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The word pardá [“purdah”] is of Persian origin. “Purdah” means not only a curtain on the window or over the door, it means a piece of cloth covering the head and face of a woman (i.e., a veil); it means that a woman must not move freely outside the house; it also means keeping the women covered in burkas.(1)
The purdah was not in use among the ancient Aryans. It was originally a Semitic concept. Indian women did not use the purdah before the Pathan rule.(2) The Sanskrit word avaguńt́han [“veil”] is not an ancient word. (The Hindustani word ghunghat́ [“veil”] was used in the olden days in the sense of covering) In those parts of India where the Pathans were not firmly established, for instance in south India and Maharastra, the veil was not introduced at all; to this day there is no such custom. Married women in ancient Maharastra never used to veil themselves – it was optional. Widows did not need to use a veil if they chose not to. Even where the Pathans were firmly established, the aborigines living in the hills and forests did not use the purdah. Today as well there is no custom of veiling oneself among the tribal women of Bengal and north India. Although the Santhals of Bengal are now totally identified with the Bengali mainstream, Santhal women do not use veils to this day.
Although the burka or veil was not in use in ancient times, and women were not prohibited from leaving their own houses, the system of using purdahs on doors and windows(3) has been customary since ancient times.
Footnotes
(1) The custom of purdah includes confining women to a section of the house. Burkas are the head-to-foot outer robes used in Muslim countries. The face is also covered. A thinner gauze is used at the level of the eyes for seeing, or in some cases one or both eyes may be uncovered. The Bengali word ghomt́á means the end of the sari pulled over the head. It has been translated in this section as “veil”. –Trans.
(2) The Muslim Pathans from Persia ruled India 1380-1520 CE. –Trans.
(3) Not as a differential treatment for women. –Trans.