The topic of polygamy in Islamic countries is generally perceived by outsiders as something linked to harems and Hollywood-style foreign intrigues. The practice is frequently viewed through sexual connotations and male power versus female powerlessness.
The first academic source of its kind, the purpose of this book is to shed light on the often misunderstood polygamous situation in modern Saudi Arabia. Through a unique series of local interviews with both men and women involved in polygamy, both maritally and professionally, the author invites the reader into the homes and personal lives of the people directly affected. The result is a moving, candid examination of the frame of mind, impulses, incentives, reasons and circumstances that drive individuals towards polygamy, as well as the social, legal, economic and emotional consequences that inevitably follow.
The book also examines the historical origins of Islamic polygamy in Mecca and Medina, as well as the legal situation in Saudi Arabia today. The author argues that a combination of gender differences created through local laws and public policy decisions, the revival of customary tribal practices and the pressures created by the sudden materialism of modern life have all led towards a misapplication of the original Islamic legal essence of the practice, and a re-adaptation of the laws regulating it.
About the author
Dr Maha A. Z. Yamani is an Honorary Fellow at the University of Exeter and a Saudi lawyer. She is a proud mother of four and has direct personal experience of polygamy in Saudi Arabia.
Reviews
"This is an extremely well researched book bringing together various opinions about polygamy in a lucid and articulate way. It gives an insight into the complex and difficult emotional, personal, social, cultural, economic and religious aspects of polygamy.”, Dr Thoraya Obaid, Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund
"This is an exceptional achievement: a balanced account and analysis of a subject fiendishly hard to fathom, combining exceptional access, thoughtful research methods, and an approach which manages to be simultaneously open-minded, critical, and personally engaged.", Professor Gerd Nonneman, Lancaster University
“This is a most valuable book for all interested in Saudi Arabia, marriage in Islam, or issues of Muslim women’s social and legal status. Maha Yamani gives a detailed account of polygamy as practiced in one region of Saudi Arabia, drawing on multiple sources including many first-hand interviews. Avoiding one-sided analyses in favor of a comprehensive review from legal, social, psychological, familial, religious, economic, and historical perspectives, her account still maintains its coherence and nuance. Yamani covers how the broader legal and social setting, particularly women’s relative disempowerment under Saudi laws and decrees, channels women’s choices as to marriage and divorce. Of special value are her revelations on the ways in which relationships between the sexes and within Saudi families have mutated in response to contemporary conditions while still claiming Islamic legal propriety. Powerful examples are the resurgence of polygamy even within disapproving social circles and the generation of novel styles of marriage (misyar, misyaf).”, Professor Frank Vogel, Harvard Law School
