Infibulation is the most extreme form of female circumcision

Figures, Maps, Plots, and Tables

Preface xi

Introduction

1. Infibulation: Description, Function, and Diffusion
Function: Indigenous and Academic Perspectives
Diffusion

2. The Socioeconomic Distribution of Infibulation
Pastoralism in Northeastern Africa and the Sudan
Pastoral-Rural-Urban Interaction and Infibulation

3. Infibulation in the Social Nexus
Closed Cultural Systems
Islam: A Closed Cultural System
Social Space in Islamic Societies
Gender Identification and Differentiation in Open
and Closed Cultural Systems
The Status Position of Women in Infibulation-Practicing
Societies
Marriage Customs and Laws: An Overview
Male Absenteeism, Sexual Abstinence, Sleeping
Arrangements, and Infibulation
Fertility Levels and Patterns, Mortality and Birthrates,
Sex Ratio Distribution, and Infibulation

4. Methodological Approach and Research Strategy
The Problem of Sources
Sample Selection and Statistical Analysis
Statistical Analysis
The HOMALS-technique

5. Infibulation and the Composite Variables
The Variables Considered
Marriage, Status, and the Practice of Infibulation
Early Marriage and Infibulation
The Composite Variables

6. The Future of Infibulation