Many Muslims have a negative attitude towards photography, especially photographs of women. But wealth never comes alone – along with money, the Internet, modern technologies and people’s desire to have as much freedom as possible came to the Arab world, because the richer you are, the less you want to limit yourself in something, the less you need God.
This is the truth of life – the richer and more worldly intelligent a person is, the less he needs God, because with the help of money and knowledge you can not only buy a sports car and pleasure, but also turn rivers, build entire islands.
Therefore, we have the opportunity to contemplate many photographs of women who profess Islam in luxurious outfits, who themselves post their photos on social networks and blogs.
After looking at many photos, you can come to the conclusion that the main color of the abaya dress is black. Why black? In the realities of warm countries, black is not the best color. In a black abaya dress it will be much hotter than in a white dress.
At the same time, Arab men dress mostly in white clothes.
Looking at this color distribution, many people express the idea that cruel Arab men deliberately force their women to wear black clothes so that they suffer from the sun. In reality, everything is different and many historians and simply wise people claim the following… In ancient times, in eastern countries, battles often took place between tribes, and most attacks occurred at night. In such a situation, a woman dressed in a black abaya dress could slip away unnoticed. And men dressed in white were in sight and fought fearlessly.
This is the reason why abaya dresses are black.
A modern abaya dress can be simple or have luxurious decor, it all depends on the attitude of the woman and her husband to fashion and Islam. Some adhere to strict rules, choosing the simplest clothes, while others cannot refuse luxury. Therefore, the origin of the dresses is different, some women sew abayas themselves, others buy a ready-made dress, and for some, the best designers try.
Depending on one’s religious beliefs and perception of God, the abaya dress is worn differently. True Muslim women wear the abaya with a headscarf or even with a niqab. And families where Islam takes on a so-called secular form perceive the abaya as simply traditional clothing, and then this dress can be worn without a headscarf.
Traditional clothing of the UAE residents
Man in a Kandura
Undoubtedly, the traditional clothing of the local population in the United Arab Emirates is directly influenced by religion, traditions and climatic conditions.
Emirati men wear a long white dress called “kandura”. White is the color of a noble person for Arabs, and especially in hot weather, this color is very practical. In winter, the kandura can be beige, sand, and even light green.
On the head of Arab men is a knitted lace cap – “gafiya”, on top of which is a scarf “gutra” (white, milky or red checkered), tied in a special way, or simply held in place by a woolen tourniquet-rim “ikal”.
Sometimes you can see a “kerkusha” on the dress of a local Arab – a kind of tassel decoration, comparable to a tie. For special occasions, such as a wedding, big holidays or a visit to the sheikh, men use a “bisht” cape.
Under the kandura, men wear a “fanila” – an undershirt, and a belt – “vuzar” – is tied around the waist. A man can change clothes 3-4 times a day, so you will never see an Emirati in a dirty or heavily wrinkled outfit on the streets. A man’s wardrobe usually consists of more than 50 dresses. Of course, locals usually resort to dry cleaning services and rarely wash clothes at home, especially since dry cleaning in the UAE is very affordable.
The most popular footwear for men is leather slippers. In winter, you can see men in shoes and even sweaters over the kandura.
Only when traveling abroad can men from the UAE wear a suit or other European clothing.
Arab woman in abaya
Women’s clothing in the UAE is more multi-layered. Traditionally, ladies wear long-sleeved, colorful dresses called “kanduras.” They wear harem pants called “sirwal” under the dress. A black cape called “abaya” is worn over the dress, often embroidered with gold, silver, and decorated with crystals or pearls. Often, the wealth of a woman’s husband can be judged by the high cost of the trim and fabric.
The head of an Emirati woman is covered with a thin black scarf, called a “shella”, which covers the head but not the face. This is the most common headdress in the Emirates.
The headdress called “hijab” is less commonly used in UAE clothing by local women, and is more commonly worn by women from neighboring Gulf countries. The hijab consists of two pieces of fabric and covers a woman’s hair.