Glocalizing’ the Hijab: A Malaysian Perspective

Department of Media Studies, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, Universiti Malaya, Malaysia

^* Corresponding author: nurzihan@siswa.um.edu.my

Abstract

This article examined the hijab, or the act of veiling as a transformative socialization agent for Malay-Muslims in Malaysia’s multicultural state. Through the media, the hijab was purported as a progressive lifestyle with representations of veiled Muslim women who are predominantly Malay. Apart from upheavals of Islam and the globalization of veiling across Muslim-majority countries, local socio-political developments have commodified the hijab as a product of Malay sovereignty rather than a symbol of religious obligation. Malay-Muslim women are predisposed to media messages that altered conservative Malay-Muslim stereotypes through convergence of old and new media platforms. The article explores the local hijab phenomenon by examining its media movement and its influence towards attitudes and behaviours of audiences. The evolution and visibility of the hijab are analyzed in relations to multiplicity of the Malay-Muslim identity and its integration with transcultural ideas of the East and West. Findings indicate that acceptance of this dynamic cultural identity resonate through diversity of content and multitudes of accessibility.