What is JILBAB

                     JILBAB                                                                                                                                               The term jilbāb or jilbaab (Arabic جلباب) is the plural of the word jilaabah which refers to any long and loose-fit coat or garment worn by some Muslim women. They believe that this definition of jilbab fulfills the Quranic demand for a Hijab. Jilbab or Jilaabah is also known as Jubbah or Manteau (which is the French word for coat or mantle).

The modern jilbāb covers the entire body, except for hands, face, and head. The head and neck are then covered by a scarf or wrap (khimar). Some women will also cover the hands and face (niqab).

In Indonesia, the word jilbab is used for a headscarf rather than a long baggy overgarment (Geertz). In recent years, a short visor is often included to protect the face from the tropical sun.

Qur'an and hadith

The plural of jilbāb, jalabib, is found in the Qur'an, verse 33:59 (Surah Al-Ahzab). The verse in transliterated Arabic and the popular translation of Yusuf Ali goes:

Ya ayyuha an-Nabiyy qul li azwajika wa banatika wa nisa al-mu'minin yudnina alayhinna min jalabib hinna; dhalika adna an yu'rafna fa laa yu'dhayn. Wa kana Allahu Ghafur Rahim

O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters, and the believing women, that they should cast their [jalabib] (Jilbabs) over their persons (when abroad): that is most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

Whereas Yusuf Ali is not an accredited scholar of Qur'anic exegesis, Hadith (oral traditions of the Prophet Muhammad later recorded by contemporaries of his companions), or in any other religious field by any Islamic standard (by Islamic scholars of institutions such as al-Azhar of Egypt, Dar ul-Uloom of Pakistan and India, Islamic University of Saudi-Arabia, etc.), the translation of the Qur'an entitled Interpretation of the Meanings of the Noble Qur'an in the English Language by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan and Dr. Muhammad Taqiuddin Al-Hilali is a better representation of Sunni thought as its meanings are taken from the books considered most authentic and accepted by all Sunnis, such as Tafsir Al-Tabari, Al-Qurtubi, Tafsir Ibn Kathir, and from the sound books of Hadith, Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim. It is certified to this extent by Shaykh 'Abdul 'Aziz bin 'Abdullah bin Baz and Shaykh Umar Muhammad Fullata, two scholars of renown throughout the Sunni world during the latter half of the twentieth century who also represent two of the most prominent institutions of Sunni Islamic scholarship, Dar ul-Ifta in Riyadh, Saudi-Arabia and Islamic University of Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah in Medina, Saudi-Arabia.