Comparison of rights and limitations of Muslim wives, female slaves and concubines

This chart provides a comparison of the rights and limitations of Muslim wives, female slaves, and concubines in Islamic law. It serves as an educational resource for understanding the historical and cultural context of gender roles in Islamic societies. The chart is not intended to make claims about the moral or ethical status of these relationships, but rather to present a clear and concise overview of the legal rights and limitations that were assigned to each group in accordance with classical Islamic jurisprudence.

Table 1

Sr		Musim Wives	Female slaves	Concubine without child	Umm Walad With child	Authors Refs and notes
1	First contact	Through intermediary for marriage proposal with both sides having right of choice and consent (with parental guidance in some cases)	Capture in conflict zones or buying from trader sans right of choice or consent	Same as Female slaves if one follows Islam properly but non conflict zone non bought consensual concubine may exist in some cases	Same as Concubine without child
	Physical examination	Pre marriage meeting possible without physical examination	Owner gets right of physical verification (being physical) without slaves consent
	Right of contract	Has right to put conditions in contract to be fulfilled by husband during marriage and on divorce	No right of putting conditions in contract other than requesting manumission contract if slave owner wish to agree	Same as female slave	Same as female slave	Same as female slave
	Clothing	Additional levels of clothing or veiling can become mandatory	While for financial support dependent on Owner veiling is not as much mandatory
	Right and mandatory ritual of three times consent for marriage	Right and mandatory ritual of three times consent for marriage available other than child brides	Right and mandatory ritual of three times consent for marriage not available	same as female slave	same as female slave
	Right to meet maternal relatives upon marriage or capture or buying of Non Muslim women
	Sexual intercourse	Wife is expected to consent whenever Husband demands while retaining right to privacy, Consent marriage itself assumed as perpetual consent so no recourse if sex is forced in later married life	Right of consent not mentioned at any level, but an ideal slave is supposed to accept orders of owner whatever those are.	Right of consent not mentioned at any level, but an ideal slave is supposed to accept orders of owner whatever those are.	Right of consent not mentioned at any level, but an ideal slave is supposed to accept orders of owner whatever those are.
	Right to maintenance during relationship	Right of maintenance and fulfilling of marriage contract and right to appeal on non fulfillment	Expected to be treated like family member but no formal rights which can be appealed	Expected to be treated like family member but no formal rights which can be appealed	Expected to be treated like family member but no formal rights which can be appealed
	Right to initiate divorce or manumission from Woman's side
	Right to reentry in the relationship
	Right to child upbringing From previous relationships and on ending of relationship
	Right to maintenance after end of relationship
	Inheritance rights of children
	Social stigmatization issues on divorce and manumissions

See also

• Aurat (word)
• Muslim women
• Islamic feminism
• Marriage in Islam
• Sexual slavery in Islam
• Concubinage in Islam
• manumission in islam
• Divorce in Islam
• Umm walad
• Inheritance in Islam
• Women's rights in Muslim societies
• Forced conversion in Islam
• Intimate parts in Islam
• Avret Esir Pazarları

Bibliography

* Ali, Kecia. Marriage and Slavery in Early Islam. United Kingdom, Harvard University Press, 2010.

*BRILL:

Status Distinctions and Sartorial Difference: Slavery, Sexual Ethics, and the Social Logic of Veiling in Islamic Law

In: Islamic Law and Society

Author: Omar Anchassi1  20 Apr 2021  

* Chapter 14 - Slavery in the Islamic Middle East (c. 600–1000 CE)

from Part IV - The Islamic World Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 September 2021 By Matthew S. Gordon

• Slavery and Sexual Ethics in Islam ~ Kecia Ali
• Hughes, Brady, and Hughes, Sarah Shaver. Women in World History: V. 2: Readings from 1500 to the Present. United Kingdom, Taylor & Francis, 2015.

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