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A comprehensive collection of links on the topic of

If you know of other web pages not listed here, please tell us about them so that we can add them here.

"Women in Islam", their position, their rights, polygamy, etc... are constantly hot topics on the newsgroups and personal discussions as well as academic research.

End of 1996 I did some major web search on this topic and would like to share the resources collected with all of the readership here.

A) Islamic web sites
B) Critical or positive evaluations of the Islamic teaching and reality
C) Related issues (Polygamy, Female circumcision, etc.)

A) Islamic web sites

Addressing Quality-of-Life Issues Faced by Muslim Women and Their Families (works to counter domestic violence against Muslim women) About Islam and Women Islam and Women's Rights Muslim Women's Homepage Status of Women in Islam same as http://www.safaar.com/w3.html Islam, Marriage, Women Women Rights in Islam Women in Islam (lots of articles) The record set straight: Women in Islam have rights By Noah Ragab Women in Islam [Ahmadiayya] Women in Islam Women in Islam The Muslim Woman, Her role and Her Honor Woman: Last amongst the equals Status of Men And Women (Letters to Tahira) Women's Liberation through Islam or the same at Women's Liberation through Islam Marital Relations and Mutual Rights in Islam The Muslim Family [a book commercial] Women in the Qur'an and the Sunna Islamic Women's rights debated [Rare: a female author to talk about it] Women in Islam another one by a women! Reading list on "Women in Islam" Women in Islam The Muslim Woman Status of Women in Islam Islam from Patriarchy to Feminism Muslim Woman's Home Page The Myth of Oppression: Women in Iran [Does somebody want to tell him to format his paper better? If you want to read it, then look at the source code.] Women Issues Muslim Women's League (MWL) Women in Islam Women in Islam Women Information on the Status of Women in Islam An Ahmadiyya View on Women in Islam The Status of Women, Hijab, and other issues On the Position of Women in Islam and in Islamic Society Why Two Women Witnesses? (an amazing rationalization!) Status of Women in Islam" by Hammuda Abdul-Ati, Ph.D.: [1], [2] Dr. Badawi: Gender Equity in Islam and The Status of Women in Islam Fatawas Regarding Women Muslim women's dress Words to my Muslim Sister Women in Islam Women in Islam and Christianity The Muslim Woman Whom will you choose? Women, Islam & Equality (Islamic, critical, mainly about Iran) and more The Woman's Status in Christianity & Islam La femme en Islam

Then: Just about everywhere we find:

"Women in Islam versus Women in the Judaeo-Christian Tradition":

The ultimate propaganda pamphlet. This was immediately recognized as extremely valuable by many Muslims and it is located on over a dozen pages or so. Only some examples:

[1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], and MANY more locations and ever more sophisticated presented but it doesn't make it all more true. [For good measure, throw in an Islamic aricle about Women in Hinduism]

My response to part 9 that I tried to post on the soc.religion.islam newsgroup was deemed not relevant even though this book's "information" is arguably the one article displayed by the highest number of Islamic web sites. But it can now be seen at this page.

Now, we do observe the great creativity in titles... "Women in Islam" being the absolute most favorite one. :-) ... I started to wonder why I never have seen any article named "Men in Islam". Either this indicates that indeed it is only the women whose problems and place have to be solved, established and explained, because only they have to struggle with such problems. OR (?) do I detect a discrimination against men who do not receive any attention in Islam?

B) Critical or positive evaluations of the Islamic teaching and reality

• Polemics on Veiling Egyptian Women in the Twentieth Century
• From Muhammad to Present: Islamic Law and Women
• Women in Islam
• The Limits on Women's Lives
• Wife Beating in Islam
• The Place of Women in Christianity & Islam
• The Position of Women in Islam
• The Place of Women in Pure Islam

  The above two books seem to be the only books that deal with the many hadiths and rulings of Muslim scholars and take a deeper look at the traditional Islamic view on women. I would be interested to see a careful discussion of this material by Muslims, since this is done by non-Muslim authors. Call it biased against Islam, but what is the answer?

   

• Women in Islam
• Women in Islam: Qur'anic ideals versus Muslim realities
• Women in the Qur'an, Traditions and Interpretations (book commercial) I did not have the opportunity to read this book yet.
• Women, Islam & Equality
• Bengali Studies Conference - Papers [some on women in Islam]
• A Woman's Life in Islam
• Islam and Feminism another book review
• Women and Islam: Review

   

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  C) Related Issues

• Female circumcision
  • Recommended by a Muslim I highly respect:

            Berkey, Jonathan P., "Circumcision circumscribed: female excision
            and cultural accomodation in the Medieval Near East,"
            International Journal of Middle East Studies, 28 (1996), 19-38.
    

  • The Circumcision of Girls (in Islam) (Sunan Abu Dawud, No. 5251)
    Further comments: [A], [B]
  • Islamic Rulings (Islam Q&A): *, *

    e4.3  Circumcision is obligatory (O: for both men and women. 
    For men it consists of removing the prepuce from the penis, 
    and for women, removing the prepuce (Ar. bazr) of the clitoris 
    (n: not the clitoris itself, as some mistakenly assert). 
    (A: Hanbalis hold that circumcision of women is not obligatory
    but sunna, while Hanafis consider it a mere courtesy to the 
    husband.)
    
    Source: Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri
    Reliance of the Traveller
    A Classic Manual of Islamic Sacred Law
    In Arabic with facing English text, commentary 
    and appendices edited and translated by 
    Nuh Ha Mim Keller
    Revised Edition, 1994, amana publications 
    
    
    A: ... comment by Sheikh 'Abd al-Wakil Durubi
    Ar.   Arabic
    n: ... remark by the translator
    O: ... excerpt from the commentary of Sheikh 'Umar Barakat
    

  • Female Genital Mutilation in Africa, Middle East and Far East
  • Female Circumcision: Field Observations in Egypt
  • Circumcision (a Muslim article)
  • Female Circumcision (papers and links): [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7]
  • Right or wrong, some think it is Islamic in some form: *

   

• The Women's Caravan and CyberHarem (General (Middle East to South East) Cultural Women's site
• Sinai Bedouin Women

   

• Polyamory - Religion and Law

   

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  Observation:

  Most of the Islamic pages start off to explain that the image of women in Islam is bad, and this is wrong, and then try to explain why women really have equal status etc. They do clearly have the agenda to remedy a situation that the authors do not like [understandably so]. This doesn't mean from the outset that it is all wrong and biased. But it is good to keep the agenda in mind when reading this. They ARE written to change an image. Not from a "neutral observer's" viewpoint. There are few Islamic web sites [I haven't really found any, but I might not have found all] who seem to display articles on the topic which are NOT done mainly for producing a better image but who try to give an overview of the REALITY [instead of a theoretical explanation of what it should be (according to whom?)] nor do Islamic web sites deal with the traditional view of women as in the Muslim scholarly works. That seems to be done only in non-Muslim publication(s).

  I hope this list is helpful to some at least. It was highly interesting for me to surf around and see what is there.

   

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  Related topics:

• Interfaith marriages between Muslims and non-Muslims

   

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