Vocabulary in I Am Malala

A traditional Pashtun council of elders that meets to settle disputes, make community decisions, and enforce local customs and laws.

The practice of keeping women secluded from public life and from men outside the family, enforced through physical separation or the wearing of concealing clothing.

An Islamic scholar who is qualified to give rulings on religious law; here used as a title for a cleric who wielded local religious authority.

A religious school where students study the Quran and Islamic law, often the only formal education available in rural areas.

An Islamist militant group that imposed an extreme interpretation of Islamic law by force, banning girls' education, music, and many other activities in the Swat region.

A formal legal ruling or religious decree issued by an Islamic authority, which in this text is used to forbid or condemn specific actions or people.

The traditional unwritten code of honor and conduct followed by Pashtun people, governing hospitality, revenge, protection of guests, and other social obligations.

The Pashtun concept of revenge or retaliation — the obligation to repay a wrong done to one's family or tribe, sometimes across generations.

A Pashtun custom of granting asylum or sanctuary to anyone who seeks refuge, even an enemy; one of the core duties under Pashtunwali.

A Muslim man educated in Islamic theology and law who leads prayers and gives religious instruction; in this text some mullahs allied with the Taliban to enforce strict rules.

A full-body covering worn by some Muslim women in public that includes a mesh screen over the eyes, leaving no part of the body visible.

An armed tribal militia or fighting force raised by a community to defend itself, distinct from the regular army or police.

A religious or moral virtue; in this text it refers to the spiritual merit or righteousness that conservative clerics claimed justified restricting women's freedoms.

Internally Displaced Persons — people forced to flee their homes by conflict or disaster but who remain within their own country rather than crossing an international border.

The process by which Taliban ideology and rule spreads into a region, bringing strict religious laws, bans on education for girls, and violent enforcement of its decrees.

Here refers specifically to the illegal radio broadcasts used by Taliban cleric Fazlullah to spread his extremist sermons and decrees to the population of Swat.

A mass departure of a large number of people from their homeland, used here to describe the huge wave of civilians who fled Swat during the military operation against the Taliban.

General Headquarters — the central command of the Pakistani military, referenced when discussing the army's decisions about operations in Swat.

Intensive Care Unit — a specialized hospital ward for patients with life-threatening conditions who need constant monitoring and advanced medical support.

A surgical procedure in which a cut is made in the throat and a tube inserted so a patient can breathe when normal breathing is blocked or impossible.