According to my theory, head-dresses, especially the turban and hijab are closely associated with the traditional geographical location of the society or community. If you take a closer look at the geographical origins of people who wear turbans and hijabs, you will notice that they almost always originate from arid regions of the planet. It is people from Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Saharan and sub-saharan Africa, Punjab, and such other arid places who have taken to these kinds of head-dresses.
Coming from an arid region where the availability of water is limited, if not scarce, bathing too often is a luxury they could not afford. The region being arid also meant that there was always dust and sand being blown about by the wind. In such an environment keeping long hair open would only make them dirty, thus requiring frequent washing. To reduce the necessity for frequent baths in a region with limited water supply, it was a very natural move to cover one's hair. Since women generally have longer hair than men, it becomes more necessary for them to keep their hair covered in such conditions. The covering of the hair, thus originated as a response to the environment, which has, over the years been assimilated into the culture of the people originating from these arid areas. Over years, the turban and hijab became a part of the identity of the respective communities and societies.
I will refrain from providing empirical data sets and statistics, as I believe they just complicate and narrow our perception of the issue at hand, and it is the broader picture that we need to keep in mind. I am not saying that my theory has no holes in it, just that I have not been able to notice any so far. I would be really glad to know your opinion regarding this and whether you have any alternative theories to suggest.
[Photos: courtesy the internet]
Well I think the weather of these places matters a lot, like the scorching sun and the dry hot weather, force them to wrap their head, apart from that, these places you are talking about are all Islamic countries, so this turban culture is part of their society. I don't know whether I am right or wrong, just giving you a thought.
ReplyDeleteThat is a very interesting observation for sure. But you will also have to keep in mind that the turban came before the religion did. It was just that Islam managed to flourish in this region and incorporated the turban culture as a part of its identity.
DeleteIf you look at a smaller dimension and focus on India, you will notice that turbans are popular in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan - the more arid parts of the country. Places like Kerala and West Bengal that has an abundance of water have no turban culture at all or the purdah culture. Again, in Punjab Sikhism incorporated the turban into its religious fold.
But as you pointed out rightly, most of the countries with a head-dress culture are definitely Islamic and there are numerous reasons why Islam developed in these regions and none of them pertain to the head-dress.