Muslin (/ˈmʌzlɪn/) is a cotton fabric of plain weave.[1] It is made in a wide range of weights from delicate sheers to coarse sheeting.[2] It is commonly believed that it gets its name from the city of Mosul, Iraq.[3][4][5]
Muslin was produced in different regions of the Indian subcontinent; Bengal was the main manufacturing region and the main centers were Sonargaon (near Dhaka), Shantipur and Murshidabad. Muslin was also produced in Malda and Hooghly. The muslin produced at Sonargaon and its surrounding areas was of excellent quality, which is popularly known as Dhaka Muslin. The muslin produced in Shantipur came to be known as Shantipuri Muslin, which was recognized by the East India Company. Muslin was made in Dhaka (Sonargaon) from very fine yarn, which is made from cotton called Phuti karpas; while in Malda, Radhanagar and Burdwan, muslin was made from fine yarn made from nurma or kaur cotton. A minimum of 300-count yarn was used for the muslin, making the muslin as transparent as glass.[citation needed] There were about 28 varieties of muslin, of which jamdani is still widely used. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Mughal Bengal emerged as the foremost muslin exporter in the world, with Dhaka as capital of the worldwide muslin trade.[6][7] In the latter half of the 18th century, muslin weaving ceased in Bengal due to cheap fabrics from England and oppression by the colonialists.
In India in the latter half of the 20th century and in Bangladesh in the second decade of the 21st century, initiatives were taken to revive muslin weaving, and the industry was able to be revived. Dhakai Muslin was recognized as a Geographical Indication (GI) product of Bangladesh in 2020[8] and Banglar Muslin (Bengal Muslin) was recognized as a Geographical Indication (GI) product of the Indian state of West Bengal in 2024.[9] In 2013, Jamdani (a type of muslin) weaving art of Bangladesh included in the list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO under the title Traditional art of Jamdani Weaving.[10]
- ^ muslin (noun), Oxford English Dictionary, Third Edition, March 2003, archived from the original on 10 August 2017, retrieved 17 March 2014
- ^ muslin (noun), Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
- ^ muslin, Encyclopaedia Britannica, archived from the original on 4 May 2015, retrieved 23 June 2022
- ^ The Fairchild Books Dictionary of Textiles, A&C Black, 2013, pp. 404–, ISBN 978-1-60901-535-0, archived from the original on 7 July 2023, retrieved 13 May 2016
- ^ muslin (noun), etymology, Oxford English Dictionary, Third Edition, March 2003, archived from the original on 10 August 2017, retrieved 17 March 2014
- ^ Eaton, Richard Maxwell (1996). The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier, 1204–1760. University of California Press. p. 202. ISBN 978-0-520-20507-9. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2016.
- ^ Karim, Abdul (2012). "Muslin". In Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A. (eds.). Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 5 July 2015. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
- ^ "মঞ্জুরকৃত জিআই পণ্য". dpdt.portal.gov.bd. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ "Intellectual Property India – Journal 182". Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ "Jamdani recognised as intangible cultural heritage by Unesco", The Daily Star, 5 December 2013, archived from the original on 6 December 2013, retrieved 4 December 2013