Women’s family rights in Iran during the reign of Pehlevi dynasty

The article explores the evolution of women’s family rights during the reign of two Pehlevi shahs. Special emphasis is placed on juridical sources: amendment to the Constitution regarding women of the dynasty, Criminal Code 1926, Civil Code 1918, Slavery abolition act 1929, Family law 1931 and also Bills on family protection 1967 and 1975. For the analysis of these sources their original versions in Persian have been used and the references of the specific articles are given. Family rights are considered concerning to women’s safety, their rights of conclusion of different kinds of marriages, assignment and obtaining of mahr, divorce and custody of children, inheritance and financial security. The author emphasizes the cases when women’s rights are limited by those of men. Attention is also payed to such a problem as polygyny as one of the features of inequality and a weak legal assessment of the phenomenon is stressed. One of the parts of the article is devoted to the role of women in Iranian family. For the examples the two Pehlevi shahs’ families are considered as these rulers are the most prominent historical figures of the period. By using mostly original historiography the author outlines the facts of their private lives to show the position of women in the conditions of dependence on the main man in the family. Overall the author comes to the conclusion that the Iranian society in the Pehlevi period had remained its patriarchal character and was closely connected with cultural and religious traditions.