Women in the Middle East

Image obtained from the Oriental Institute, University of Chicago

Ancient Near East

• Cloth for the Caravans - excerpt from Elizabeth Wayland Barber's book, Women´s work - the first 20,000 years. Women, cloth and society in Early Times.
• Diotima: Women and Gender in the Ancient World - coverage focuses mostly on Greeks and Romans, but has some links for ancient Egypt.
• Egyptian Women in Ptolemaic and Roman Egypt - a PhD dissertation by Alexandra A. O'Brien.
• Gender Studies Bibliographies: Ancient Near East
• Women in Ancient Yemen (David A. Warburton) - essay based on archaeological artifacts.
• Women in the Near East:A Select Bibliography of Recent Sources in the Oriental Institute Research Archives (Terry G. Wilfong) - bibliography has subject index and book review index.

Online Exhibits

• Dialogues of the present: contemporary Arab women's art - includes portraits of some artists and an online gallery of artistic works.
• Women and Gender in Ancient Egypt (Terry G. Wilfong) - online version of a Kelsey Museum exhibition. Contains images and descriptions of artifacts.

Resource Guides

• Columbia University's Women in the Middle East page - numerous links, partially arranged by nationality.
• Gender and Women's Studies of Middle East - (UC Berkeley) contains a bibliography and some links.
• Gender Identity and Society in the Middle East - a Yale Library guide to doing research on women in the Middle East. (Note: Access to Historical Abstracts and other electronic databases is restricted by IP address to Yale and other subscribing institutions.)
• Internet Women's History Sourcebook - annotated links covering women in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Islamic world.
• Women in Politics - bibliographic database from the Inter-Parliamentary Union plus related links.
• Women in the Arab World - numerous annotated links to websites, articles, and books.
• Women in the Middle East - annotated links arranged by country.
• the Women and Memory Forum(WMF) - a research group focusing on gender in Arab cultural history.

Databases accessible by subscription (Yale IP-recognition)

General

• ACRL, Women and Islam
• Arab Woman: Potentials and Prospects - reprints of 3 articles originally published in 1980.
• Celebration of Women Writers - browse by author, country or century.
• Elaph
• Islamic Voice: Women in Islam - article on the status of women and men in Islam.
• Al-Jamilah Women Journal
• Naseejoha - directory of lifestye resources for women. Requires Arabic-enabled browser.
• Tunisia Online : Women - description of women's rights in Tunisia.
• Women & Gender in Middle East Studies - an article by Simona Sharoni for the Middle East Report.
• Women in a Qur'anic Society (Lois Lamya al-Faruqi)
• WomenWatch - "The UN Internet Gateway on the Advancement and Empowerment of Women" provides information on conferences and statistics.

Organizations and Centres

• Arab Women's Solidarity Association - includes biographies of notable Arab women, a bibliography organized by subject and a list of relevant books.
• Compaign for Afghan Women and Girls - Feminist Majority Foundation
• International Muslimah Artists Network (IMAN) organization for Muslim women artists. Includes slides from the first annual art exhibit and an online art gallery.
• Kamilat - "non-profit organization that addresses quality-of-life issues faced by Muslim women and their families."
• Karamah: Muslim Women Lawyers for Human Rights - offers a discussion list and a mentoring program for lawyers as well as news and a list of publications by members.
• Muslim Women's League - contains articles and essays on issues regarding Muslim women around the world.
• NISAA - An Arab Women's Web Site - provides contact information for women's centers and organizations in 9 Middle East countries. Includes a bibliography.
• United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) - information on programs and events.

Photos: ©A.Raffaele Ciriello

Afghanistan

• Afghanistan's Girls Fight to Read and Write - New York Times article published March 9, 2000. (Free) Registration required.
• The Plight of the Afghan Woman - links to articles discussing the status of women in Afghanistan. Includes photographs.
• Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) - website of an independent political organization of Afghan women. Site contains news reports, documents, publications, and information on events.
• Stop Gender Apartheid In Afghanistan - contains a fact sheet, press releases, and actions that can be taken by concerned people. Site in PDF format only.
• Women's Alliance for Peace and Human Rights in Afghanistan - nonprofit organization advocating Afghan women's rights. Contains some reports, articles, and photographs.

Iran

• Iran Gohar - monthly newsletter.
• Iranian Women Poets - provides brief background on and one poem for each poet listed on the website.

Palestine

• Three Mothers, Three Daughters: Palestinian Women’s Stories - book by Michael Gorkin and Rafiqa Othman available in full text online.
• Women's Centre for Legal Aid and Counselling - "Jerusalem-based Palestinian NGO working to promote the legal and social status of Palestinian women."