People very often use the term polygamy when referring to Shari’ah permitting up to four wives. That usage is common outside the Muslim community too, where the word is widely taken to mean only a man having several wives.

There are in fact three distinct terms, and it is worth using them correctly.

• Polygamy — marriage to more than one person at a time, in either direction.
• Polygyny — co-wives sharing one husband: one man, several wives.
• Polyandry — co-husbands sharing one wife: one woman, several husbands.

What is permitted in Islam is polygyny — not polyandry, and not polygamy in its actual, broader definition.

Words matter

These differences in ordinary usage — probably compounded by translation — matter for being clear about what is and is not permissible. They matter more because our laws are written in English, and the word chosen can create an enormous gap between what was intended and how it is later interpreted and applied. Judges refer to, and are bound by, the letter of the law.

Britannica notes that the most typical forms of polygamy across religions and cultures have been polygyny and polyandry, and distinguishes both from polyamory — multiple intimate relationships with the knowledge and consent of all parties, but without marriage.

Britannica: polygamy · Collins: “the letter of the law”

Shared by the South African Muslim Network (SAMNET) in the interest of better understanding of Islamic law, and of general knowledge.