A New Analysis on Marriage and Divorce in Jahiliyyah (Era of Ignorance)

Family is one of the most important social institutions of humans throughout history and among all nations and tribes. Considering geographical, economic and cultural situations, Jahiliyyah3 had its own specific laws and functions. Family laws and conventions in Jahiliyyah era were the main reason that caused a low status for women in the society.This paper will deal with family type topics, such as different kinds of marriages and divorces, the number of spouses, relationship between wife and husband and also independence of women in making decisions about their marriage and divorce which would explain women’s status in the society. The author believes that a prevalent type of marriage is not accepted as a common type of marriage; and prostitution was considered as a wretched action in society. The paper shows that some girls were independent in making decisions about their marriage. While having several spouses was not considered a social value, the number of spouse was limited in Jahiliyyah era. It’s included in this paper that there were different types of divorces and women were independent in having divorce.