Muslim societies were polygynist (meaning that one man could…
Muslim societies were polygynist (meaning that one man could marry multiple wives) and the Qur’an specified that a man could marry as many as four wives (in practice, many Muslim elites far exceeded that limit). After the first generation or so of Muslims, many societies borrowed a Persian and Eastern custom of secluding the wives of an elite married man into a secure location called a . While the man’s first wife tended to be free of this system, his other wives would remain forever secluded in their women’s quarters. The elite Muslim husband would visit this site for conjugal visits, but aside from his romantic visits, the women would never see another man aside from eunuchs (castrated males) who would guard the women.