mashrabiyya

plural mashrabiyyas · alternative mashrabiya · alternative moucharabieh · alternative moucharaby · alternative mouchrabieh · alternative mushrebiyeh

1. architectureA balcony in North Africa enclosed with carved wooden latticework.First known use 19th c.

   1 more example

   The upper floors of the buildings bordering the street leading to the mosque feature mashrabiyya, intricate wooden lattice window screens. […] In contrast to the modest mashrabiyya overlooking the alley, on the side facing the main street, the buildings feature inviting open balconies accessed by louvered doors.

   2009, Deborah Starr, Remembering Cosmopolitan Egypt, Routledge, →ISBN, page 1

2. The latticework itself, also used to craft certain objects.

   And who is it who contemplates those thickly studded doors and windows covered with closely worked mashrabiyya and seriously thinks that some sort of enchantment lies beyond them?

   1988, Robert Irwin, The Mysteries of Algiers, Dedalus, published 1993, page 123