Gender+in+Ancient+Egyptian+society

 "....an equality which had existed for millennia was ended by Christianity.." (Fletcher 2009) **
 * A Woman's Space in Ancient Egypt



**Introduction**

The subject of gender relations and the status of women, has been discussed and/or debated countless times around the world for many years. Some argue that we in the West have cornered the market on gender equality but what many do not know is how the ancient society of Egypt may have been somewhat of a pioneer in this regard. Ancient Egyptian women had rights to inheritance and control of her own affairs without having to fight for them, unlike in many modern day societies. However, like many societies around the world, Egyptian society was structured differently during different periods in history. When appropriate, I will point out specific time periods in Ancient Egyptian history that distinguished themselves from others as it relates to gender. Additionally, I will discuss marriage and family life life within Ancient Egypt.   Women were very much respected in Ancient Egyptian culture; they were almost equal to men; particularly when comparing the gender relations of Ancient Egypt to other civilizations during a similar time. This belief was unlike any other ancient civilization (Ruiz 2001). Decent was matrilineal. As Baber comments: "The position of the wife in ancient Egypt was remarkably high. Most writers state that the wife was on equality with the husband, and was always treated with the greatest consideration. This may have been due partly to the fact that property descended through the woman and courtesy paid big dividends, and partly to the fact that often husband and wife were also brother and sister, and had been reared together. But whatever the cause, the Egyptian wife held a position of honor and was respected by husband and children alike." (Baber 1935: 409 )
 * General status of women in Ancient Egypt **

Another anthropological theory surrounding the status of women is, according to Wermuth and Monges, "Where the environment is favorable, and in the absence of a bureaucratized and centralized state, greater female power is likely. This was the case in the pre-Pharaonic Nile River valley of ancient Egypt. Favorable agricultural conditions and a strategic location gave rise to a highly sophisticated culture with elaborate trade, political, and military relations (Wermuth and Monges 2002: 3)." Due to the hydraulic management of the Nile, the social elite came into being and people were then free to pursue activities that were not subsistence related (Wermuth and Monges 2002: 3). Additionally, according to Egyptologist Robert G Morkot, the Dynastic period was a time whene the variety of roles women could have in society were limited (Morkot 2005:172).

Regarding the connection between the role of women and the religious ideology of the Ancient Egyptians, there were both male and female deities. One of the most famous female ones is Ma'at. "Showing disrespect to a woman, under the laws of Ma'at meant going against the basis of Egyptian beliefs and ultimate existence" (Ruiz 2001:18). Ma'at was a 'concept and a deity" personifying the natural order of the universe. Women of all classes/statuses were able to participate in the realm of the religious role (Lesko 1991:3).
 * Religious Belief's and the Female Connection **

 **Module 11 (a revised former Module 10) Did women pursue careers during Ancient Egyptian times?**

"Whilst the concept of a career choice for women is a relatively modern phenomenon, the situation in ancient Egypt was rather different. For some three thousand years the women who lived on the banks of the Nile enjoyed a form of equality which has rarely been equaled" (Fletcher 2005).

Like it is quoted above, the phrase 'pursuing a career' like we know it in modern times is largely an exaggeration BUT all women were full participants in Ancient Egyptian society. Women "shouldered the responsibilities of daily life right along with the men (Dersin 1996:48)." Women were not forbidden to work, perform business transactions or manage and sell land/private property. They have been known to "supplement their husband's wages" (Morkot 2005:173) using surplus produce to sell. There has been a great debate regarding the literacy or lack thereof of women. There has been "archives of documents from all periods that show women deputizing for absent husbands, receiving and replying to letters. (Morkot 2005:173)." That could have been in conjunction with literate sons taking the dictation. However, according to Dr Joann Fletcher, it was common for women to be literate "by Graeco-Roman times (Fletcher 2005)." Additionally, according to Egyptologist Robert G.Morkot, "It is quite possible that women who performed major religious duties (such as the royal women and God's wife) may have needed to be able to read. (Morkot 2005: 173)." All women of all classes were wives and mother's "first and foremost (Fletcher 2005)". Outside of the job in the home, a common profession for women was the priesthood "serving male and female deities (Fletcher 2005)." Some of the positions open to women included weaver, midwife, advisor to the pharaoh, baker or a high priestess (highly respected position) (Ruiz 2001:18). Other highly respected positions such as those of authority were held by women of or tied to the elite classes during the Old Kingdom (Lesko 1991: 3). Regarding the profession of weaving, it was very valued and was second only in importance to farming. In fact, although women did all the weaving prior to the New Kingdom Period (1560-1070 B.C.), men were heavily involved in that after that period (Dersin 1996:48).Textiles was an industry where women also played a prominent role. "Many tomb scenes show women spinning and weaving (Morkot 2005:173)". In addition, Barbara S.Lesko says, "Rare, though extant, are scenes of a woman commanding a boat or buying and selling goods in the marketplace (Lesko 1991: 3)."





