Hijab: For faith or fashion?

Nur Affizza in her stylish and vibrant hijab

Hijab, hijaab, hijjab. There are many ways to spell it but it all means the same thing. Hijab is a piece of plain or designed clothing to cover a woman’s head. In Arabic it means curtain or cover.

Wearing a hijab is stipulated in Islam as it is instructed in the Quran. But do women and girls of the 21st century really wear hijab in the name of Islam? Or is it just for the sake of fashion?

In Malaysia, artistes like Wardina, Bienda and Yuna have made wearing the hijab cool, hip and fashionable. These celebrities even have hijabs named after them - Tudung Wardina, Tudung Bienda and the most famous today, Tudung Yuna.

Some of the youngsters and even adults want to follow their style.

Husna Zainal, a Mass Communication student, believes that it is fine if we want to follow the trend. “It’s amazing to see the self expression and variety of styles out there today. It’s something very close to my heart,” she says.

Meanwhile, final year student Shaheera Amelia Anor says, “Personally if I’m going to wear the hijab one day, I will follow the trend. I will vary my hijab’s style to look more creative wearing it.”

“For instance, I really like singer and trendsetter Yuna’s creative look of wearing hijab,” she adds.

Nazihah Zainal, an International Tourism Management student, believes some individuals tend to follow the trend rather than wanting to wear the hijab for religious reasons.

“In Malaysia, most Muslim teenagers want to follow the style of Hana Tajima, a Muslim Japanese icon or designer. Her style really appeals to the teenagers, even to those who are not wearing hijabs,” she adds.

Nurzihan Hassim, SOC lecturer

Nurzihan Hassim, a lecturer in School of Communication says, “All my family members do not wear hijab, but when I got married I started wearing hijab as I have been inspired by my husband’s family.”

“Putting on a hijab is my own choice and for the sake of religious practice. I disagree with those who wear the hijab for the sake of following trends,” she adds.

All in all, fashion makes a great impact on hijab-wearing women. Some women wear hijab solely for fashion purposes. Others wear it because of their faith while implementing fashion into it at the same time.

No matter what, hijabs in Malaysia are very colourful and stylish. Let’s just all embrace this beautiful variety of hijab designs in the country.

(By Nur Affizza Azmi)