A burqa (Arabic pronunciation: [ˈbʊrqʊʕ, ˈbʊrqɑʕ]^a; also transliterated burkha, burka or burqua from Arabic: برقع‎ burquʻ or burqaʻ ) is an enveloping outer garment worn by women in some Islamic traditions to cover their bodies in public places. The burqa is usually understood to be the woman's loose body-covering (Arabic: jilbāb), plus the head-covering (Arabic: ḥijāb, taking the most usual meaning), plus^{[citation needed]} the face-veil (Arabic: niqāb). It was originally used when travelling in the desert where sand was blown everywhere to keep it out of their face.