The article in question, which quotes this book.
The full quote:
Mark Steyn says in his book America Alone that “there is no evidence that any Muslim woman anywhere ever wore the jilbab before the disco era, when it was taken up by the Muslim Brotherhood and others in the Arab world. It is no more ancient and traditional than platform shoes, bell bottoms, and cheesecloth shirts.”
Is this true? Can we find evidence of earlier use of the jilbab or hijab? I was under the impression that they were much older.
It depends a bit on what you mean and the terms you use. Fashion in the Islamic world, including women's fashion, can and does change. You certainly wouldn't see women wearing this kind of mix of clothing before the 1970s.
But insofar as Steyn is defining "jilbab" as "Muslim garb that covers the entire body except the eyes and hands" (America Alone p. 73) he's quite wrong that it dates from the 70s. We have photographs of women wearing this style of clothing from long before then. Here's a photo of several veiled women from the Egyptian revolution in 1919, for instance.
His claim in the book is unsourced so I don't really know what he's referring to. It might be the revival of the wearing of the hijab among educated women, which did occur in the 1970s and that he's simply mistaken about its overall history. Which would probably be more generous than he deserves given the tone he's using in his writings.
The precise origins of veiling are uncertain. Accounting for changes in fashion as I mentioned, the general principle of Arab women covering everything except hands and eyes is almost certainly pre-Islamic.
Is this true? Can we find evidence of earlier use of the jilbab or hijab?
Yes it is pretty straightforward in fact. The most extensive source of searchable historic photos tends to be the library of congress:
Searches for hijab brings up this from 1936:
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2010651176/
Burka brings up this from between 1865 and 1872 (click the image to enlarge). note the woman on the right:
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2007684106/
Finaly a bit of knowledge of historic terms or modern bigotry would suggest searching for Mohammedan. Which brings up this from between 1900 and 1915. Again click to englage:
The fact that they existed before 1970, doesn't mean they were normal attire. Do a google image search for "street scene kabul 1960s".
Steyn's point is that women are forced to wear this costume today under threat of violence.
