, covering both the head and the neck. The face may remain unveiled. This style is most widely seen in the West, as well as still being popular within Middle Eastern countries. The next veil is called the Niqab, which covers the entirety of the body as well as the face, while leaving an opening for the eyes. There are two main styles of Niqab. A half-niqab is identified by a scarf veiling the face, while leaving the eyes and part of the forehead uncovered. A Gulf niqab only leaves narrow slits for the eyes. A third veil is the Chador, which is a full-body length shawl, pinned closed at the neck. The head and body are covered in this style, while leaving the face visible. This style is commonly seen in Iran. A fourth veiling style is called the Burqa. The burqa is a full-body covering where the entire face and body are veiled and there is a mesh screen in front of the eyes.[4]
Economics of Islamic fashion
Today the Islamic Fashion
Furthermore, the Pew Research present their collections whether in Gulf States or online only while omitting the opportunities and growing demand presented in Western countries as it expresses Amani Al-Khatahtbeh, the editor-in-chief of MuslimGirl.net:
“What's the point of having these
Amani Al-Khatahtbeh, interview to Fortune, 15 July 2015[8]
Considering the slow realization of emerging capacities by the global brands the niche of Islamic fashion market would be likely occupied by Middle Eastern enterprises and start-ups. As Abdul Rahman Saif Al Ghurair, a member of the Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre board, said in the interview to Bloomberg:
“The lack of a global Islamic clothing
fashion designers.”[9]
Dubai, after opening Design District, is on its way to become the Islamic fashion capital as well as the global centre of the Islamic economy even if being challenged by the Turkish Muslim clothing industry. Despite big designer brands making an entrance into the Muslim world, there is still a distinct lack of opportunities for young Muslim designers. This is because in most Muslim countries fashion is not taken seriously as a career path, instead math science and engineering have long taken priority. Recently, with more women entering the workforce the demand for fashion education has increased. The Creative Space Beirut School of Design is the future of the industry. It provides free education, while also putting emphasis on respecting cultural differences of students in order to build a safe community and allow talented young artists to create freely.
Politics and culture
Internal criticism
Considering the controversial nature of the topic, a plethora of reactions was expected and it was varied in nature and sources. Internal reception was varied, encompassing reactions such as the one by fashion graduate Tabinda-Kauser Ishaq, who designed a ‘poppy hijab’ for Remembrance Day,[13] who welcomed the arrival of mainstream Islam fashion and deemed it “a good move for the business of fashion”, and the one by Mariah Idrissi, the first hijab-wearing model in an H&M ad[14] who said that, "Seeing Dolce & Gabbana launch in this market is definitely a positive thing".
A reminder of the religious connotation of the hijab came from Shelina Janmohamed, author of Love In A Headscarf, who pointed out how,
“Today's
woman's right to be beautiful and well-turned out, and buying more stuff than you need, and being judged by your clothes - both of which are the opposite of Islamic values.”[15]
On the subject of the high-end commercialization of Islamic fashion, Ruqaiya Haris explained how Dolce & Gabbana's hijab range was aimed at people like her, and yet made her feel excluded:
“It is difficult for me to feel excited and grateful for a fashion line that supposedly caters to me and the requirements of my faith when it feels as though the overwhelming message is that the only desirable Muslim is a wealthy one; that Muslim
fashion label. And that ultimately western society will always have the monopoly on what is fashionable and relevant.”[16]Similarly, Somali-American model and humanitarian, Halima Aden, who is credited with being one of the first Hijabi women to appear on the cover of Vogue, spoke out in 2020 about the darker side of being a trailblazer for Muslim women within the fashion industry. After setting out to give back to the Muslim community through humanitarian aid work and increasing visibility for Hijabi women in fashion, Aden famously took a step back from her career when she revealed that she was becoming less and less in control of her ability to stay true to her Muslim values due to violations of contract clauses, and feelings of being tokenized by the organizations that she worked with. Aiden stated in one 2021 interview with BBC “I just decided I'm done with the NGO world using me for 'my beautiful story of courage and hope'[17]
On this ethical side of the discourse the argument made by Sabah Haneen Choudhry, a third-year Social Anthropology student at
“My issue is this: why is the
Muslim community?”[15]
The premise of the cultural appropriation side of the discourse, addressed online by different sources,[18] can be summed up by Haris’ words when she states how Dolce & Gabbana’s range “looks like an appropriation of existing traditions without giving them any real recognition.” [16] As the IFDC
External criticism
Public comment came also from outside the
“"In life you have to chose the side of freedom," said Bergé. "Rather than covering women up, "we must teach [Muslim] women to revolt, to take their clothes off, to learn to live like most of the women in the rest of the world."”[21]
Which, as Julianne Shepherd writes in her article for Jezebel, expresses a rather
A petition was launched by a French student, Hawa N’Dongo, on change.org calling for Rossignol to be punished:
“It is with anger and exasperation that we have been once again confronted with the verbal violence of a political leader,” wrote N’Dongo. “Asked about the false debate on ‘Islamic fashion’ she came out with scandalous propositions that feed the confusion and stigmatisation of Muslim women and the millions of transported slaves.”
