Stefan's Florilegium

Middle-East-msg

Middle-East-msg - 11/17/99

Information and referances about the period Middle East.

NOTE: See also the files: Arabs-msg, Ethiopia-msg, Islamic-bib, Moors-msg,
Palestine-msg, Sythians-msg, ME-dance-msg, Islamic-Feast-art, ME-feasts-msg.

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NOTICE -

This file is a collection of various messages having a common theme that
I have collected from my reading of the various computer networks. Some
messages date back to 1989, some may be as recent as yesterday.

This file is part of a collection of files called Stefanšs Florilegium.
These files are available on the Internet at: http://www.florilegium.org

I have done a limited amount of editing. Messages having to do with
seperate topics were sometimes split into different files and sometimes
extraneous information was removed. For instance, the message IDs were
removed to save space and remove clutter.

The comments made in these messages are not necessarily my viewpoints. I
make no claims as to the accuracy of the information given by the
individual authors.

Please respect the time and efforts of those who have written these
messages. The copyright status of these messages is unclear at this
time. If information is published from these messages, please give
credit to the orignator(s).

Thank you,
Mark S. Harris AKA: Lord Stefan li Rous
RSVE60@email.sps.mot.com stefan@texas.net
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From: keikos@aol.com (Keiko S)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: middle eastern persona
Date: 3 Jun 1995 18:39:35 -0400

Yes, they did. They had property rights, and custom dictated that a
married woman had a right to total privacy. Even her husband was not
allowed in her section of the living quarters uninvited, and she owned the
cooking utensils and the tent itself. The dress code was in her favor,
too, strange as it may seem. All those layers are insulating and keep you
safe from sunburn, and the fact that your shape is pretty much concealed
means you don't get ogled. Also, if you want to get into mischief, you're
almost completely anonymous in the everyday outdoor wear. Modesty and
propriety were expected of the men as well as the women. She kept her
dowry as her personal property, and if there was a divorce, it went with
her, as well as the bride price the groom paid originally in order to get
married. The husband could take other wives, but only if he could support
them equally and separately. Does that seem liberal enough? Considering
the state of the times and the European codes which were extremely
oppressive of women.

Keiko S (Kadijah)

From: Simone89@aol.com
Date: Wed, 27 Oct 1999 11:09:48 EDT
Subject: Fwd: D. Ayalon, "Eunuchs, Caliphs and Sultans"
To: atlantia@atlantia.sca.org

Here is the updated information on the "Eunuchs" book that several gentles
requested.
Simone

---------
Date: Wed, 27 Oct 1999 10:22:30 -0400
Reply-To: H-NET List on Islamic Lands of the Medieval Period
<H-MIDEAST-MEDIEVAL@H-NET.MSU.EDU>
From: Steven Judd <judd@scsu.ctstateu.edu>
Subject: D. Ayalon, "Eunuchs, Caliphs and Sultans"

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Institute of Asian and African Studies
The Max Schloessinger Memorial Foundation

wishes to announce the publication of

Eunuchs, Caliphs and Sultans:

A study of power relationships

by

David Ayalon

The Magnes Press 1999; 376 pp., including bibliography and index.
(distributed by The Max Schloessinger Memorial Foundation at the Institute
of Asian andAfrican Studies of the Hebrew University.)

The study of the eunuch phenomenon in Islam is still in its infancy in
spite of its unique importance within Muslim civilization until the early
twentieth century. There has existed an aversion to the study of the
subject among scholars in general. For its study within Islam, there was
yet another obstacle: the misunderstandings of the terms by which eunuchs
were designated. The book covers a period from the beginning of Islam
until the beginning of the sixteenth century, and deals mainly with
eunuchs in the major centers of Islam in the East (Umayyads, 'Abbasids,
Seljuks, Zangids, Ayy=FDbis, Mamluks and, to some extent, the Fatimids of
Egypt). It is not a history of the eunuchs in that wide area, but is
rather concerned with the power accumulated by the eunuchs militarily,
socially and even economically (especially as trustees of financial
affairs and property).
The ultimate aim of the study is to bring out the close ties
connecting the harem, the eunuchs and the Mamluks. In all these areas,
the dominant element had been slaves (Islamized and often enfranchised)
who were imported from beyond the frontiers of Islam. The eunuchs were
usually the trainers of the young Mamluk=FDsand quite often their
commanders. The Mamluks themselves, in various and changing forms,
constituted the mainstay of Islam's military might through the greatest part
of its
history. The book also discusses castrations, the eunuchs' prices, and
their so-called sexual life, romances and marriages.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

ORDER FORM

The price of the volume is $38. Postage and handling: $2 for the first
volume and $1 for each additional volume. Members of the association "From
Jahiliyya to Islam" will pay $27 + $2 (direct sales only, not through
booksellers). Cheques payable to the Schloessinger Memorial Foundation
should be sent to the Director of Publications, The Max Schloessinger
Memorial Foundation, Institute of Asian and African Studies, The Hebrew
University, Jerusalem 91905, Israel. Please note that we do not accept
Eurocheques, but personal and institutional cheques are acceptable.
Inquiries: E-mail: msjsai@pluto.mscc.huji.ac.il / fax: +972-2-588-3658

Please send ______ copies of "Eunuchs, Caliphs and Sultans"

Name: _______________________________________________________________

Address: _____________________________________________________________

Steven C. Judd
Assistant Professor of History
Southern Connecticut State University
New Haven, CT 06515
ph: 203/392-5605 fax: 203/392-5670
judd@scsu.ctstateu.edu

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