The role and rights of Albanian women during the Ottoman Empire

For a long time, the Ottoman woman was seen as a being who was immersed in ignorance, who spent her time at home and who was busy. But the studies done in the last decades brought to light details...

By: Eduart Caka

The life of women in the Ottoman Empire, especially in the rights that the law recognized, was more orderly. All of these had the rights that were guaranteed by the state and based on which they enjoyed the privileges recognized by Islamic law, such as the right of inheritance, marriage, divorce, etc. In addition to family rights, such as engagement and marriage, but also inheritance, a woman had the right to manage her income, buy or sell property, go to court for various issues and participate in social engagements - such as construction of endowments or their direction. Given that the Albanian geography was also part of the Ottoman Empire, the same phenomena and engagements of women in different parts of the empire can be seen to have been visible in the Albanian lands as well.

The lack of sufficient literature necessary to draw a panorama of the life of women at this time, constitutes an obstacle in understanding the condition of the Albanian woman during this period, but also for the role and rights she enjoyed both in the family and in society. In this context, the only sources that shed light on this issue can be considered the documents found at the Central State Archive.

Thus, the decisions of the court registers of the Ottoman period provide important data regarding the life, activity and rights of Albanian women during the period in question. Most of the registers belong to the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, which contain sufficient information about the Albanian society during this period. Thus, based on the archival data found, it is possible to divide the activity and rights of women during this period into two categories: in the family and in social life.

Rights of women in the family: The family is the core institution of society and in the Albanian tradition it occupies a very special place. Based on Islamic law, it can be said that even the Ottoman state paid special attention to the family, giving it rights guaranteed by the imperial institutions themselves.

In the case of women, the Islamic law and consequently the Ottoman law gave her rights that for the time constituted a significant progress. Thus, one of the basic rights given to women was that of inheritance. Both men and women had the right to inherited property and managed it as they wished. She enjoyed the right to inherit half of the share of the male with whom she had equal kinship.

In the court registers, there are many acts of inheritance in which it is emphasized that women were among the beneficiaries of the assets left behind. For example, in a document from 1701, it is shown that the gentleman named Xhaferr from Mallakastra, a high functionary in the Ottoman Empire was killed in the battle of Nis and his property is inherited by his wife Aishe, two sons Aliu and Ahmeti and daughter Hanemeja . In the context of inheritance, it should be emphasized that the right to benefit was not the same for both men and women and varied according to the cases and provisions that Islamic law had for special cases. For example, when a man died and had only his wife as an heir, she had the right to receive only a quarter of the property left, while the rest went to the state treasury.

In cases of problems related to inheritance issues, the woman had the right to complain and seek justice in official instances such as the court. Even, in relation to this aspect, in the records of the Sharia court of Berat, we notice a case from the year 1702, which best shows the way the woman sought and protected the inheritance that was left to her. According to this document, the woman named Emine, the wife of Ahmet Beu, had a problem with the inheritance left by her husband who had died, because her mother-in-law Azizeja had put her hands on this property and also used violence on the daughter-in-law. Since the case has not been resolved in the relevant instances, it is known that this appeal has gone to the Kadiasqeri of Rumelia, who through the document in question writes to the kadi of Berat for the resolution of this issue. The above-mentioned case shows that during the period in question, the woman had the right to open court cases and legally claim all the rights that were recognized by the law of the time.

Another right that the Albanian woman enjoyed during the centuries in question consisted in acts of engagement and marriage. According to this, she had the right to approve or not the engagement or marriage with the proposed candidate. In the court registers, we have many examples of girls or widows who appeared before the judge and asked "not to be crowned without their presence". Also, there are many documents and studies which show that this right was also enjoyed by women of other faiths, both in the Albanian geography and in different parts of the Empire.

To be appreciated is the fact that not only women who lived in urban areas were so free in this aspect, but also those who lived in rural areas took such initiatives. For example, in a document from 1695, a girl named Rabie, the daughter of Mahmut from Breshtan town of Berat, appeared before the judge and asked not to be crowned without her being present.

Another document tells of a Christian named Saveta, daughter of Thanasi from the village of Perondija, who appears in court and asks not to be crowned without her permission and without her presence, even if her relatives appear for marry her.

In the framework of the act of engagement and marriage, it should be noted that Islamic law orders the payment of a sum of money, the donation of an asset, property or something similar that the groom gave to the bride before marriage (mehr). The amount paid varied according to the economic and social class to which the two candidates belonged, and the promised value was in most cases recorded in the coronation document.

This rule was applied in the Ottoman Empire and consequently also in Albanian geography. In the court registers, we find cases related to this topic as well. For example, in a document from the year 1606, in the court of the city of Elbasan, a woman appears in court suing her husband who had promised her a fereja (Muslim woman's veil) as a gift before marriage and then did not give it to her. . By paying or donating mehr, it was thought that the woman had a financial security which remained hers during the marriage and that she had the right to manage it according to her wishes and needs. In this context, it can be said that there are thousands of documents of this type in the archives.

