Folklore authors highlight common jewelry in the past

KUWAIT: Jewelry has always held a significant place in women of every culture throughout the history. These timeless pieces of jewelry have been created in a creative and innovative manner to adorn the human body and to bring satisfaction to its bearer. Kuwaiti women had their share of displaying a unique sense of style when it came to the jewelry they wore in the past. Two Kuwaiti folklore experts: Mohammad Ali Al-Khirs and Mariam Rashid Al-Agrogha shared in their book titled “Old Kuwaiti Household” the most prominent pieces of jewelry that were worn by Kuwaiti women back in the day.

These pieces were locally known as; “Al-Baghma,” “AlKhazzama,” “Hejel” and “Terchiya” to name a few. In their book, the two authors explained in detail the purpose of each piece of ornament. Most prominent piece of jewelry in the Kuwaiti culture is “Al-Baghma.” Al-Baghma was a large necklace elaborately decorated with stones and beads. This necklace held a great significance in terms of its monetary value, it was the most expensive one, and in terms of its social worth, it was a gift given to women on their wedding day. It also decorated women’s necks in special social occasions, especially weddings.

Al-Baghma was a stable piece of jewelry in every Kuwaiti women’s wardrobe, they pointed out. Terchiya, which is basically earrings, was another piece of jewelry that was owned by every Kuwaiti woman. They come in gold or silver and have numerous names. Kuwaiti women also liked to beautify their ankles by wearing Hejil, which universally known as anklet. Some of these ankle bracelets had jiggle bells while others were silent. The author mentioned another item that adorned the nose of Kuwaiti women in the past: Khazama. It was a nose earring that was worn on one side of the nose. They came in difference sizes, they added.

As the noses were adorned so did their wrists, with various bracelets with different local names such as: “Khosour”, a many equally-sized bracelet worn on one arm and they were usually decorated with amber and coral. “Meda’ad” were another type of bracelets which were typically made of gold or silver and were usually a stack of 6 or 12 pieces worn together on one arm. Of course the authors did not forget to mention these timeless piece of jewelry that transcends time and gender: rings. Rings enjoyed quirky names such as “Marami,” “Khunser,” “Bunsur,” and “Rashim” that were only known by the locals. — KUNA