Investigating Women’s Covering and Hijab in Qajar Dynasty Reflecting upon the Works of Foreign Tourists of That Period (From Agha Mohammed Khan Kingdom to Mozafar-edin Shah Period)

Subject Areas : Journal of History (Tarikh)

Mohammad Reza Alam ¹ (Professor in History, University of Shahid Chamran Ahvaz, Ahvaz,Iran)
sakineh Donyari ² (History،University of Shahid Chamran Ahvaz،Iran،Khuzestan،)

Received: 2019-07-06 Accepted : 2020-01-05 Published : 2019-11-22

Keywords: covering, Hijab, Religious Minorities, Qajar women, chador,

Abstract :

Qajar dynasty is a historical period in which women had a particular type of hijab. Women always had a different position in the society from the ancient times up to Qajar dynasty. This particular position of women became even more prominent during Qajar dynasty. In this period, women always had hijab and wore chador with a mask over their face when they were present in the society. This study aims to investigate the social status of Iranian women including those in religious minorities – Armenians and Zoroastrians – from the kingdom of Agha Mohammed Khan toMozafar-edin Shah period reflecting upon the works of foreign tourists of that time. The main question raised here is how the foreign tourists narrated Iranian women’s, including those in religious minorities’, hijab. Having employed a descriptive-analytical methodology and the library resources, the findings of the present study show that the type of women’s hijab depended on their social class. The court or other rich women had more luxurious covering compared to ordinary women and there were some differences in their type of sewing, color, and jewelry. The women of religious minorities also had different coverings based on their religious beliefs. Armenian women often wore red and yellow, filigreed dresses and white chadors. They also wore masks over their mouths. Zoroastrian women had chadors and colorful headbands. Their clothes were mainly in silk and decorated with jewelry.