Another element in the framework of women's rights within the family is the issue of divorce. In cases of disagreement or various important problems within the family that could not be resolved through mediation, she addressed herself to the court to request a divorce along with the rights due to her under the law. If the court decided on the division of the crown, the wife had the right to benefit from the part of the husband's property that the court gave her (nafaka). The amount paid in cases of divorce varied according to the property owned by the family and the payment consisted of money and material elements. For example, in a divorce case of 1695 in the city of Berat, a woman named Fatima benefits from the court as alimony of 2000 akçe, six ounces of oil and other items. However, there are other documents that show cases when the woman waived of her own free will the rights due to her from the divorce, such as the case of the woman named Sultana who declares that she waives the benefits granted to her by the court from divorce with Ahmet Hasan.

Another aspect related to the rights of women in married life, but also in that within the family, is the issue of the administration of the inherited property. The studies conducted based on the documents of the time show that the woman had the right to manage her wealth and income inherited from her family, donated or acquired during the marriage period. So, within married life, the wife and husband had separate property, an aspect accepted and legally protected. Thus, on the wealth or property that she possessed, she could perform actions independently, such as sales, investments, donations, she could give loans, and there are even cases when she even gave loans to her husband.

In the archives, there are numerous documents about cases where women managed their property, sold it or donated it, and even in cases of disagreement with family members, she had the right to take the case to court. Thus, a woman from Fanica of Berat sells her house together with the vineyard for 4000 akçe, while another woman donates her house. Another lady named Hanife from the Tabakhane neighborhood of Elbasani declares that she is selling the house with the yard for the amount of 3700 akce. Also, there are other cases when the wife sells or donates the property she owns to her husband. For example, in a document from 1703, it is learned that a woman named Rabije from a village in Berat sells her husband a house. Whereas, in another document from 1701, a woman named Fatima from the Murat Çelebi neighborhood of the same city appeared in court and declared that she forgives all her property to her husband, Hysen Beu.

The role of women in social life: The documents and studies done in relation to the period in question show that in addition to the family environment, women were also engaged in social life. We find them employed in various commercial environments, but also managers of their own work. So, they were given the right to independently practice their craft (testir).

Regarding employment, the researcher Zija Shkodra has emphasized that most women were engaged in various crafts of a domestic nature. This phenomenon is observed more in urban centers, as can be mentioned the Albanian cities of the time such as Elbasan, Berat, Shkodra, Prizren, Skopje, etc.

Thus, in the studies and archival documents, it is observed that different Albanian women of different faiths have been employed in different corporations, such as in fabrics, furs, various essences, etc. Especially in the city of Elbasan, there are many documents that show women who have acquired the right to independently practice the trade they owned, or have inherited the trade their parent may have had. It is worth noting that a good part of these women also belong to other faiths, i.e. non-Muslims.

One of the most important areas in which women were organized during the century. XVII-XIX were also endowments. There were several reasons that led women to engage in waqf institutions. First, taking into account the life of the woman during this period and the fact that she did not move much outside the family premises, endowments were institutions that did not require going out into the field. Second, they were more active in carrying out charity activities. To date, no real studies have been done regarding the number of women engaged in dowry at the imperial rank, but the studies done show that in a good part of urban areas, they are more involved than men in these activities.

Regarding Albania, there are no studies showing the number of women engaged in charitable institutions, such as waqfs (foundations). However, archival documents and court records show a significant number of women who had built endowments, given donations or even worked in these institutions themselves. We even have cases where we see women as waqf administrators (mutevelli), an aspect which is rarely observed in the Ottoman Empire where the vast majority of waqf managers were men. Specifically, in a document from 1703, it is about a lady named Kadrije, who is appointed administrator of a waqf of a mosque in the city of Berat. Also, the documents show about Mrs. Rukije in the city of Elbasan who is the guardian of her waqf.

Within the context of women's contribution and engagement in Albanian social life during the period of Ottoman rule, it is worth mentioning their activation in improving the infrastructure of cities. This commitment should also be addressed within the framework of waqfs or works of a charitable nature, which were mentioned above. There are many documents and data that show the construction of taps, bridges, schools, caravanserais and similar institutions by women. The researchers say that during the century XV-XIX there are many bridges, such as Zonja's in Labovë, Cina's in Rzëzome, Vasha's in Gur te Bardhë, etc., whose construction was financed by various women.

Conclusion: As seen above, this study creates a panorama of the condition of Albanian women during the Middle Ages, focusing mostly on the c. XVII-XVIII. In this case, the examined cases and the decisions that have come out in relation to them in the registers of the sharia courts of different cities have been used. Archival documents show that even though she lived in a difficult period, the Albanian woman enjoyed some basic rights, such as the right to inheritance, engagement and marriage, the right to property and its management, the right to apply to the courts for her rights etc. Also, the documents show that she was also engaged outside the home, both working in different professions, and active for the benefit of society through endowments or similar institutions.

The above data show that the Albanian woman during this period enjoyed some rights that were a significant achievement for the society of the time. But, in addition to the mentioned rights, the Albanian woman also faced problems and difficulties related to the economic conditions of the time, men going to war, etc. Another negative phenomenon related to women which is evident starting from the end of the century. XVIII, is the giving of underage girls as servants to rich families for ridiculous amounts. These and many elements are not included in this paper.