Global Dynamics of Shi’a Marriages

Description

Muslim marriages have been the focus of considerable public debate in Europe and beyond, in Muslim-majority countries as well as in settings where Muslims are a minority. Most academic work has focused on how the majority Sunni Muslims conclude marriages. This volume, in contrast, focuses on Twelver Shi'a Muslims in Iran, Pakistan, Oman, Indonesia, Norway, and the Netherlands. The volume makes an original contribution to understanding the global dynamics of Shi'a marriage practices in a wide range of contexts–not only its geographical spread but also by providing a critical analysis of the socio-economic, religious, ethnic, and political discourses of each context. The book sheds light on new marriage forms presented through a bottom up approach focusing on the lived experiences of Shi'a Muslims negotiating a diverse range of relationships and forms of belonging. This edited volume brings together contributions of authors who engage with the marriages of Twelver Shi'a Muslims in Iran, Pakistan, Oman, Indonesia, Norway, and the Netherlands. With the wide geographical spread, the book offers the first comparative study of the diverse ways in which Shi'a Muslims enter into marriage. YAFA SHANNEIK is a lecturer in Islamic studies at the University of Birmingham in the UK.
ANNELIES MOORS is an anthropologist and professor emerita at the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands.

Additional information