The ''khawal'' ( ar, خوال) was a traditional native

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

ian male dancer cross-dressed in feminine attire and was popular up until the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

History

Following prohibitions on women dancing in some public places, cross-dressing boys and men took their place to continue the local tradition publicly, these dancers were known as ''khawal'', an Egyptian slang for queer, and were mainly dressed in feminine clothes and outfits. The khawal imitated female

ghawazi Ghawazi (also ''ghawazee'') ( arz, الغوازي) are female dancers who dance in return for money; the male equivalent is khawal. While the performative and traditional ''raqs sharqi'' in urban Egypt was more classical and influenced by more ...

by dancing with

castanet Castanets, also known as ''clackers'' or ''palillos'', are a percussion instrument (idiophone), used in Spanish, Kalo, Moorish, Ottoman, Italian, Sephardic, Swiss, and Portuguese music. In ancient Greece and ancient Rome there was a similar ...

self accompaniment, painting their hands with

henna Henna is a dye prepared from the plant ''Lawsonia inermis'', also known as the henna tree, the mignonette tree, and the Egyptian privet, the sole species of the genus ''Lawsonia''. ''Henna'' can also refer to the temporary body art resulting fr ...

, braiding their long hair, plucking their facial hair, wearing make-up, and adopting the manners of women.

As they impersonate women, their dances are exactly of the same description as those of the Ghawazee emale dancers... Their general appearance ... is more feminine than masculine: they suffer the hair of the head to grow long, and generally braid it, in the manner of women ... they imitate the women also in applying
kohl Kohl may refer to: *Kohl (cosmetics), an ancient eye cosmetic *Kohl (surname), including a list of people with the surname *Kohl's Kohl's (stylized in all caps) is an American department store retail chain, operated by Kohl's Corporation. ...
and henna to their eyes and hands like women. In the streets, when not engaged in dancing, they often veil their faces; not from shame, but merely to affect the manners of women.

Khawal distinguished themselves from women by wearing a mix of men's and women's clothing. The khawal performed at various functions such as weddings, births,

circumcision Circumcision is a surgical procedure, procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin ...

s, and festivals. In the eighteenth and nineteenth century, they also commonly performed for foreign visitors, variously shocking or delighting them. The khawal were perceived as sexually available; their male audiences found their ambiguity seductive. In modern Egyptian slang, the term is derogatory and refers to a passive gay man, and is considered offensive.

References

{{crossdressing footer Egyptian culture * Transgender in the Middle East Middle Eastern culture Arab culture Belly dance Male erotic dancers Cross-dressing LGBT in Egypt 18th century in LGBT history 19th century in LGBT history Gender systems Third gender

History

See also

References