The meaning of Hijab in Indonesia: an Essential Question worth Asking
Indonesia and the United States share many important similarities. Indonesia and the United have a similar population (280 million and 310 million, respectively). Both countries have multi-religious states founded on monotheistic principles. And both countries are notable, in that each has the largest population of a specific world religion (Indonesia is the most populous Muslim country and the United States is the most populous Christian country. Both countries also began as colonies of European countries, and both countries, as I found out during my trip to Indonesia, share a sense of humor that is uncannily similar, making one’s transition to Indonesian culture not only smooth, but truly pleasant.
Some of the similarities noted above are of course, objective and easily identified. Population and Indonesia’s status as the world’s largest Muslim country are facts required of any geography bee contestant worth her salt. I came to Indonesia with facts like these, some knowledge of Indonesian history, and the strong understanding of Islam I have gained as a comparative religions teacher. Although my interest in Indonesia was certainly not limited to Islam or religion (Indonesia has six official religions and a rich history of Animism, Buddhism, and Hinduism), I came to Indonesia focused on a particular question.
Some of the similarities noted above are of course, objective and easily identified. Population and Indonesia’s status as the world’s largest Muslim country are facts required of any geography bee contestant worth her salt. I came to Indonesia with facts like these, some knowledge of Indonesian history, and the strong understanding of Islam I have gained as a comparative religions teacher. Although my interest in Indonesia was certainly not limited to Islam or religion (Indonesia has six official religions and a rich history of Animism, Buddhism, and Hinduism), I came to Indonesia focused on a particular question.
How does the meaning of hijab (the head scarf worn by Muslim women) vary by country and culture?
Though this question might appear somewhat narrow in focus, my hope was to use this question to better understand the complex relationship between religion, culture, and gender in Indonesia and to reconcile this understanding with my understanding of Islam. I also wanted to focus on this question because the hijab is the subject of some controversy within Islam and in the world. There is disagreement among Muslims as to whether or not the Hijab is required (“fard”) in Islam. Moreover, the hijab has been a subject of political controversy in countries that restrict the wearing of Hijab in public space (e.g. Turkey and France) and in countries that require the wearing of Hijab in public space (e.g. Iran and Saudi Arabia). A third reason I wanted to focus on the Hijab was that I had always wanted to make a movie about the hijab that featured Muslim women of various ages and ethnicities explaining why they wore (or did not wear) the hijab. Beginning this movie in Indonesia would afford sufficient justification to ask this question to a variety of Indonesian women in a variety of contexts.
I arrived in Indonesia armed with this essential question and, I suppose, the expectation that the meaning of hijab in Indonesia could be readily understood. Indonesia was, after
all, the largest Muslim country in the world. It was near the Arabian Peninsula, the cultural and religious center of Islam, and it was certain (so I thought) to be a devout country.
Why else would a hot, sweaty country located close to the equator put up with clothing that so obviously did not jive with their climactic conditions? I had expected that Indonesians would simply tow the Islamic line where the hijab was concerned. They would begin wearing it at puberty when it was required and wear it throughout their
lives. Simple. Case closed. And if the answer wasn’t simple, Indonesia would follow closely the pattern of some other Islamic country I had studied like Turkey or Iran.
Of course there was the unlikely possibility that Indonesia would be exactly like America where wearing Hijab or not wearing Hijab varies widely but is a good predictor of one’s degree of piety.
I arrived in Indonesia armed with this essential question and, I suppose, the expectation that the meaning of hijab in Indonesia could be readily understood. Indonesia was, after
all, the largest Muslim country in the world. It was near the Arabian Peninsula, the cultural and religious center of Islam, and it was certain (so I thought) to be a devout country.
Why else would a hot, sweaty country located close to the equator put up with clothing that so obviously did not jive with their climactic conditions? I had expected that Indonesians would simply tow the Islamic line where the hijab was concerned. They would begin wearing it at puberty when it was required and wear it throughout their
lives. Simple. Case closed. And if the answer wasn’t simple, Indonesia would follow closely the pattern of some other Islamic country I had studied like Turkey or Iran.
Of course there was the unlikely possibility that Indonesia would be exactly like America where wearing Hijab or not wearing Hijab varies widely but is a good predictor of one’s degree of piety.
Even if a person comes to Indonesia with little concern with understanding the hijab, when one enters Indonesia, she will no doubt be struck by the ubiquity and infinite variety of hijabs found there. As soon as I entered the airport, I was struck by the numerous ways in which women, young and old, folded hijab; the numerous ways in which hijab might be draped upon the head— some hijabs revealed no hair while others rarely covering the hair; some hijabs were conical like Disney fairieswhile others were neatly rounded and tucked across the head like Catholic nuns. Some women’s hijabs were accompanied by a long jilbab, descending to the knees like a long dress, whereas other hijabs seemed out place with what was clearly a more modern, western aesthetic—a polite way of saying tight jeans. This mixing of modern dress with hijab was the first paradox that entered my consciousness but in the end it was no paradox, or rather it was the least of the paradoxes. The airport was in Jakarta—hub of Indonesia. In retrospect I realized that it reflected the diversity of Indonesia’s people and thus the diversity of attitudes about hijab.
