Polygamy in islam there are people who know very little about islam. With the advent of islam, the islamic law condoned polygamy but a man was limited to only four wives, and specific rules regulated these marriages. Furthermore, the laws of some countries may not recognize polygamy as a valid form of. Practice of polygamy, including legislation department of justice. A few weeks into the trip, and after a rather stressful time in kumasi in. In this sensibility, polygamy is permissible as it can benefit women in need, accommodate rising female populations and ensure the womens rights are being upheld.
Abstract while polygamy is illegal in the united states, forms of it are still practiced either overtly, pursuant to religious traditions, or covertly, by the. Polygamy was well known amongst pagan arab tribes prior to the advent of islam but there was no limitation for the number of wives, like in the cases of some of the prophets mentioned above. The islamic religion allows men to have multiple wives, but how well does that actually play out in todays society. First, greater female involvement in agriculture does not increase polygamy. Polygamy, bigamy and human rights law 11 6085chap finally, it is worth noting that some commentators treat bigamy as the practice of having two wives, and polygamy as the practice of having more than two wives, but this reflects neither. Raudlotul firdaus binti fatah yasin assistant professor the department of quran and sunnah studies kulliyyah of islamic revealed knoweledge international islamic university malaysia kuala lumpur. Some muslims accept polygamy as islamic teaching but others do not. Polygamy and islam polygamy and islam 5 one point greatly in need of clarification is the fact that in the matter of marrying more than one woman, the initiative does not lie solely with any individual man. Polygamy in islam is a favourite topic for the critics of islam. Lessons from islamic polygamy washington and lee law. Polygyny is the most common and accepted form of polygamy, entailing the marriage of a man with several women. Just how common polygamy in islam is isnt an easy question to answer as not all persons register or document polygamous marriages.
Download mormon polygamy pdf ebook mormon polygamy mormon polygamy ebook author by brigham henry roberts mormon polygam. Muthengi polygamy has been a persistent problem in africa for the christian missions which brought the gospel to the contment. Reasons why islam permits polygamy the religion of islam. The elements of social science, or physical, sexual and natural religion, by a doctor of medicine, london, 1880, and every. But there is one thing many seem to know and that is a muslim man can have four wives. Polygamy, in the sense of having more than one wife at the same time, has been one of the chief issues due to which severe criticism has been directed against islam. In addition to that, 46 % respondents agree that polygamy is an islamic issue and at the same time 51% respondents disagree to involve in a polygamous marriage. D department of religious studies olabisi onabanjo university, agoiwoye ogun state, nigeria abstract. In fact, islam is the only religion that limited this ancient and widespread practice. African society was, and to a certain extent is, a polygamous society.
It is just a permission with certain limitation and conditions. Much has been written on this subject as evidenced by the extensive bibliography of this article. Islam allows the practice of polygyny, not necessarily polygamy. It stems from an experience i had in 1960 while on a four month tour looking at various landsettlement projects.
Abstract in europe, polygamy is often portrayed as emblematic of. Polygamy and christianity in africa t a falaye, ph. Muslims in nigeria commonly practice polygamy because islam allows a. Polygamy in islamic law det islamiske trossamfund i. Some of the reasons why polygamy has been allowed in islam, from population statistics to the physical nature of humans. I evaluate how a womencentric interpretation of the quranic treatment of islamic polygamy might help us assess how to. An introduction to polygamy in islam the religion of islam. This website is for people of various faiths who seek to understand islam and muslims. The investigations, which involved a private detective.
Concerns are often raised about the status of women in islamic law. This is a reflection on the treatment of polygamy in africa. It has allowed four wives at a time and has enjoined equality in treatment of all wives. Moreover, nearly half of the respondents 47 % agree that since polygamy is an islamic practice, therefore it. Recently, an overwhelmingly negative view of sharia has developed in the west, in response to reported events, notably in iran and saudi arabia, to terrorist attacks by islamists, and also encouraged by certain western opinion leaders. Islam is a very sensible religion that puts focus on maintaining the family as well as the community. Most countries which permit polygyny are muslimmajority countries. Muslim citizens of pakistan, wherever they may be pakistan 1961a. Jamal badawi examines polygamy in the muslim, jewish and christian traditions. Whereas it is believed erroneously among many people that polygamy implies the art of a man being married to more than one wife, the true definition of polygamy implies the. Marriage and divorce in islam ahmad bello dogarawa, ahmadu bello university, zaria page 1 of 28 1.
It is derived from the religious precepts of islam, particularly the quran and the hadith. The family is the basic unit of an islamic nation or society. Other works in english also enter into great details of private and domestic life. Polygamy multiple wives in islam by khalid yasin duration. As the subtitle suggests it aims at describing the historical background, arguing for instance that early christians were polygamous, and legal practices as used throughout the. The positive role of polygamy in reducing women socio. A historical background stephanie coontz professor of history and family studies the evergreen state college director of research and public education council on contemporary families the new hbo television show, big love, has led many people to contact the council on contemporary families for background on polygamy. Download family law in islam pdf ebook family law in islam family law in islam ebook author by deniz kandiyoti family l. Islam allows polygamy and permits men, under specific circumstances, to have at most four wives at any given time.
