1. Etymology

It shares its root with the Arabic verb meaning 'to sit,' جلس julush (cf. British English 'sitting room' and 'seat').

2. History

In pre-Islamic Arabia, Majlis was a tribal council in which the male members participated in making decisions of common interest.^[1] The council was presided over by the chief (Sheikh)^[2] During the period of the Rashidun Caliphate majlis al-shura was formed. The majlis during the Rashidun was to elect a new caliph. Al-Mawardi has written that members of the majlis should satisfy three conditions: they must be just, they must have enough knowledge to distinguish a good caliph from a bad one, and must have sufficient wisdom and judgment to select the best caliph.

3. Residential

Majlis

The term majlis is also used to refer to a private place where guests, usually male, are received and entertained.^[3] Frequently, the room has cushions placed around the walls where the visitors sit, either with the cushions placed directly on the floor or upon a raised shelf.

In many Arab homes, the majlis is the meeting room or front parlor used to entertain visitors. In Saudi Arabia, the decoration of the majlis in the home is often the responsibility of the women of the house, who either decorate the area themselves or barter with other women to do it for them. In the Asir Province and in neighboring parts of Yemen, geometric designs and bright colors are used in "majlis painting", or nagash painting. The term majlis is used to refer to a private place where house guests and friends are received and entertained. Because hospitality is taken seriously, many families take pride in making their guests comfortable when visiting.^[3]

Sometimes public waiting rooms are also called a majlis, since this is an area where people meet and visit. Here the traditional "majlis painting or nagash painting has been added to the interior design of the room. The provincial airport in Abha has recently been designed to reflect the cultural heritage of the region, an airport official said: “Abha is the first city in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to have its airport decorated in a local-heritage style,” said Provincial Airport Director Abdul Aziz Abu Harba. “The seating arrangement at the airport lounge has been in the form of a traditional majlis and the walls are painted in various colors reflecting the natural beauty of Asir.”^[4]

In the Najd province of Saudi Arabia, wall coverings include stars shapes and other geometric designs carved into the wall covering itself. Courtyards and upper pillared porticoes are principal features of the best Nadjdi architecture, in addition to the fine incised plaster wood (jiss) and painted window shutters, which decorate the reception rooms. Good examples of plasterwork can often be seen in the gaping ruins of torn-down buildings- the effect is light, delicate and airy. It is usually around the majlis, around the coffee hearth and along the walls above where guests sat on rugs, against cushions. Doughty wondered if this "parquetting of jis", this "gypsum fretwork... all adorning and unenclosed" originated from India . However, the Najd fretwork seems very different from that seen in the Eastern Province and Oman, which are linked to Indian traditions, and rather resembles the motifs and patterns found in ancient Mesopotamia. The rosette, the star, the triangle and the stepped pinnacle pattern of dadoes are all ancient patterns, and can be found all over the Middle East of antiquity. Qassim seems to be the home of this art, and there it is normally worked in hard white plaster (though what you see is usually begrimed by the smoke of the coffee hearth). In Riyadh, examples can be seen in unadorned clay."^[5]

4. Legislatures

• Azerbaijan — the National Assembly is known as Milli Məclis
• Circassians Majlis — The Unity between the coastal Adyghe Tribes in Circassia
• Crimea (Ukraine -aligned) — Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People
• Cyprus — Temsilciler Meclisi, Republic of Cyprus' House of Representatives
  • Northern Cyprus — Cumhuriyet Meclisi, Northern Cyprus' Assembly of the Republic
• Indonesia — The People's Consultative Assembly of Indonesia s Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat (MPR)
• Iran — The Islamic Consultative Assembly is known as Majles-e Showrā-ye Eslāmī
• Jordan — The Parliament of Jordan is known in Arabic as Majlis Al-Umma, and its lower House of Representatives is also known as Majlis Al-Nuwaab
• Kazakhstan — Majilis
• Kuwait — The National Assembly of Kuwait is known in Arabic as Majlis-al-Umma
• Maldives — Majlis of the Maldives
• Oman — Majlis of Oman
• Pakistan — The Parliament of Pakistan is officially known as the Majlis-e-Shoora
• Saudi Arabia — Majlis of Saudi Arabia
• Tajikistan - the bicameral Supreme Assembly is known as the Majlisi Oli, the upper house National Assembly being known as the Majlis-i Milli, while the Assembly of Representatives, the lower house, is known as the Majlis-is Namoyandagon
• Turkey — the Grand National Assembly is known as Türkiye Büyük Millet Meclisi
• Turkmenistan — the Assembly of Turkmenistan is known as the Türkmenistanyň mejlisi
• Uzbekistan — The Oliy Majlis
• U.A.E -- Majlis of U.A.E

5. Other Uses

• Majlis is also the name of an organisation in Mumbai, India which works for women's rights.^[6]
• Majlis is also used to mean a salon (musical or scientific), especially during the Abbasid era, e.g., for discussing the recent translations from Greek.^[7] This sense is sometimes now distinguished as an "adabi majlis" ("artistic majlis"). See Dewaniya
• The Majlis is the title of a Muslim periodical published in South Africa.^[8]
• MAJLIS is used as the name of the annual conference held by the Middle East Oracle User Group (MEOUG)
• All India Majlis E Ittehadul Muslimeen is a political party in India that works for the upliftment of Muslims, Dalit Hindus and other minority communities in India.