Divorce Settlement (Egypt)

Joseph ibn Tsedakah and Ghaniyya bint Ḥasan

1052

On Monday, 24 Tishrei [1]‌364 AG [= 21 September 1052 CE], R. Joseph b. R. Ṣedaqa the keeper of a grain store and his divorcee Gh[aniyya] bt. R. Ḥasan came before the court. We made the symbolic purchase from him according to his will and desire without coercion that he will pay four dirhams every week to R. Salāma the seller of olive oil in Cairo…

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This divorce settlement reveals the dissolution of a marriage between two parties, Ghaniyya bint Ḥasan and Joseph ibn Tsedakah (here, Ṣedaqa). Ghaniyya is granted custody of their child Ibrahīm, and Joseph will receive visitation rights and pay child support to a Salāma who has not been identified (he might have been Ghaniyya’s brother). Strikingly, the document forbids Ghaniyya from going to Muslim courts for legal action against Joseph. Geniza documents reflect a trend of Jewish women appealing to Muslim courts, which generally showed more leniency toward them. Here, we cannot be sure if Ghaniyya has already used the Muslim court system in this process or if the trend was so common that they suspect she may do so in the future.

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Joseph ibn Tsedakah and Ghaniyya bint Ḥasan

11th Century

Nothing is known about the lives of Joseph ibn Tsedakah and Ghaniyya bint Ḥasan, though their divorce settlement from 1052 is preserved in a document from the Cairo Geniza. They had one son named Ibrahīm.

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