Zenana

Zenana comes from Persian زنانه (zanāna), meaning 'of or pertaining to women,' from zan (woman). It named the women's quarters in South Asian Muslim and Hindu households.

The zenana was a separate wing or building where women lived in purdah (seclusion). British colonizers used the term while often misunderstanding the institution.

Zenana missions were Victorian Christian efforts to reach women in seclusion. The word entered English through colonial encounter with South Asian gender norms.

Now 'zenana' is historical vocabulary, the institution largely dissolved.