From hammam to sauna: spaces of feminine solidarity

Written by Morgan Verner

There is a quiet power in spaces where women can gather, to reconnect with themselves and each other. Traditional Moroccan hammams have long served as sanctuaries for women, offering both physical and emotional renewal. Today, in Britain, women-only saunas and steam rooms can perform a similar function.

For my MSc dissertation, I had the opportunity to interview “R”, a 55 year old Pakistani woman from Bradford who regularly uses a sauna and steam room. Her account of her experiences and the meaning she attributed to the space were strikingly similar to those found in one of the few pieces of research conducted on womens’ experiences of collective bathing: Said Graiouid’s 2006 article ‘Communication and the social production of space: the hammam, the public sphere and Moroccan women’. For these Moroccan women, the hammam represents a space that is ideal for socialising that can generate a sense of feminine solidarity. Though there are clear differences between gender politics in the UK and Morocco, there are many relevant overlaps between R’s account and those of the women in Graiouid’s article. 

A space of relaxation.

Graiouid describes the hammam symbolically as ‘a return to the womb’, a place of protective warmth and comfort. This connection underscores its role as a sanctuary where individuals, especially women, can seek comfort and relaxation through ritualistic cleansing. Time in the hammam is not about hurriedly performing necessary ablutions and returning to daily obligations. Instead, it is about slowing down, living in the moment, and using the space as a retreat from life’s pressures.

As one Moroccan woman poignantly put it: “I lie down, and I forget about the world around me.”

Similarly, R emphasised how the sauna provided opportunities for moments of self-care amid the demands of daily life:

“Women are always on the go, like a robot, full-time working, you’ve got kids to look after, home to look after, you’ve got other relatives, you’ve got so much baggage, you’re not in there anywhere…coming here, it’s something for yourself”

In both cases, these spaces offer more than just physical respite; they provide the psychological freedom to shed the weight of daily duties. Whether lying on the warm tiles of a hammam or soaking up the heat of a cedar sauna, women can set aside the expectations imposed on them by a world that rarely pauses to ask what they need.

A space of female solidarity.

Beyond relaxation, these spaces foster solidarity through shared intimacy. Beneath the layers of everyday life, women’s bodies carry stories that are often hidden — and sometimes suppressed. In the hammam, as Graiouid’s research showed, the visible signs of violence on a fellow bather’s body prompted her to share her experience for the first time, a courageous act of vulnerability in a safe and supportive environment.

R recounted a strikingly similar experience in her sauna. “There was a woman whose leg was swollen and full of abrasions,” she recalled. “She opened up about her circumstances and shared painful experiences.” These confessions, in turn, became moments of mutual support. “I’ve had so many times where women break down crying, and I’m trying to help them. At the same time, I’ve had moments where I came in upset and left feeling better after talking to someone.”

For both R and the women of the hammam, these shared moments transform these spaces into something far more profound than a place for self-care. They become crucibles of solidarity, where deeply personal struggles - from domestic violence to parenting woes - are met with empathy, understanding, and support. As R put it, “Women understand women’s issues...we all just want to support each other.”

Spatial politics.

These spaces of solidarity are shaped by broader spatial politics that dictate who can access public spaces and on what terms. In Moroccan society public spaces like cafes, mosques, and marketplaces are often male-dominated. The rigid gendered division of space ensures that women’s access to public space is controlled and mediated; the hammam, by contrast, allows women an opportunity to interact freely and without the spatial limitations of everyday life. 

In the UK, there are many women who would not think twice about a mixed bathing experience, but for R, when this was the only type she had access to, she found that she ‘couldn’t enjoy it properly; I wasn’t comfortable and relaxed - it just didn’t feel right’.

R emphasised the importance of women-only spaces for other British Asian women she had spoken to. She told me of women who travel from Keighley and Halifax in order to access a female-only gym and sauna. In R’s words, ‘yes, they have a car so they can travel, but imagine if they didn’t’.

She also reflected on the broader spatial politics in the UK: 'People can’t just go everywhere, places have changed, communities have changed. You can’t just talk and open up to someone on the road. Steam and sauna is a meeting place’. 

The hammam and the sauna alike have the capacity to break free from gendered dynamics and become arenas of rejuvenation and reclamation. Amidst the rising steam, the women’s voices, stories and sense of solidarity, rise also.