EVENT POSTPONED: Mobilizing Marriage: Women and the Law in 1920s Afghanistan THIS EVENT HAS UNFORTUNATELY BEEN POSTPONED.In 1919, Afghanistan declared nominal independence from the British and embarked on a period of rapid legal and social reforms, to which “women’s rights” was central. The period was short-lived, as uprisings in 1928-1929 led to the collapse of the government and its reforms. Yet, despite its limited duration, this period represented an important experiment in Islamic legal reform and an early attempt to bridge Islamic law and a form of statutory law when it came to questions of women’s rights in marriage. It also represented a transnational case — as reformers in Afghanistan drew on examples and debates that were circulating across the transregion of the South/West Asia and North Africa. This talk explores the gendered nature of legal reforms in 1920s Afghanistan, tracing their links to wider and longer debates about how Islam fit into the so-called modern state. What are the sources for writing transnational legal histories across colonial and postcolonial contexts? How do these debates speak to the present and questions of gender and Islamic law in contemporary Afghanistan? Dr Marya HannunMarya Hannun is a post-doctoral researcher at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, where she serves as the Managing Editor with the Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP). Her current research project is a transregional history of the Afghan women's movement and gendered reform in the early 20th Century. Mar 05 2025 16.00 - 17.30 EVENT POSTPONED: Mobilizing Marriage: Women and the Law in 1920s Afghanistan A special public seminar delivered by Dr Marya Hannun (University of Exeter). Free to attend but registration necessary via the link below. Teaching Room 3 School of Law Old College University of Edinburgh EH8 9YL Find Venue
EVENT POSTPONED: Mobilizing Marriage: Women and the Law in 1920s Afghanistan THIS EVENT HAS UNFORTUNATELY BEEN POSTPONED.In 1919, Afghanistan declared nominal independence from the British and embarked on a period of rapid legal and social reforms, to which “women’s rights” was central. The period was short-lived, as uprisings in 1928-1929 led to the collapse of the government and its reforms. Yet, despite its limited duration, this period represented an important experiment in Islamic legal reform and an early attempt to bridge Islamic law and a form of statutory law when it came to questions of women’s rights in marriage. It also represented a transnational case — as reformers in Afghanistan drew on examples and debates that were circulating across the transregion of the South/West Asia and North Africa. This talk explores the gendered nature of legal reforms in 1920s Afghanistan, tracing their links to wider and longer debates about how Islam fit into the so-called modern state. What are the sources for writing transnational legal histories across colonial and postcolonial contexts? How do these debates speak to the present and questions of gender and Islamic law in contemporary Afghanistan? Dr Marya HannunMarya Hannun is a post-doctoral researcher at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, where she serves as the Managing Editor with the Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP). Her current research project is a transregional history of the Afghan women's movement and gendered reform in the early 20th Century. Mar 05 2025 16.00 - 17.30 EVENT POSTPONED: Mobilizing Marriage: Women and the Law in 1920s Afghanistan A special public seminar delivered by Dr Marya Hannun (University of Exeter). Free to attend but registration necessary via the link below. Teaching Room 3 School of Law Old College University of Edinburgh EH8 9YL Find Venue
Mar 05 2025 16.00 - 17.30 EVENT POSTPONED: Mobilizing Marriage: Women and the Law in 1920s Afghanistan A special public seminar delivered by Dr Marya Hannun (University of Exeter). Free to attend but registration necessary via the link below.
