This book examines the position of women in the contemporary Middle East and North Africa. It provides both theoretical angles and case studies from countries as diverse as Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Morocco and Israel, discussing the role of women as agents of change, with particular reference to the spheres of politics, civil society, religion, the law, society and culture.

Fatima Sadiqi is Professor of Linguistics and Gender Studies at the University of Fez, Morocco. A former Fulbright Scholar and recipient of a Harvard Fellowship, she has written a number of books and is a UN Gender Expert.

Moha Ennaji is Professor at the University of Fez and a Visiting Professor at Rutgers University. He is the author and/or editor of numerous books and articles on culture and gender studies in North Africa.

Introduction: Contextualizing Women's Agency in the MENA Region Part 1: Reconsidering the Foundations of Women, Islam and Political Agency 1. The Veil: Religious/Historical Foundations of the Modern Political Discourse 2. Women, Islam and Political Agency in Morocco 3. Assia Djebar and Malika Mokeddem: Neo-Colonial Agents or Post-Colonial Subjects? 4. Women and Political Reform in Israel Part 2: Women's Leadership in Civil Society 5. Women's NGOs and Social Change in Morocco 6. Palestinian Women's Movements: From Active Militants to Stateless Citizens Part 3: Women and Legal Reform 7. Tunisia at the Forefront of the Arab World: Two Waves of Gender Legislation 8. Feminism and Family Law in Iran: The Struggle for Women's Economic Citizenship in the Islamic Republic 9. The Legal Status of Women in Egypt: Reform and Social Inertia Part 4: Women, Social, Cultural, Religious and Symbolic Change 10. Algerian Women as Actors of Change and Social Cohesion 11. Women in Turkey: Caught in the Bind Between Tradition and Modernity 12. Women and Language in Tunisia 13. Women, Education and the Redefinition of Empowerment and Change in a Traditional Society: The Case of Oman 14. Transforming Religious Expression: Ishelhin (Berber) Women and the Creation of a Local Islamic Tradition 15. Moroccan Women Contrabandists: Interferences in Public Space 16. The Orient Within: Women "In-between" Under Francoism