Lifestyle, women and culture

Iraq is in the Middle East, bordered by Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan and Syria and has a population of 28 Million. The capital city is Baghdad and the official language is Arabic. Iraq is a country with lots of natural resources such as petrol and gas. In the past Iraq was known for its poetry, art and music and was an important place for education, culture and science. Iraq was home to one of the first developed civilisations that had settlements, used an alphabet and drafted formal laws.

The family is culturally really important in Iraq and is structured so that the father is the head of the household, holding complete authority and responsibility. The majority of women follow the traditional ideal of women’s role being as a wife and mother and this is supported by religious teachings and social values. In the 1970’s women gained lots of rights such as the right to own property and the majority of girls received an education. In 2002 women did work in jobs like medicine and engineering but according to a United Nations report women’s rights are getting worse since the invasion as they are not going to school, work or even leaving their homes out of fear.

Iraqi women are not equal to men in their society. Money is generally controlled by men but women do have some powers. Women have a great deal of control at home and over their children, including their grown sons. Women also have families who are very sensitive to their welfare, and their fathers and brothers will interfere if they feel that their daughter or sister is being abused, or if they think she is unhappy.

At the heart of treatment of women are the very basic belief that men and women, left to their own devices are unable or unwilling to control their physical urges. For this reason, protection of women is a central tenet of Islamic society, and both men and women believe it to be necessary. Women, mainly in rural areas in the South, are at risk of ‘honour killings’ to cleanse a family’s honour in cases of behavior believed to have brought shame on the family.

Many Iraqi women cover their hair in public. There are also women who wear the 'abaya (a long-sleeved, long cloak- or coat-like over garment that covers one from neck to ankles) whenever they go out. Arab women in general dress more conservatively than Western women, although upper-class women are very aware of and choose to wear European fashions.

In Iraq it is expected that everyone will marry and many marriages are still arranged. Marriage arrangements are entirely in the hands of the parents—often just the mothers—who match eligible boys with eligible girls after thoroughly checking out the potential mate and family. Social and economic concerns are more important than emotions and being in love.