This paper serves as a primer in examining five common misrepresentations of islamic. Previous teachings permitted unlimited and unrestricted polygamy. Polygamy and the nature of marriage in islam and the west. The book polygamy in islam answers the critics in a beautiful manner.
Polygamy and its impact on the upbringing of children. This refutes the belief common in nigeria that islam enjoins its adherents to be polygamous and thereby, indirectly, to procreate many children. This is one of just a couple books in english on the both widespread and controversial culture of polygamy in islam. To amplify the context within which polygyny occupies an islamic relevance, one should look to the current debates surrounding polygyny in islam, and more broadly, polygamy, and the implications that emerged from their contextual transition from the jahiliyya to the islamic era. The principle was permitted, but polygamy was limited to four wives.
Polygamy was customary before islam and was not abrogated with the coming of islam. Pdf polygamy 1 and the missionary church william r. Hence, muslims believe that polygamy is allowed in islam. One of the most beautiful laws of islam is in regards to the guardianship and treatment of women. This context is crucial to any discussion of polygamy in islam. Introduction like judaism and christianity, islam does not provide an explicit prohibition of polygamy. Polyandry is another form of polygamy in which women practice having two or more husbands. Often, misrepresentations and misconceptions about how women are treated by shari. Regardless of it not being acceptable for the husband of muhammads daughter, islam allows a man to marry up to four wives at any one time. He knew that polygamy hurt women, yet through his example he permitted it for billions of other muslim men. Khasawneh abdul hakeem yacin hijazi nassmat hassan salman introduction in islam, marriage is defined as a social bond or agreement between two parties. This permission of polygamy is sanctioned by the command of allah as stated in the quran, 2 raudlotul firdaus binti fatah yasin, analysis of polygamy provision under the islamic family. I evaluate how a womencentric interpretation of the quranic treatment of islamic polygamy.
They may have as many as four wives at the same time. Polygamy, or comarriage to multiple wives, is discussed in the quran as a response to a specific social situation. Motivated by a simple model, i use dhs data to test nine hypotheses about the prevalence and decline of african polygamy. In the islamic world, basic rights in family law constitute a major dimension of gender. Islam limits the number of wives allowed to four, and also discourages the practice. Islamic concept of polygamy, its benefits and impact on. The culture of the west regards polygamy as something backward, unacceptable in our day. Unlike judaism, christianity and perhaps other religions as well, islam deals with the issue. For many christians, polygamy is a permitted debauchery, for feminists violation of womens rights and belittling her dignity. An overview of the permissibility of polygamy in islam in islam, men are allowed to take up to four women for wives.
Islamic marriage lays rights and corresponding responsibilities on each spouse. Pdf polygamy remains one of the key topics in various societies. The so called secular and western global domination has maligned the subject to the extent that its impact is felt worldwide. Polygamy and muslim women in contemporary indonesian. Polygamy in islam the rationale and laws behind pdf. One cannot truly love and worship allah swt without agreeing with the rights of the female, and more specifically, the rights of the wives. Islam and polygamy an introduction to the rights and. The positive role of polygamy in reducing women sociorelated problems in malaysia dr. Islamic concept of polygamy, its benefits and impact on society janas khani muhammad zahoorii abstract allah the creator of the whole universe made mats of everything in this universe. Introduction marriage has been ordained by allah as the correct and legal way to produce children and replenish the earth. The choice for us, therefore, is not between monogamy and polygamy, but rather, between the lawful polygamy of islam or the illicit polygamy of nonislamic. Islam is often criticized because of the polygamy that it allows.
And created attraction for men in women and vice versa. Muslim women do not object to their husbands polygamous marriage as they have. The gp, in her 40s from erdington in birmingham, spent more than two years and thousands of pounds gathering evidence against choudhry. The relationship between islam and the west has become a central issue in international relations. There is always the conditionan inescapable onethat whatever the society, the women should outnumber the men. In the context of wartorn society in seventhcentury arabia, one which left many women widowed and children orphaned, the discussion of polygamy was revealed as part of a directive to treat female orphans justly. Nonmuslims decry islam for permitting polygamy and allowing a man to have up to four wives at the same time, thus debasing women and slighting their status in society. Marriage and divorce in islamic and mormon polygamy. What perks and problems come along with having 2, 3, maybe even 4 wives that you. Womens equal rights and islam in sudanese republican thought. It should be remembered that polygamy is not a compulsory thing nor is it advocated.
Jamal badawi was born in egypt where he completed his undergraduate education. Islam and mormonism provided these safeguards by regulating how parties entered polygamy and by allowing women to initiate di vorce. It contains a lot of brief, yet informative articles about different aspects of islam. Polygamy in islam, monogamy, bigamy, multiple wifes. By no means it is a general license to muslims in present times to marry with more than one woman. Polygamy is the practice of marrying multiple spouses.
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