The women's quarters in a Muslim household, traditionally forbidden to men except for close relatives. It can also refer to the women of a household collectively, or more broadly to any group of women associated with one man.
From Arabic حَرَم (ḥaram), meaning 'forbidden' or 'sacred', derived from the root ح-ر-م (ḥ-r-m) related to sanctity and prohibition. The word entered English in the 17th century through Turkish and French, as European travelers encountered Ottoman palace culture. The Arabic term emphasizes the sacred, protected nature of these spaces rather than the sensual connotations often associated with the English word.
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