Malala Vocab

Shalwar

A pair of light, loose pants worn by women in South Asia.

Pashtun

A member of the Pashto-speaking people. They inhabit southern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan.

Zia

Pakistani education activist. Fought for educational rights of girls.

Sputter

Making a series of "soft explosive noises," typically when being heated or as a symptom of a fault.

Smal Eid

A day of celebration to mark the end of fasting during Ramadan.

Taliban

A brutal, fundamentalist religious group that held/holds power over most of Afghanistan during the late 1990s.

Pacifist

A person who believes that war and violence are unjustifiable.

Pious

Making a hypocritical display of virtue.

Edict

Typically a formal proclamation or a legally binding court decree.

Exacted

Demand and obtain from someone.

Panjpiri

A small province in Pakistan.

Veranda

A roofed platform along the outside of a house level with the ground floor.

Blasphemy

The act or offense of speaking sacrilegiously about God or sacred things; profane talk.

Pseudonym

A fictitious name, especially one used by an author.

Jihad

The spiritual struggle within oneself against sin.

Fatwa

A ruling on a point of Islamic law given by a recognized authority.

Ramadan

The ninth month of the Muslim year, during which strict fasting is observed from sunrise to sunset.

Mujahideen

Guerrilla fighters in Islamic countries, especially those who are fighting against non-Muslim forces.

Atrocity

An extremely wicked or cruel act, typically one involving physical violence or injury.

Burqa

A long, loose garment covering the whole body from head to feet. Worn in public by many Muslim women.