It's clearly a controversial subject and one that many
Islamic fashion on the web
The growing popularity of
Partially, the opposition to
“[...] the entrepreneurs involved in promoting hijab online may be motivated by a mixture of religious, ethical, political and commercial concerns which grow out of their personal experiences of living in a multicultural urban environment and which reflect and respond to the desire expressed by many young Muslim women living in the West to be both fashionable and modest.” - Emma Tarlo, HIJAB ONLINE, 2010[25]
Especially for the
Islamic fashion online stores
Islamic Fashion and Design Council (IFDC) is a platform that provides support, initiatives and programmes to help make the industry more cohesive for Islamic fashion by bringing the industry players together to help them to generate more opportunities.[26]
“This clothing is beautiful, and the beauty is made for every woman.”- Indonesian Fashion Designer Amy Atmanto
Clothing companies and
Social media
There is undeniably a modest fashion craze that has been going on this past years with big brands in fashion, celebrities and independent entrepreneurs on this movement. This trend is seeing mainstream brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Mango, Zara and DKNY coming up with modest collections they never did before. We are also seeing many celebrities including Rihanna and Kim Kardashian wearing and posting on their social media profiles the Islamic headscarf, the hijab and Beyoncé dressing in an abaya.[28]
It is a continuing growing trend: some women designed their own clothes that suited their needs because the mainstream market could not provide it, these personalities on
“Young hijabi Instagrammers like Maryam Asadullah, Sobia Masood and many other social media personalities have made a huge impact in the modest fashion industry. These personalities created a trend whereby they shared their stylish modest outfits, tips and tutorials while other people admired their style thus gaining them big followership. They were able to provide what the mainstream fashion industry was not giving them and the modest wearer. This inspired and helped many other young people who were following them. More and more people started sharing their modest styles on social media and it became a buzz that changed the view of modest fashion”.[29]
Asadullah is just one of many fashion-forward hijab-clad
Vela Scarves is a scarf fashion line based out of California, U.S.A., started up by Atik in 2009 and officially launched in 2010 with partner and sister Tasneem Atik Sabri., allowing the company a large platform for advertising and selling their scarves local and worldwide.
Fashion
There are many Muslim fashion influencers on Instagram and TikTok, either showcasing their own modest fashion or giving tips to others who dress modestly. The Urban Hijabi, run by Nabeeha Fakih Sheikh has over 70,000 followers. Sheikh told a reporter that the goal of her account was to showcase her hijab, which she emphasizes is her choice, and emphasize to followers that one can be fashionable and wear a hijab. The year 2016 saw modesty going mainstream in Western culture. The first hijabi posed on the cover of Playboy Magazine, Anniesa Hasibuan’s New York Fashion Week show had all of the models wearing modest clothing and Hijabs.[36]
See also
- Islam
- Women in Islam
- Fashion
- Islam and clothing
- Hijab
- Consumer culture
- Politics
- Market
- Muslim world
- Capitalism
- E-commerce
- Social networks
- Media
- Fashion week
Notes
- ^ Tarlo E. Hijab in London: Metamorphosis, Resonance and Effects. Journal of Material Culture. Vol. 12(2): 138
- ^ "CLOTHING". char.txa.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
- ^ "A Brief History of the Veil in Islam". Facing History and Ourselves. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
- ^ "A Brief History of the Veil in Islam".
- ^ State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2015. Dinar Standard.
- ^ The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections, 2010-2050. Pew Research Center.
