Do you find people say "veil" when they mean "hijab"?

I honestly have never heard anyone discussing this.

A hijab is a type of hood, no? Basically it covers every part of the head besides the face. seems all soft and cozy inside But nah, never heard anyone mistake the two. Although I was unaware that niqab meant veil. Cool.

Since these concepts, customs and practices are not familiar to many (if not most) North Americans, the terminology is new and subtleties are likely to be lost. Apparently, followers of Islamic religion and culture have different terminology for the coverings of females. Similarly, Native Alaskans have dozens of words for ‘snow’. Expecting people from a different background and language to know the difference between those terms is like expecting a 5-year-old to know the difference between a standard and continuously variable transmissions.

Quote from wikipedia, Hijab is a veil that covers the head and chest, which is particularly worn by a Muslim female beyond the age of puberty in the presence of adult males. It can further refer to any head, face, or body covering worn by Muslim women that conforms to a certain standard of modesty. It not only refers to the physical body covering, but also embodies a metaphysical dimension, where al-hijab refers to “the veil which separates man or the world from God.”with reference to: Glasse, Cyril, The New Encyclopedia of Islam, Altamira Press, 2001, p.179–180

I had never heard the terms Hijab and Niqab until a couple of years ago. Whereas I have been familiar with the word veil for as long as I can recall. All I know is you can’t see “A smile through a veil” (or “tell a green field from a cold, steel rail” for that matter).

The veil has been used in the English language for a long time. Other languages have different words and customs for its use. The more we become educated about other people, the more understanding we can be of each other.
(forgive me for playing Pollyanna yet again.or is it Rose Nylund? I heard her voice as I wrote this)

I find that all of these terms (and there are several!) are used interchangeably by people who don’t know the difference.

I’ve never heard the words hijab or niqab before. The only time I hear someone say “veil,” it’s to describe what a bride wears.

Perhaps because the vast majority of Americans have never ever seen nor heard the word Niqab?

I certainly had not prior to reading this Q and I think I’m pretty well read about Islamic culture and live not that far from Dearborn, Mi. which has the largest population of Muslims in the US. NEVER EVER encountered the word Niqab.

And for whatever reason , when there arise disputes over Islamic women’s covering (such as certain job situations or Driver License photos) the covering is most frequently referred to as a veil or as a Hijab. I dare say that there are far far more people aware of the word Hijab compared to the nil amount of people aware of Niqab.

When women cover the majority of their face with any type of cloth in any type of culture they are VEILED (not Niqabed).

When a bride covers her face even with the skimpiest of lace coverings, she is considered veiled even tho most of her face is clearly visible.

Veil is a pretty useful generic term for a face covering of any sort and I have yet to hear a Muslim saying “Excuse me, but its not a veil. It’s actually a Niqab ”

So that’s my guess on why people aren’t using the precisely exactly correct term. The word veil (or even Hijab) gets the job done adequately since everybody pretty much understands what is being talked about. There really is no ambiguity.

And if a Muslim would ever make the effort to explain to me when I’m using the wrong terminology , I’d thank them for the new info., get clarification about the nuances of which word applies when and adjust my terminology accordingly just to be polite.

So far, in my personal experience, that hasn’t yet happened so I really don’t know whether its that much of a major big deal or not.

The hijab is a kind of headscarf. It isn’t a veil and I’ve never heard anyone call it a veil. The niqab is more than a veil it is a medieval isolation unit.

Webster defines “veil” this way:

1. A piece of cloth or net worn usually by women over the head and shoulders and sometimes over the face

2. Something that covers or hides something else

The hijab is a piece of cloth that covers the head and neck, and whose purpose is to hide. The fact that it doesn’t cover the face doesn’t disqualify it as a veil.

Hijab is a religious term. Veil or face veil or headscarves are general terms. Niqab or burqa or chador are cultural terms.

Hijab is about Muslim women dressing moderately (basis is the Koran). What this exactly means is unclear and there are more than a dozen interpretations.

When discussing legislation what can or can’t be worn where, it is important not to use the specific words.
In court, or some other place serious enough, things can go off the rail because someone couldn’t be asked to describe the face of the person who was wearing a “hijab”,because someone used the wrong word “veil”.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_law_on_secularity_and_conspicuous_religious_symbols_in_schools

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Niqab&imgdii=&imgrc=kIO5nSK2MoA4KM%3A%3B4YF3JaX2bkJcEM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fscanfree.org%252Fwp-content%252Fuploads%252F2013%252F07%252Fniqab-1.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fscanfree.org%252Fhijab-and-niqab%252F%3B600%3B600

hijab

I can’t imagine arguing against being knowledgeable.

Thanks all.

Correcting myself:
When discussing legislation for example, what can or can’t be worn where, it is important to use the specific words.