Gender, Religion and Change in the Middle East Two Hundred Years of History

Whether religion reinforces female oppression or provides opportunities for women, or a combination of both, depends on time, place and circumstance. This book seeks to contextualize women's roles within their religious traditions rather than through the lens of a dominant culture. This book provides a comprehensive survey of women in Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities in the Middle East during the last two centuries. The authors consider women's defined roles within these religious communities, and explore how women themselves develop and apply their own strategies within religious societies. A wide-ranging account, the essays draw on case studies from Iran, Turkey, Afghanistan, Israel, Jordan, Egypt, Palestine and Lebanon since 1800.

Inger Marie Okkenhaug is Lecturer at the Department of History, University of Bergen, Norway.

Ingvild Flaskerud is Lecturer at the Department of Religious Studies, University of Troms°, Norway.