Harem is the women’s section of a household in some Middle Eastern and Asian countries. The word may also refer to the women who live there. The term comes from the Arabic word haram, meaning forbidden.
Traditionally, a harem was secluded and was open only to family members. The women cooked, raised children, and did other work in privacy, away from men except for their husband, sons, brothers, and fathers. Many harems housed the four wives permitted by Islam, the religion of the Muslims. The Ottoman sultans and other rulers had large harems, which included their wives plus many mistresses, servants, and female relatives of the men. But such harems were rare because they were expensive.
Today, the practice of marrying more than one wife is forbidden by law in Turkey, Tunisia, and non-Muslim nations. Middle Eastern women have become less secluded. Many attend coeducational schools and work outside the home. Today, harems have nearly disappeared, although they are retained by some wealthy and ruling families.