- ^ La Ferla R. For Ramadan, Courting the Muslim Shopper. NY Times. 24 June 2015
- ^ Petrilla M. The next big untapped fashion market: Muslim women. Fortune. 15 July 2015
- ^ Y-Sing L., Solovieva D. Islamic Fashion's Expanding Market Attracts Shariah Financiers. Bloomberg. 9 April 2015
- ^ Gandhi L. DKNY Launches First Ever Ramadan Fashion Line. NBC News. 9 July 2014
- ^ Sanghani R. How the hijab went high-fashion and divided Muslim women. The Telegraph.18 February 2016
- ^ Minthe C. Exclusive: The Dolce & Gabbana Abaya Collection Debut. Style.com/Arabia. 3 January 2016
- ^ Sanghani, Radhika. "Why British Muslims Need a 'poppy Hijab' to Remember World War One." The Telegraph. 10 Nov. 2105
- ^ Halime, Farah. "Meet the First Hijab-wearing Model in an H&M Ad." Archived 2017-03-31 at the Wayback Machine Fusion. 25 Sept. 2015
- ^ a b Sanghani, Radhika. "How the Hijab Went High-fashion and Divided Muslim Women." The Telegraph. 18 Feb. 2016
- ^ a b Haris, Ruqaiya. "D&G's Hijab Range Is Aimed at People like Me – so Why Do I Feel Excluded?" The Guardian. 11 Jan. 2016
- ^ "Supermodel Halima Aden: 'Why I quit'". BBC News. 14 January 2021.
- ^ Torkia, Dina. "DESIGNER ABAYAS, WHAT’S NEW?" DINA TORKIA. 07 Jan. 2016
- ^ Alawa, Laila. "Badass Young Women Are Showing the World What "Muslim Style” IFDC." IFDC. 16 Aug. 2015
- ^ "French Fashion Mogul Pierre Bergé Hits out at 'Islamic' Clothing." The Guardian. 30 Mar. 2016
- ^ Manning, Emily. "Exploring the Backlash against High-fashion Hijabs." ID.vice.com. 30 Mar. 2016
- ^ Shepherd, Julianne Escobedo. "YSL Partner Slams Designers Who Cater to Muslim Women as 'Enslavement'" Jezebel. 30 Mar. 2016
- ^ Willsher, Kim. "French Women's Rights Minister Accused of Racism over Term 'negro'" The Guardian. 30 Mar. 2016.
- ^ Sanghani R. How the hijab went high-fashion and divided Muslim women The Telegraph.18 February 2016
- ^ a b Tarlo, Emma. "Hijab Online." Interventions 12.2 (2010): 209-25.
- ^ a b Shabeeh, Rabiya. "Social Media Providing Platform to Promote Islamic Fashion" Khaleej Times. 31 Oct. 2015
- ^ Brugnoni, Antea. "Modest Fashion: The Way to Multicultural Fashion." SMI - Sistema Moda Italia - Federazione Tessile Moda, Milano. Assaif.org. 28 January 2014
- ^ "The Impact of Social Media on the Modest Fashion Industry." IFDC. 06 Jan. 2016
- ^ "The Impact of Social Media on the Modest Fashion Industry". ifdcouncil.org. Archived from the original on 2016-01-25.
- ^ "Meet The Hijabi Fashionistas Of Instagram: Chic Muslim Women Share Their Modest Style On Social Media." International Business Times. 10 Nov. 2015
- ^ "Vela Scarves covers new ground by making traditional hijab headscarves with a fashionable twist". Orange County Register. 2014-05-27. Retrieved 2018-04-20.
- ^ "The Designer". Vela. Retrieved 2018-04-20.
- ^ "Our Purpose". Vela. Retrieved 2018-04-20.
- ^ "V E L A™ by Marwa Atik (@velascarves) • Instagram photos and videos". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2018-04-20.
- ^ "Marwa Atik". YouTube. Retrieved 2018-04-20.
- ^ "Follow These Instagram Influencers Now for the Ultimate Modest Fashion Inspiration". 16 June 2019.
References
- Tarlo E. "Hijab in London: Metamorphosis, Resonance and Effects." Journal of Material Culture. Vol. 12(2): 138
- Tarlo E. "Hijab Online." Interventions 12.2 (2010): 209–25.
- Gökariksel B., McLarney E. "Muslim Women, Consumer Capitalism, and the Islamic Culture Industry." Journal of Middle East Women's Studies. Volume 6, Number 3, Fall 2010, pp. 1–18
- Abbas J. A., Abdulrahman A.-A. Marketing and Ethics: What Islamic Ethics Have Contributed and the Challenges Ahead. Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht. 2014
- Killian, Caitlin. “The Other Side of the Veil.” Gender & Society 17, no. 4 (2003): 567–90. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243203253541
- Jirousek, Charlotte. “Islamic Clothing,” 2004. http://char.txa.cornell.edu/islamicclothes.htm.