zenana

Zenana (from Persian zanānah, meaning “women’s place”) is a historical term used in the Indian subcontinent to denote the part of a household or palace reserved for women. In many households, particularly among Muslims and in royal courts, the zenana represented a private realm where women lived, worked, and received visitors, separate from the public spaces used by men. Access to the zenana was typically restricted to female relatives and to appointed female servants or eunuchs who acted as guards and stewards; male outsiders generally could not enter without authorization.

Architecturally, the zenana was often a distinct wing or cluster of rooms arranged around courtyards, with separate sleeping quarters, reception rooms, kitchens, and utilities designed for privacy and safety. In this space, women could undertake domestic management, child-rearing, education, music, embroidery, and religious practices. Social life within the zenana included gatherings and instruction, while external interactions were mediated by family members or trusted attendants.

The concept was closely linked with purdah, the practice of female seclusion that shaped the zenana’s visibility and daily routine. The scale and organization of zenana life varied by region, household wealth, and era. From the 18th to the 20th centuries, changes in urban housing, modernization, and colonial influence led to greater public presence for women, and the strict separation associated with zenana diminished in many households. Today the term is primarily used in historical, architectural, and sociocultural contexts.