Muslim Polygamy

Polygamy, as defined by social scientists such as John C. Macionis (2003), refers to a marital relationship that involves three or more people. Polygamy takes two distinct forms. The most common form is one in which one male and two or more females are united. The less common form, known as polyandry, is marriage that unites one female and two or more males. This particular version of multiple mates is rare, and is found in rural Tibet where agriculture is difficult and food requirements have led to a marital system in which a single woman literally needs the assistance of two or more male mates to provide for a family (Macionis, 2003).

The more common form of this practice - in which one man acquires two or more wives - is associated with the Mormon faith in the West and Islam across the world. In Islam, a man is permitted to have up to four wives at any point in time - so long as he can provide equally for them and their children (Armstrong, 2004). While the Qur'an, Islam's "Holy Book" containing the revelations of Allah to his Messenger, Mohammed, specifically permits polygamy, in many Islamic societies the practice is being eliminated. Elsewhere, though widely practiced, polygamy is coming under attack as a practice that is difficult to justify ethically, difficult to maintain in the spirit of equality and fairness for all involved parties, and ultimately both financially and emotionally costly (Hourani, 1995; Badawi, 2006). This brief essay wi

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ion for acceptance - even promotion - of the practice was the realization that a large number of women and children were lacking the presence and support of a husband and father. However, over time, many Muslim women have begun to call for an end to legal polygamy - something that has occurred in Turkey already. Islamic feminism has had a number of very real successes. The Economist (2004) stated that in Turkey, polygamy has been abandoned and a number of laws have been instituted that dramatically impact upon the status of women. There are now much more punitive penalties levied against those who commit crimes against women, including rape and so-called honor killings of women who have been deemed to have besmirched the family name, and virginity tests imposed by teachers, relatives, or other authorities. The Turkish experience is not, however, accepted among all Muslim countries, where polygamy is often actively encouraged and is practiced particularly by the wealthy and affluent classes who are able to support more than one wife and her children. Typically, as historian Albert Hourani (1995) has noted, the "place" and "role" of Islamic women has been centered upon the family and upon the fulfillment of mate

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