More About Arab Marriage Cultures

By Debra Gibson


The fundamental social unit in the world is the family. The wedding always starts any family. Different societies have their cultural means of initiating and conducting marriages. The Arab community is one of the few societies that have been able to maintain their traditional takes on marriages and below is info on maintaining Arab marriage.

Arranged nuptials are still on the practice among the Arabs. Here the man and the woman have no option of choosing the partners of their choice. This task is left to the parents. The sons parents want the best girl for their son and then approach the girls family who will decide whether that man is good for their daughter or not.

After the prospective bride and groom have been identified a marriage contract is drawn with all parties involved. The aim of this marriage contract is to smooth the nuptial in the event of a misunderstanding. The first item of discussion on the contract is the bride price. It is usually for the two families to agree upon. It is a gift of appreciation to the family of the bride.

In this contract also, the roles of the groom are well stipulated. He is always to be the family head and ensure that he provides the needs of his family just like how it has been ever since. On the other hand, the wife is viewed as the caretaker of the house whereby she ensures everything in the house is in order. She has the task of making the husband comfortable at home.

The ceremony then follows after the marriage contract has been drafted. The ceremony is marked by many cultural dances, eating and drinking. The most vital part is where the couples are allowed in a private place with the two mothers of this couple as witnesses, and the groom breaks the hymen. The blood stains are displayed to the public as a show of the brides purity. However, it is no longer a must for the public to see this these days.

In their matrimonial life, an Arab wife is expected to be very submissive. The husbands decision is always final. It is normal that the woman remains indoors at all times and has to ask for permission in case she wants to go somewhere or wants to invite any guests. It relies on the understanding of these couples for the wife to work or not.

The Arabs are guided by the Quran that allows for a man to have up to 4 wives. A man may opt to get another wife if the first wife cannot conceive or if there is a chance of divorce that the couple may wish to avoid. The woman is expected to accept the co-wife though it is not common in many instances.

If a divorce occurs, the husband pays a divorce fee as stipulated in the contract of marriage. In addition to this, the husband has to keep on paying the wifes maintenance fee. Since the Arab culture does not allow women to stay alone, a divorced woman is expected to go and live with her parents or any other male family member while the children remain with the man.




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