Today in History—November 13: Diversity in Doll Format

As a child, American Ibtihaj Muhammad made tiny hijabs for her Barbies so they would look more like her.

And on this day in 2017, things came full circle: Mattel introduced the first official hijab-wearing Barbie doll, modeled after Ibtihaj.

Amid widespread Islamophobia, the doll sent a simple message: Barbie could be Muslim too.

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Muhammad was born in New Jersey and grew up loving sports, despite the difficulty of playing while wearing a hijab. She took up fencing at age 13 and joined the U.S. Olympic team in 2016.

At the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro that year, Muhammad became the first American Olympian to compete while wearing a hijab. The headscarf she wore at the Olympics is now in the Smithsonian Institution’s collection.

Hijabs, or other forms of headscarves and veils, are commonly worn as a form of women’s modest dress in Islam. But they are not uniformly considered compulsory attire: Interpretations, regulations, and customs vary across the Muslim world. Although sometimes seen as oppressive, the hijab is, for many Muslim women, an expression of religious piety, personal identity, and cultural tradition.

The official Barbie modeled on Muhammad also included a fencing saber and mask. It was part of Mattel’s Shero series of Barbie dolls, honoring trailblazing and inspiring women.

Hijab-wearing Barbies have since appeared on the silver screen. In Greta Gerwig’s 2023 Barbie movie, there are three hijab-wearing women in Barbie’s world.

Mattel also released Diwali Barbies in 2006 and 2024 to celebrate the Hindu festival.

Barbie’s religious inclusivity was a long time coming: Barbie’s inventor, Ruth Handler, was Jewish, but the first Hanukkah-themed Barbie wasn’t released until 2026.