Aurat
/ˈɔːrət/noun
In Islamic law, a part of the body that must be covered, especially in public or during prayer; in South Asian usage, a woman.
Did you know?In classical Arabic, the related term ʿawrah referred to bodily areas requiring concealment, linking the word to ideas of vulnerability, privacy, and ritual modesty.
Etymological Timeline
Classical Arabic
Arabic
ʿawrah (عَوْرَة)
“A vulnerable, exposed, defective, or private part; a bodily area requiring concealment”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
ʿawr
“Blindness, defect, vulnerability, or an exposed weakness; from the Semitic root ʿ-w-r”
Medieval Persian
Persian
ʿawrat / عورت
“A woman; also a term for a woman’s private or vulnerable status in Islamic cultural usage”
Medieval Urdu
Urdu
aurat / عورت
“Woman; female person”
19th Century
English
aurat
“A woman, or in Islamic usage, a part of the body that must be covered”
Modern English
English
aurat
“A South Asian or Islamic term referring to a woman or to bodily areas requiring ritual or social covering”