Eunuchs in the Fatimid Empire: Ambiguities, Gender and Sacredness

Tolino, Serena (2018). Eunuchs in the Fatimid Empire: Ambiguities, Gender and Sacredness. In: Höfert, Almut; Mesley, Matthew M.; Tolino, Serena (eds.) Celibate and Childless Men in Power. Ruling Eunuchs and Bishops in the Pre-Modern World (pp. 246-266). London/New York: Routledge

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This chapter examines the roles that eunuchs had in the Fatimid empire, a shi'i dynasty that reigned in North Africa and Yemen between 297/909 and 567/1171. In this chapter it is argued that eunuchs were not understood as a 'third gender' but they were instead gendered according to the different contexts in which they acted or they were represented. To make this point clear, I look in the chapter at various kinds of courses: adab, chronicles, medical, legal and religious sources.

Item Type:

Book Section (Book Chapter)

Division/Institute:

06 Faculty of Humanities > Department of Art and Cultural Studies > Institut für Studien zum Nahen Osten und zu muslimischen Gesellschaften

UniBE Contributor:

Tolino, Serena

Subjects:

200 Religion > 290 Other religions
900 History > 950 History of Asia
900 History > 960 History of Africa

ISBN:

978-1-4724-5340-2

Publisher:

Routledge

Funders:

[4] Swiss National Science Foundation

Language:

English

Submitter:

Serena Tolino

Date Deposited:

13 Mar 2023 07:48

Last Modified:

13 Mar 2023 23:27

Uncontrolled Keywords:

eunuchs, Fatimid empire, slavery, gender, sacredness, Egypt

BORIS DOI:

10.48350/179761

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/179761

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