- E-ISSN: 2309-3927
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oa “Marriage with an absentee:” Marital practices in an era of great mobility
- Source: Doha International Family Institute Journal, Volume 2015, Issue 1, أبريل ٢٠١٥, 6
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- ١١ يونيو ٢٠١٥
- ٠٥ أغسطس ٢٠١٥
- ١٥ أكتوبر ٢٠١٥
ملخص
Egyptian communities are increasing in Europe, and Italy is the first European country targeted by a number of Egyptians. While other Arab countries (i.e. Morocco) are experiencing a progressive “feminization of migration”, Egyptian migration remains a male-dominated phenomenon. One of the main issues around the big presence of young Egyptian single men in Italy is that of transnational marriages, which migrants engage in with women from their original villages.
In this paper I focus on the families that are created through what I call “marriage with an absentee”, investigating the value of transnational marriages both for migrants and for Egyptian women who marry men who are working abroad. I describe those marriages in their organizational aspects—entering into the details of the rituals of the engagement and of the marriage. I also discuss some of the consequences of this practice. I.e., on one hand the creation of a transnational family (characterized by the new bride staying in Egypt), and on the other hand the woman's prospect of international mobility, which can be achieved only through family reunification.
