A mashrabiya is a projecting enclosed window or balcony with wooden lattice screens in Arab homes.
Mashrabiyas regulate sunlight, airflow, and privacy. Their small openings allow residents to look outward while limiting views into the interior, and the projecting form helps shade the window wall. Traditional examples were assembled from turned wooden pieces arranged in dense geometric patterns.
The feature became especially prominent in historic cities such as Cairo and Baghdad, though forms and names vary across the Islamic world. A mashrabiya is not the same as a jali: a jali is generally a perforated screen, often carved from stone, while a mashrabiya is typically a projecting architectural enclosure made with latticework. Modern buildings sometimes reinterpret the idea using metal, concrete, or other materials.