Women in Islam : the Western experience / Anne Sofie Roald.

The position of women in Islam is the subject of ongoing debates in boththe Muslim world and the West. Women in Islam investigates this debate and illustrates the ways in which Islamic perceptions of women and gender relations tendto undergo significant change in Western Muslim communities. Roald shows how this cultural encounter gives rise to fresh interpretations of Islamic texts, promoting new Islamic understandings in relation to issues of gender.

1. Research on Muslims -- 2. Arab Muslims in Europe -- 3. Defining the area of research -- 4. Theoretical reflections on change and changing processes -- 5. Reflections on sharia -- 6. Perceptions of women -- 7. Gender relations -- 8. Women's political participation in Islam -- 9. Polygyny -- 10. Divorce and child custody -- 11. Female circumcision -- chapter 12. Islamic female dress -- 13. Conclusion.

The position of women in Islam is the subject of ongoing debates in both the Muslim world and the West. Women in Islam investigates this debate and illustrates the ways in which Islamic perceptions of women and gender relations tend to undergo significant change in Western Muslim communities. Roald shows how this cultural encounter gives rise to fresh interpretations of Islamic texts, promoting new Islamic understandings in relation to issues of gender.