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Move over(1) Barbie, veiled is beautiful. The physical ideal of Muslim girls increasingly includes the hijab(2), as evidenced by toy shops' best-selling doll "Fulla" and the string of showbiz(3) stars opting(4) to cover up.
The dark-eyed and olive-skinned(5) Fulla has replaced her American rival's skimpy(6) skirts with more modest "outdoor fashion" and Barbie's luxuriant(7) blonde mane(8) with an Islamic veil.
"Fulla sells better because it is closer to our Arab values: she never reveals a leg or an arm," says Tarek Mohammed, chief salesman at a Toys R Us branch in Mohandessin.
The Arab answer to Barbie has been selling like hot cakes for Eid Al-Adha(9), not least because it is cheaper than its American rival, although both are made in China.
Fulla is not the first Islamic doll but none of her predecessors(10) have taken the regional market by storm like she has, selling some two million since its creation two years ago by the Emirates-based NewBoy Design Studio.
Saudi Arabia's religious police had then just banned "Barbie the Jewish doll", whose "revealing clothes and shameful postures, accessories and tools are a symbol of decadence(11) to the perverted(12) West."
Fulla, named after an Arabic word for a type of jasmine(13), was initially sold in the Gulf in a similar pink box but in more modest attire(14), such as the traditional abaya(15) overdress and complete with a little prayer mat.
"Her wardrobe(16) had to be widened to adapt to the Egyptian market. In other words, she became more modern," said Ahmed, a sales clerk at City Stars, Cairo's largest shopping mall.
Fulla can now dress her perfect albeit slightly less busty(17) figure with tight t-shirts and jeans and wear the same colourful head scarves donned by most young Egyptian women today.
Fulla also has two female friends, Yasmine and Nada, with lighter hair.
But she is still single as no plans appear to be afoot for(18) marketing an Islamic equivalent of Ken, as giving her a boyfriend would be seen inappropriate in conservative Muslim cultures.
芭比靠边站，穿着保守才是美。 穆斯林女孩的完美装束一定要有一条伊斯兰头巾，不信的话可以看看玩具店中畅销的“芙拉”娃娃和成串穿着严实的娱乐秀明星们。
黑眼睛、橄榄色皮肤、穿着端庄“户外装”、披着伊斯兰罩袍的芙拉已经完全击败了身穿超短裙、顶着一头金发的美国对手。
Toys R Us穆罕黛森分店的主管塔莱克·穆罕默德说：“芙拉卖得好是因为她更符合我们阿拉伯人的审美：她从不露出腿或者胳膊。”
芙拉在阿拉伯的热销就像宰牲节的热蛋糕，不仅是因为她比她的美国对手要便宜，虽然她们都产自中国。
芙拉并非第一个伊斯兰娃娃，但却是第一个如此轰动当地市场的伊斯兰娃娃。自从两年前由阿酋新男孩设计室设计出来后到现在，销量大约已经有二百万了。
沙特阿拉伯的宗教警察当时封杀了“犹太巴比娃娃”，说它那“暴露的衣服、丢脸的姿势、装饰物和小零件是邪恶西方堕落的象征。”
芙拉是阿拉伯语，是一种茉莉的名字。芙拉最初在海湾地区出售，包装是和现在相似的粉色盒子，娃娃的衣服更加保守，例如传统的阿拉伯长袍，还附赠一条祈祷跪毯。
开罗最大商场都市之星的销售人员说：“为了适应埃及市场，娃娃的衣柜也必须拓宽。”
现在，芙拉可以穿着端庄了，只是当她穿上紧身体恤和牛仔裤时显得没有那么丰满。她还可以戴上当今多数埃及年轻女子喜欢的彩色头巾。
芙拉还有两个女伴，雅斯敏和娜达，她们的发色稍浅。
但是她仍然单身，并没有计划推出伊斯兰版的肯，因为拥有男朋友在保守的穆斯林文化中还是很不妥的。
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