The purpose of the hijab that Muslim women wear in Komotini is to make them invisible. However, the effect is the opposite – attracting attention. Julia Kazana’ study on how young girls in Komotini perceive the wearing of the headscarf -as a religious symbol -was presented in the congress "Islam in Greece”, which took place in Athens. Briefly, Mrs Kazana presented various theories concerning the headscarf, also called “hijab. "Different female clothing conceal different parts of the female body from the public eye - head, hands or face, revealing on the other hand their Muslim origin,” said the anthropologist. According to her analysis, the girls living in Komotini, who don’t wear scarves believe that others who do, aim to hide from sight, but achieve the opposite effect. One of the theories supports that the headscarf is a sign of dependence and subordination, but others believe it to be an instrument of standing out in the crowd. "Often when wearing a headscarf, girls change the way the perceive themselves but this also affects their relationships with the environment," said Kazana. Appart form carrying religious and political connotations, the headscarf is a way to present yourself, which can be regarded as narcissism. Public reactions are often triggered in Komotini as women who wear hijabs avoid visiting neighborhoods where they constitute a minority since they feel unwelcome. One of the pros for wearing the headscarf is that it protects women from being seen by men as sexual objects, while in the same time promoting the rest of the female body. Julia Kazana’s speech triggered responses from representatives of the Muslim community. A journalist noted that his wife has started wearing a headscarf 30 years ago and only one of his three daughters is wearing the scarf now.
Venetia Evergeti, the organizer of “Islam in Greece” and Panos Hadziprokopiou talked about the Muslims in Greece and their praying locations. There are two Muslim communities in Athens, origination from Thrace. One comes from the area of Ifetos and lives in Gazi, and the other - from the village of Mistra – live in the vicinity of Vatis Square. They arrived in two major waves, one in the ’60 and one in the ’80, when the government had announced that everyone that transfer their residential and voting rights from Thrace to Athens will be employed on government duty. Most of the Greek Muslims come from underprivileged families to seek the support of friends and family.
The difference between the community in Gazi and the one on Vatis Square is that the latter have found a society with their own premises on Pattision Avenue, where they gather to pray. Unlike them, the Muslims from Gazi say they don’t know the religion and the Quran and they lack organization, although thy know they are Muslims. Those origination from Eastern Thrace say they have lost their identity coming to Athens, despite the professional opinion the the process should be reversed and an isolation and a stigma should be at place.
Situation has grown more complicated for the Muslims who have been in Athens for the past twenty years. Athens is home to the majority of Muslims in Greece, says Hadziprokopiou. Until the mid-nineties the majority of Muslim immigrants came from the Arabic states. Later on the number of immigrants form South Asia – Pakistan, Bangladesh- increased, and in 2000 until present another trend has been detected- the increased flow of Afghan, Iraqi and Somali citizens. The differences may be seen in the organization or religious conduct, regarding the praying locations.
If in the past it used to be a standard practice for Muslims of different nationalities to pray together, today, a separation on basis of home state may be observed. This is due to the rapidly increasing Muslim population, language- as it may differ depending on the time spent in Athens, weather they live in the city permanently or not; the notion of Islam’s universalism is also a factor.
Areas have been formed in neighbourhoods where Muslims gather to pray and this has become a regular activity, altering the importance of the construction of a mosque to a symbolical affirmation of their existence.
More information on the project may be found at:
http://www.fahs.surrey.ac.uk/islamingreece/index.htm
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