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In Islam, a ''mahram'' is a family member with whom marriage would be considered permanently unlawful (''
haram ''Haram'' (; ar, حَرَام, , ) is an Arabic term meaning 'Forbidden'. This may refer to either something sacred to which access is not allowed to the people who are not in a state of purity or who are not initiated into the sacred knowle ...
''). One's spouse is also a mahram. A woman does not need to wear
hijab In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...
around her mahram, and an adult male mahram may escort a woman on a journey, although an escort may not be obligatory.


Overview


People with whom marriage is prohibited

* permanent or blood ''mahrams'' include: ** all direct ancestors ** all direct descendants ** siblings ** siblings of parents, grandparents and further antecedents ** children and further descendants of siblings *
in-law In law and in cultural anthropology, affinity is the kinship relationship created or that exists between two people as a result of someone's marriage. It is the relationship which each party to a marriage has to the relations of the other part ...
''mahrams'' with whom one becomes ''mahram'' by marrying someone: ** all the ancestors of one's spouse ** all the descendants of one's spouse ** all who marry a direct ancestor ** all who marry a direct descendant (Note: A woman may marry her stepfather only if the stepfather has not consummated his marriage to her mother.) * ''Rada'' or "milk-suckling ''mahrams''" with whom one becomes ''mahram'' because of being nursed by the same woman: ** foster mother ** foster sibling When a woman acts as a
wetnurse A wet nurse is a woman who breastfeeds and cares for another's child. Wet nurses are employed if the mother dies, or if she is unable or chooses not to nurse the child herself. Wet-nursed children may be known as "milk-siblings", and in some cu ...
(that is she breast feeds an infant that is not her own child for a certain amount of time under certain conditions), she becomes the child's ''rada'' mother. In English these can be referred to as milk brother, milk-mother, and so on. For a man, ''mahram'' women include his mother, grandmother, daughter, granddaughter, sister, aunt, grandaunt, niece, grandniece, his father's wife, his wife's daughter (step-daughter), his daughter-in-law (if previously married to his biological son. She's not ''mahram'' if she was married to his adopted son), his mother-in-law, his ''rada'' mother and ''rada'' sister. As the Prophet Mohamed said, "What is forbidden by reason of kinship is forbidden by reason of suckling." These are considered ''mahram'' because they are mentioned in the
Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
(An-Nisa 22–23): All of the man's female relatives mentioned in these two verses are considered his ''maharim'', because it is unlawful (''haram'') for him to marry them, except the wife's sister, whom he can marry if he divorces her sister, or if his wife dies. The notion of ''mahram'' is reciprocal. All other relatives are considered non-''maharim''.


Legal escorts of women during journey

A woman may be legally escorted during a journey by her husband, or by any sane, adult male ''mahram'' by blood, although an escort may not be required, including: *her father, grandfather or other male ancestor *her son, grandson or other male descendant *her brother *her uncle, great uncle, or uncle from a previous generation *the son, grandson, or other descendant of her sibling


Rules


Mahram

A Muslim woman's ''mahrams'' form the group of allowable escorts when she travels. For a spouse, being ''mahram'' is a permanent condition. That means, for example, that a man will remain ''mahram'' to his ex-mother-in-law after divorcing her daughter.


See also

*
Baligh In Islamic legal terminology, bāligh ( ar, بالغ, adult) or mukallāf ( ar, مكلف, responsible) or muhallāq ( ar, محلاق, tendril, mentally matured) or murāhiq (, adolescent) or muhtalim ( ar, محتلم, pubescent) refers to so ...
*
Cousin marriage A cousin marriage is a marriage where the spouses are cousins (i.e. people with common grandparents or people who share other fairly recent ancestors). The practice was common in earlier times, and continues to be common in some societies toda ...
*
Dayyuth Dayouth or Dayyuth ( ar, دَيُّوث) is an Arabic-derived term for a person who is apathetic or permissive with regards to unchaste behaviour by female relatives or a spouse. More specifically, dayouth describes a man who lacks the demeanor ...
*
Hijab In modern usage, hijab ( ar, حجاب, translit=ḥijāb, ) generally refers to headcoverings worn by Muslim women. Many Muslims believe it is obligatory for every female Muslim who has reached the age of puberty to wear a head covering. While ...
*
Ḥ-R-M '' Ḥ- R- M'' (Modern he, ח–ר–מ; ar, ح–ر–م) is the triconsonantal root of many Semitic words, and many of those words are used as names. The basic meaning expressed by the root translates as "forbidden". Arabic Names *'' Al-Masj ...
*
Islamic sexual jurisprudence Views and laws about sexuality in Islam are largely predicated on the Quran, the sayings of Muhammad (''hadith'') and the rulings of religious leaders (''fatwa'') confining sexual activity to marital relationships between men and women. Islamic ...
*
Islamic marital jurisprudence In Islamic law (''sharia''), marriage (''nikāḥ'' نکاح) is a legal and social contract between two individuals. Marriage is an act of Islam and is strongly recommended.http://www.onislam.net/english/ask-about-islam/ethics-and-values/muslim-c ...
*
Chaperone (social) A chaperone (also spelled chaperon) in its original social usage was a person who for propriety's sake accompanied an unmarried girl in public; usually she was an older married woman, and most commonly the girl's own mother. In modern social u ...
- an adult female escort for unmarried girls in Western European tradition, ''dueña'' in Spanish (anglicised ''duenna'').


References


Abdul-Rahman, Muhammad Saed, ''Islam: Questions and Answers - Jurisprudence and Islamic Rulings''
London: MSA Publication Limited, 2007, pp. 22–23. *Packard, Gwen K., ''Coping in an Interfaith Family'', New York: Rosen Publishing Group, 1993, p. 11. {{Incest Arabic words and phrases in Sharia Human population genetics Marriage in Islam Kinship and descent Modesty in Islam Sex segregation and Islam Islamic terminology