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Cultural Anthropology of Prehistoric Arabs (Case Study: Origin of Female infanticide)
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Azam Farjami   |
| Assistant Professor, Department of Theology, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran. , a.farjami@razi.ac.ir |
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Abstract: (833 Views) |
To better understand the words of the Quran, taking help from modern sciences such as cultural anthropology of prehistoric Arabs opens up new horizons for us in understanding God's intentions. Identifying the causes and origins of Arab female infanticide was possible with the help of the anthropological axes of family, economy, religion, language, government and the nature of the peninsula. The kinship and lineage component of the pre-Islamic Arab “family”, which was patrilineal and tribal, prevented the transmission of lineage and race through daughters. On the other hand, in the function of family reproduction, if daughters did not find a groom of equal rank and status in the tribe, their marriage was a disgrace and humiliation. Therefore, the birth of girls was a disgrace and shame among the Bedouin Arab tribes. The difficult life in the dry desert of Arabia and the type of “economic” activity of livestock farming, hunting and plundering neighboring tribes led to the humiliation and captivity of women and, as a result, the weakness of the warrior Arabs. The characteristic of adhering to the “religion” of worshipping idols and gods who demanded sacrifices such as children turned female infanticide among the Arabs into a religious ritual for the union of the daughters of God with God. Female infanticide was reported more among the Banu Tamim and Quraysh tribes than other tribes. |
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| Keywords: Cultural anthropology, pre-Islamic Arabs, thematic interpretation of the Quran, female infanticide. |
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Full-Text [PDF 477 kb]
(287 Downloads)
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Received: 2024/09/11 | Accepted: 2025/01/1 | Published: 2025/09/20
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