Nykauinpu figures: woman grinding grain //(left)// and winnower //(right)//. []

**"Female performers danced at religious festivals and temple rituals, often to the music and chants of other women (Dersin 49)."** <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">[|www.crystalinks.com/egyptdancers.gif] <span style="color: green; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">



[|historylink101.net/ egypt_1/a-women_in_egypt.htm]

=<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16pt; text-align: center;">Marriage and family life =

‘Little does he know that I long to embrace him and for him to send word to my mother.”-Ancient Egyptian love song (Dersin 50) <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: center;">** Marriage in Ancient Egypt ** <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">For all classes, marriage in Ancient Egypt “was held in the utmost respect..." (Ruiz 2001:21). Romantic love was alive and well during these times (Dersin 50). People were expected to treat one another well. All of society viewed the sanctity of marriage as a personal requirement and most importantly a time to bear many children. Children of both sexes were loved and desired (Ruiz 2001). There has been no evidence of infanticide. Based upon the art from Ancient Egypt, men and women were depicted being physically affectionate and loving to one another. (Dersin 1996:51) Regarding, marriage ceremonies, there has been no evidence that they occurred. Additionally, the state did not enter into the marriage such as in the form of a contract so the marriages were not “on the books”. However, they did have a large party where people brought gifts to the couple (Brewer 2009). Additionally, if a couple started living together, society understood them to be married. “Marriage was purely a social arrangement that regulated property” says Brewer. According to the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago, “The ancient Egyptian terms for marriage (//meni//, "to moor [a boat]," and //grg pr//, "to found a house") convey the sense that the arrangement was about property (Brewer 2009)”.

Terracotta; Fayum, Egypt; Roman period (1st-2nd c. CE); 22.5 cm h., 7.5 cm w.; Source: D. L. Askren, 1925; Kelsey Museum 4960** [|**http://www.umich.edu/~kelseydb/Exhibits/WomenandGender/title.html**]
 * "The god Bes, depicted at right, is often represented on beds and protects women in childbirth, associating him with women's sexuality and fertility."

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16pt; text-align: center;">**Differences between the classes** <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;"> Marriage customs and practices were different for varying classes. People married within their social class. Ancient Egypt has been known for marriages to occur between cousins in addition between brothers and sisters. Those arrangements only occurred within royalty to “preserve the bloodline" (Ruiz 2001:21). However, many couples would call one another by the terms brother and sister as a term of endearment. That practice probably created the misconception that brother/sister marriages occurred frequently, which, like it was stated above did not. A pharaoh may have had a head wife and several “sister wives” (Ruiz 2001:22). In the royal class, there were many concubines used to produce male heirs in addition to strengthening political ties and of course-entertainment (Ruiz 2001:22)

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16pt; text-align: center;">** Choosing a partner for marriage ** <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; text-align: left;">The choice of a life partner in Ancient Egypt tended to fall to the individual in many cases. However, it was common for them to be arranged by the future groom and the future bride’s father. Consent from both the man and woman were necessary for the marriage to occur (Ruiz 2001) The age people were considered ready to marry varied depending on class and gender. Females in the upper level classes were usually married at a later age than those in the working class. Females in general were ideally ready to be married following their first menstrual cycle. Peasant girls were sometimes married by age 12 while most others were married between 13-15 years of age. A boy waited between 16-20 years of age in order to marry so he could, under the direction of his father learn a skill/trade to be able to support a family (Brewer 2009).

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16pt;">
" Images of and allusions to homoerotic activity and nonreproductive sex between men and women (as well as humans and animals) are frequently explained as humorous or satirical, but often the intent seems to be more descriptive or even erotic, even to an ancient audience. In truth, ancient Egyptian images of men and women emphasizing sexual characteristics probably spoke to their ancient audiences on a number of levels: reproductive, erotic, comical, satirical, mystical." [|http://www.umich.edu/~kelseydb/Exhibits/WomenandGender/sex.html]

[]
 * //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif;">"Virginity was not a necessity for marriage; indeed, premarital sex, or any sex between unmarried people, was socially acceptable. Once married, however, couples were expected to be sexually faithful to each other (Brewer 2009)". //**


