Traditions of Middle East
Ramadan, hospitality of coffee and dates, Shabbat, Nowruz and the hajj. 191 traditions on EveryParampara so far.
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreTzitzitצִיצִית
Knotted ritual fringes worn on a four-cornered garment, a reminder of the commandmentsDress
🇸🇦 Mecca, Saudi ArabiaIhramإِحْرَام
A sacred state and simple dress that Muslims enter for Hajj and UmrahSpiritual
🇮🇱 IsraelTallitטלית
A four-cornered Jewish prayer shawl with ritual fringes worn during worshipSpiritual
🇹🇷 Turkey and 5 moreNazarnazar boncuğu
A blue glass eye amulet worn and displayed to deflect the evil eye.Folklore
🇵🇸 Palestine and 5 moreKeffiyehكُوفِيَّة (kūfīyah)
A square cotton headscarf worn by men in arid parts of the Middle East and North AfricaDress
🇵🇸 Bethlehem, PalestineTatreezتَطْرِيز
Palestinian cross-stitch embroidery, stitched onto dresses and read for its regionCraft
🇾🇪 Hadhramaut, Yemen and 1 moreJambiyaجنبية
A short curved dagger worn at the waist by Yemeni men, its handle a sign of statusDress
🇮🇷 Iran and 4 moreZardoziزردوزی (zarduzi)
Heavy gold and silver embroidery on silk or velvet, worked in Iran, India and beyondCraft
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia and 2 moreNiqabنِقاب
A face veil worn by some Muslim women, hiding all but the eyesDress
🇹🇷 Turkey and 3 moreKalpak
A tall cap of Turkic peoples, thick for winter and wide and light for summerDress
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia and 2 moreHijabحجاب
A Muslim practice of modesty and dress, worn by women as a headscarf or more coveringDress
🇮🇷 Tehran, Iran and 5 moreChadorchādar
A full-length open cloak that is pulled over the head and held shut by handDress
🇹🇷 Turkey and 3 moreYashmakyaşmak
A traditional face and head veil worn in Turkey, Egypt and TurkmenistanDress
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 morePurim costume
The Jewish custom of wearing masks and disguises during the festival of PurimDress
🇮🇷 Iran and 1 moreArkhalig
A traditional fitted jacket worn by men and women in the Caucasus and IranDress
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Jambiya: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Zardozi: Zarood, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tzitzit: DRosenbach at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Ihram: United Press International, Public domain, source
- Tallit: Mushki Brichta, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nazar: Alev Akın, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Niqab: Adam Jones, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Kalpak: Prosopee, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Keffiyeh: Copyright World Economic Forum ( www.weforum.org ) swiss-image.ch/Phot, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Tatreez: Ma'moun Othman, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hijab: Sophie Barat, CC BY 2.0, source
- Chador: Marius Arnesen, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Yashmak: Jean-Léon Gérôme, Public domain, source
- Purim costume: Flavio~, CC BY 2.0, source