The Implicit Role of Custom (‘Urf) in the Islamic Jurisprudence of Saudi Arabia and Iran; A Comparative Legal Study of Mu‘āmalāt (Marriage and Divorce Rules) (PhD. Dissertation)

Abstract

This research is an analysis of the connection between Islamic law (sharī‘a) and custom (‘urf); it proposes to identify how personal and social issues are treated within contemporary Saudi and Iranian legal approaches. The primary objective is to emphasise the interaction between custom and textual authority, and to develop an analytical framework of shar‘ī rules: namely, those that pertain to social relations in general and marital issues in particular. The study compares approaches adopted by Saudi-Ḥanbalī and Iranian-Ja‘farī scholars towards the shar‘ī status of ‘urf in three particular categories; the methodological perspective (classic and contemporary), the shar‘ī opinions of scholars (fatwā) and the court verdicts of judges (aḥkām).

Keywords

• islamic law
• saudi arabia
• iran
• wahhābism
• shī‘ism
• ḥanbalī school
• jāfarī school
• i̇slam hukuku
• suudi arabistan
• i̇ran
• vahhabilik
• şiilik
• , hanbeli mezhebi
• caferi mezhebi