History of concubinage in the Muslim world information

Concubinage in the Muslim world was the practice of Muslim men entering into intimate relationships without marriage,^[2] with enslaved women,^[3] though in rare, exceptional cases, sometimes with free women.^[4]^[5]^[6] If the concubine gave birth to a child, she attained a higher status known as umm al-walad.^[7]

It was a common practice in the Ancient Near East for the owners of slaves to have intimate relations with individuals considered their property,^[a] and Mediterranean societies, and had persisted among the three major Abrahamic religions, with distinct legal differences, since antiquity.^[8]^[9]^[b] Islamic law has traditionalist and modern interpretations,^[10] and while the former historically allowed men to have sexual relations with their female slaves,^[11]^[12] most modern Muslims and Islamic scholars consider slavery in general and slave-concubinage to be unacceptable practices.^[13]

Concubinage was widely practiced throughout the Umayyad, Abbasid, Mamluk, Ottoman, Timurid and Mughal Empires. The prevalence within royal courts also resulted in many Muslim rulers over the centuries being the children of concubines. The practice of concubinage naturally declined with the abolition of slavery.^[14]

^ "Harem Scene with Mothers and Daughters in Varying Costumes (1997.3.26)". Brooklyn Museum.
^ Peter N. Stearns (ed.). "Concubinage". Encyclopedia of Social History. p. 317. The system in Muslim societies was an arrangement in which a slave woman lived with a man as his wife without being married to him in a civil or normal way.
^ Hain 2017, p. 326: "Concubines in Islamic society, with few exceptions, were slaves. Sex with your own property was not considered to be adultery (zina). Owners purchased the sexuality of the enslaved along with their bodies."
^ Hamid 2017, p. 190: "Timurid sources from the later period list numerous women as royal concubines who were not slaves."
^ Dalton Brock. "Concubines - Islamic Caliphate". In Colleen Boyett; H. Micheal Tarver; Mildred Diane Gleason (eds.). Daily Life of Women: An Encyclopedia from Ancient Times to the Present. ABC-CLIO. p. 70. However, that did not deter wealthy households from also seeking and acquiring freewomen as concubines, although such a practice was argued to be in violation of sharia law.
^ Hamid 2017, p. 193: "The disregard for Muslim legal codes regulating marriage and concubinage did not go uncommented on by contemporaries. In his memoirs, Babur disapproved of the practice of taking free Muslim women as concubines [in the Tamurid dynasty], deeming the relationships to be unlawful."
^ Schacht, J. (2012-04-24), "Umm al-Walad", Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Brill, retrieved 2023-09-17
^ Nirenberg 2014, pp. 42–43.
^ Yagur 2020, pp. 101–102.
^ Mufti 2019, pp. 1–6.
^ Clarence-Smith 2006, p. 22.
^ Brandeis University.
^ Ali 2015a, p. 52: "the vast majority of Muslims do not consider slavery, especially slave concubinage, to be acceptable practices for the modern world"
^ Cortese 2013.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

[1] "Harem Scene with Mothers and Daughters in Varying Costumes (1997.3.26)". Brooklyn Museum.

[2] Peter N. Stearns (ed.). "Concubinage". Encyclopedia of Social History. p. 317. The system in Muslim societies was an arrangement in which a slave woman lived with a man as his wife without being married to him in a civil or normal way.

[3] Hain 2017, p. 326: "Concubines in Islamic society, with few exceptions, were slaves. Sex with your own property was not considered to be adultery (zina). Owners purchased the sexuality of the enslaved along with their bodies."

[4] Hamid 2017, p. 190: "Timurid sources from the later period list numerous women as royal concubines who were not slaves."

[5] Dalton Brock. "Concubines - Islamic Caliphate". In Colleen Boyett; H. Micheal Tarver; Mildred Diane Gleason (eds.). Daily Life of Women: An Encyclopedia from Ancient Times to the Present. ABC-CLIO. p. 70. However, that did not deter wealthy households from also seeking and acquiring freewomen as concubines, although such a practice was argued to be in violation of sharia law.

[6] Hamid 2017, p. 193: "The disregard for Muslim legal codes regulating marriage and concubinage did not go uncommented on by contemporaries. In his memoirs, Babur disapproved of the practice of taking free Muslim women as concubines [in the Tamurid dynasty], deeming the relationships to be unlawful."

[7] Schacht, J. (2012-04-24), "Umm al-Walad", Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition, Brill, retrieved 2023-09-17

[FOOTNOTENirenberg201442–43-9] Nirenberg 2014, pp. 42–43.

[FOOTNOTEYagur2020101–102-10] Yagur 2020, pp. 101–102.

[FOOTNOTEMufti20191–6-12] Mufti 2019, pp. 1–6.

[FOOTNOTEClarence-Smith200622-13] Clarence-Smith 2006, p. 22.

[FOOTNOTE''Brandeis_University''-14] Brandeis University.

[FOOTNOTEAli2015a52-15] Ali 2015a, p. 52: "the vast majority of Muslims do not consider slavery, especially slave concubinage, to be acceptable practices for the modern world"

[FOOTNOTECortese2013-16] Cortese 2013.

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