Dhimmīs in the Muslim Court: Legal Autonomy and Religious Discrimination

In: International journal of Middle East studies: IJMES, Band 31, Heft 3, S. 429-444

Abstract

This article will examine the legal status of dhimmīs (non-Muslims) as documented in thesijillsof the shariʿa courts of Ottoman Damascus in the 18th and 19th centuries. It will focus on two related aspects ofdhimmīlegal life: the extent of the judicial autonomy granted to non-Muslims and the kind of justice thatdhimmīsobtained at the Muslim court.