| 1. Title: Sex and society in Islam: birth control before the nineteenth century Author: Musallam BF Source: New York, N.Y./Cambridge, England, Cambridge University Press, 1983. ix, 176 p. (In series: Cambridge Studies in Islamic Civilization) Abstract: This monograph presents evidence from Medieval Arabic jurisprudence, medical texts, erotica, and literature which establishes that contraception was widely used in premodern Middle Eastern populations. Contraception was sanctioned by Islamic religious law from the 1st Islamic century, and there was general knowledge, discussion, and dissemination of effective birth control techniques through a variety of media. Arguments advanced for birth control practice included the economic hardships of a large number of dependents, avoidance of fathering children who would be slaves, protection of young or sickly women from the dangers of childbirth, the need to safeguard property, and the importance of guaranteeing the education of existing children. Coitus interruptus and precoital intravaginal suppositories and tampons were the most widely used birth control methods. Abortion was generally tolerated if it took place before ensoulment. Recognition of the personal, social, economic, and medical indications for contraception was made possible by the religious sanction of birth control and the open attitudes toward sexuality. The evidence contained in the various categories of literature from Medieval Arabic society refutes the belief that birth control is strictly an aspect of modernity. Language: English Keywords: ASIA | AFRICA, NORTH | AFRICA | AFRICA, SUB SAHARAN | ISLAM | HISTORICAL DEMOGRAPHY | FAMILY PLANNING | RELIGION | CONTRACEPTION | WOMEN'S STATUS | TRADITIONAL MEDICINE | HISTORICAL REVIEW | RELIGIOUS ASPECTS | Developing Countries | Demography | Social Sciences | Socioeconomic Factors | Economic Factors | Medicine | Health Services | Delivery of Health Care | Health Document Number: 020517 |
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