When I settled into my Jakarata hotel, I soon discovered my first answer to my question “What is the meaning of hijab in Indonesia?” The answer was simple: hijab is fashion. When a person wants to wear the hijab— for whim, for color coordination, or whatever the reason—she wears it. The next day she may not. It might not match her sneakers or her outfit, or her mood. And this, unlike the U.S. were wearing the hijab is either done or not done (except for prayer when it is always worn), in Jakarata it is up to person whether one wears hijab, and no system, social or otherwise has much to say about it.
When I settled into my Jakarata hotel, I soon discovered my first answer to my question “What is the meaning of hijab in Indonesia?” The answer was simple: hijab is fashion. When a person wants to wear the hijab— for whim, for color coordination, or whatever the reason—she wears it. The next day she may not. It might not match her sneakers or her outfit, or her mood. And this, unlike the U.S. were wearing the hijab is either done or not done (except for prayer when it is always worn), in Jakarata it is up to person whether one wears hijab, and no system, social or otherwise has much to say about it.
This, of course is not the end of Hijab in Indonesia. As one moves outside of Jakarta to the countryside, the idea of Hijab as a slave to fashion becomes preposterous—“something they believe in Jakarta.” Hijab outside of Jakarta in places like Pinangpilang and Jogjakarta is serious and is a clear symbol of one’s piety. Depending on how pious a person is, the hijab may be worn even by the very young—a whole decade before puberty is even a possibility! This does not mean that concern for fashion is gone, quite the contrary. Because hijab is worn by many young girls, one sees hijab in patterns unexpected. Hello Kitty and Angry Birds (with beak included) are not just possibilities they are realities. Outside of Borobrodur, I even witnessed the unthinkable—A South Park Hijab! In Banka, an island province between Sumatra and northern Java, I had the opportunity to ask a group of several Indonesians in their twenties about Hijab. One said that Hijab is about showing that your Muslim, another said it is about being a good Indonesia, and a third said that she did it to tell others she wanted to be taken seriously. Finally, a girl stood up from her seated position to announce that Jilbab (as opposed to hijab) is a clear sign of how serious of a Muslim you are. She said, the longer the hijab one wears, the more serious the person is about Islam. Though the other girls clearly had slight differences of opinions, they also had much shorter jilbabs or wore only the hijab. Upon hearing this reason for wearing hijab, they sat down and said no more. Clearly their answers had been trumped.
After a trip to Banka, a trip to Jogjakarta, a trip to Bali, and then back again to Jakarata I was convinced that the meanings of hijab were
differed widely but that the primary distinction was that people living in less urban areas tended to have traditional, pious views of hijab whereas those who lived in urban areas such as Jakarata tended to view the hijab primarily as an object of choice and fashion. But then in the hotel in Jakarta, I notice that one of the hotel staff had on the most unusual hijab I had seen. It was a simple red scarf, sheer—virtually see-though, about four inches across. It was draped across her hair, leaving visible much more than was covered. It was truly the most minimal hijab I had ever seen up until then or since. When I asked her why she wore hijab, her answer was simple yet surprising. She said, that the province was celebrating its one hundredth birthday and that she was wearing it for a promotion—sort like American waiters wearing red, white and blue on the
Fourth of July. She said it was part of her job and that she had worn other costumes on other promotions. I then asked her if her mother wore hijab and she said her mother did. I asked if her mother had waited until she was older and she said that she had not. Though I thought it unlikely that the woman I had met would ever wear hijab like her mother, I asked her if she would ever wear it. Her answer was that she hoped to, but keeping a good job meant that she could not wear a hijab, even though this was her preference. Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world. Its government and education system are built primarily upon Islam. Gas stations have prayer rooms and schools must build a prayer room even if they have only a single Muslim student in attendance. And here in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, a woman wanted to wear a hijab regularly, but felt she couldn’t because it would hurt her chances of employment. Only that particular week, when representing the pride of her province as part of the hotel’s promotion, did she wear a hijab.
differed widely but that the primary distinction was that people living in less urban areas tended to have traditional, pious views of hijab whereas those who lived in urban areas such as Jakarata tended to view the hijab primarily as an object of choice and fashion. But then in the hotel in Jakarta, I notice that one of the hotel staff had on the most unusual hijab I had seen. It was a simple red scarf, sheer—virtually see-though, about four inches across. It was draped across her hair, leaving visible much more than was covered. It was truly the most minimal hijab I had ever seen up until then or since. When I asked her why she wore hijab, her answer was simple yet surprising. She said, that the province was celebrating its one hundredth birthday and that she was wearing it for a promotion—sort like American waiters wearing red, white and blue on the
Fourth of July. She said it was part of her job and that she had worn other costumes on other promotions. I then asked her if her mother wore hijab and she said her mother did. I asked if her mother had waited until she was older and she said that she had not. Though I thought it unlikely that the woman I had met would ever wear hijab like her mother, I asked her if she would ever wear it. Her answer was that she hoped to, but keeping a good job meant that she could not wear a hijab, even though this was her preference. Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world. Its government and education system are built primarily upon Islam. Gas stations have prayer rooms and schools must build a prayer room even if they have only a single Muslim student in attendance. And here in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia, a woman wanted to wear a hijab regularly, but felt she couldn’t because it would hurt her chances of employment. Only that particular week, when representing the pride of her province as part of the hotel’s promotion, did she wear a hijab.