The Marriage Contract In Islamic Law

It is often said that marriage in Islamic law is a civil contract, not a sacrament. If this is so, this means that the marriage contract is largely governed by the same rules as other contracts, such as sale or hire. But at the same time marriage is a profound concern of the Islamic scriptures of Qur’an and Sunna, and thus at the very core of the law and morality of Islam and of the individual, familial, and social life of Muslims. This volume collects papers from many disciplines examining the Muslim marriage contract. Articles cover doctrines as to marriage contracts (e.g., may a wife stipulate monogamy?); historical instances (e.g., legal advice from thirteenth-century Spain); comparisons with Jewish and canon law; contemporary legal and social practice; and projects of activists for women worldwide. Demonstrating a new and powerful focus for comparative and historical inquiries into Islamic law and social practices, this book marks a fresh point of departure for the study of Muslim women.

This book is an analysis of the contract of marriage according to the Islamic Shari'ah and of two modern Islamic states. It examines the prerequisites for marriage, the elements which go to form the contract, the processes involved in making the contract, and the institution of marriage itself. The author expresses the essential Islamic concepts of marriage faithfully whilst making the work as accessible as possible te readers of various backgrounds. It will be of interest to legal professionals, to academics and students of Islamic law, and to those interested in Islam, the Middle East and North Africa. Useful Tables of Laws ans Cases are included.

This book is an analysis of the contract of marriage according to the Islamic Shari'ah and of the way in which this is applied in the Personal Status Laws of two modern Islamic states. It examines the prerequisites for marriage, the elements which go to form the contract, the processes involved in making the contract, and the institution of marriage itself. The author expresses the essential Islamic concepts of marriage faithfully whilst making the work as accessible as possible to readers of various backgrounds. It will be of interest to legal professionals, to academics and students of Islamic Law, and to those interested in Islam, the Middle East and North Africa. Useful Tables of Laws and Cases are included.

Whilst other works exist which examine the Islamic law of personal status, this is the first to set out in a single volume the laws relating to marriage and divorce in the Arab states, both codified and uncodified, in a manner which will enable the reader to look up the provisions of the law in specific areas and, where required, to compare the positions of the laws of different countries.

Taking an inter-disciplinary approach which straddles law, anthropology sociology and women's studies, Mir-Hosseini shows how women can turn even the most patriarchal elements of Islamic law to their advantage and achieve their personal marital aims.