“We are all born naked and the rest is drag,” American drag icon Rupaul Charles invariably responds when asked to explain the art form’s newfound mainstream appeal, but in the Middle East and North Africa, the opposite is just as true. Throughout the years, the region’s drag tradition has been stripped of its cultural, social, and political substance. The origins of cross-dressing and gender impersonation in the now Arab and Muslim world can be traced back to ancient times, but it wasn’t until the rise of Islamic civilization through expansion and conquests by successive caliphates and empires that drag began to take shape. Under Ottoman rule, gender bending became an art form through köçek dance, where male youths would perform in feminine attire, effecting what is traditionally considered feminine mannerisms. This tradition quickly spread to Egypt and other vassal states, becoming a popular form of entertainment in the 17th and 18th centuries with widespread appeal across the gender and sexual spectra. In the 1920s, male impersonation flourished among Egyptian women as an act of self-expression through fashion. In fact, it is said that legendary Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum once performed…