 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;">

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%; text-align: center;">And so we will move apart….in addition to other legal matters. ** <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"> <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-align: left;">Regarding the topic of divorce, a woman had full rights in this regard. Women were also allowed to walk away from a marriage with the items she brought into it as “well as one third of the couple’s joint property and possessions acquired while married" (Ruiz 2001:23). However, if the wife had been unfaithful, any support she would have been granted otherwise was not given to her. Regarding infidelity, her punishment could have been a “painful and disfiguring” (Ruiz 2001:23) one-the chopping off of her nose. During that period, a form of affection between two people was rubbing each other’s noses together (Ruiz 2001). In addition to acquiring a divorce, women were able to tend to many other legal matters without a male signature. During the New Kingdom Period which was a time of prosperity, many documents have been recovered from this time that stated how much women were legally “on par with men” (Lesko 1991:4). Additionally, the right to inherit, own and sell property without a male signature was alive and well (Lesko 1991:4). They could also write “their own wills and could bear witness and testify in court (Dersin 1996:46)". Finally, there were women who were heads of their own households who were also able be the executors of family property/land (Lesko 1991:4)

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 16pt; line-height: 115%; text-align: center;">**Conclusion** <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-align: left;"> Family life and the Ancient Egyptian woman is a very facinating topic. Even though Pre-Dynastic Egypt was more egalitarian than the Dynastic time periods, here, it was shown that the women in Ancient Egypt had considerable freedom of movement while being full participating members of society. Ancient Egyptians saw the value in seeing women as contributors to half the success of the society. It was also shown that they included women in areas of leadership, managing money and property and also in religious practical matters and symbolism. Finally, many attitudes about females as a whole reflected a society that valued the ability of women to make her own choices in addition to the contribution they made. For example, valuing the birth of a newborn female and allowing females to make marriage and divorce decisions that were relatively fair and equitable.

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; text-align: center;">.


 * Module Assignments**

Mod 9 assignment

Citation

 * **Private Lives and Public Censure: Adultery in Ancient Egypt and Biblical Israel**
 * Author(s): Pnina Galpaz-Feller
 * Source: Near Eastern Archaeology, Vol. 67, No. 3 (Sep., 2004), pp. 152-161
 * Published by: [|The American Schools of Oriental Research]
 * Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4132377

Abstract
In biblical Israel, the traditional view was that adultery was a violation of the covenant between the people and their god. The fact that there is no official code of law from ancient Egypt has generally not facilitated direct comparisons of this culture with biblical Israel. Also, because the severity of punishment in Egypt for adultery was generally far less than that suggested by the legal codes of Babylon or biblical Israel, the assumption has always been that adulterous behavior was not publicly censured. Egyptian documents, however, clearly indicate that the act was regarded as a moral failing and a source of community discord. In that way, the perceptions of adultery known from ancient Egyptian literature parallel the attitudes represented in biblical passages dealing with adultery more than has been heretofore suggested. The treatment of specific cases relating to the consequences of adultery in ancient Egypt, over a period of several centuries, are examined in this article in order to shed light on some of the similarities noted to the biblical traditions.


 * Module 12 assignment**

[|Luxor, Egypt. Home of Hatshepsut's Tomb]

Module 14 Assignment []

This web based news article on the BBC linked above was quite interesting and useful. I believe that although the author gave only a snapshot of gender relations in Ancient Egypt, it was well researched based upon the references and the qualifications of the author. The author is an Egyptologist who has a PhD. Regarding the usefulness of the article for the public, I would find it to be of very good use especially for the "non-academic". That said, for the academic, it can be useful because of the authors qualifications.

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 14pt; text-align: center;">
 * Works Cited**

<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 11pt; text-align: left;">Baber, Ray Erwin <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> 1935 Marriage and Family Life in Ancient Egypt <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">Social Forces Vol. 13, No. 3 (March), pp. 409-414 <span style="display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; text-align: left;"> Brewer, Douglas J. and Teeter, Emily 2009 Ancient Egyptian Society and Family Life Electronic document, [],accessed December 8, 2009 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Dersin, Denise, ed. 1996 What Life Was Like on the Banks of the Nile. Richmond: Time Life Inc. // Fletcher, Dr. Joann //<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> 2009 <span style="color: #424242; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">Warrior Women to Female Pharaohs: Careers for Women <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';"> Electronic document, [],accessed December 8, 2009. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">Lesko,

Barbara S. <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11pt;">1991 Women's Monumental Mark on Ancient Egypt The Biblical Archaeologist, Vol. 54, No. 1 (March) pp. 4-15 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">Morkot, Robert G., 2005 The Egyptians: An Introduction. New York: Routledge

Ruiz, Ana 2001 The Spirit of Ancient Egypt. New York: Algora Publishing <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11pt;"> <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">Wermuth, Laurie and Ma'at-Ka-Re Monges, Miriam <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 11pt;">2002 Gender Stratification: A Structural Model for Examining Case Examples of Women in Less- Developed Countries. A Journal of Women Studies, Vol. 23, No. 1, pp. 1-22 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif';">