Women also served an important function in the reli-
gious aff airs of ancient African communities. Many of these
communities practiced ancestor worship. Th is meant that
dead ancestors continued to play a role in the aff airs of the
community. Th ey attained mythic signifi cance, and the link
between the living and dead fostered social harmony and the
transmittal of values from one generation to the next. Al-
though men oft en functioned as the shamans who mediated
between the living and the dead, in many tribes women ful-
fi lled this function. And while some tribes emphasized wor-
ship of male ancestors, many accorded equal worship to both
male and female ancestors, particularly a deceased mother or
grandmother.
A common practice that dates back at least 4,000 years
is female circumcision, or the surgical removal of the young
woman’s clitoris. Th is practiced was followed not only in an-
cient Egypt but also among numerous other communities,
including the Nubians, the Ethiopians, and people in com-
munities along the Sahel, or the region just to the south of the
Sahara Desert. Th e practice had a number of purposes. One
was to “mark” the girl, making her less than perfect so that
the gods did not reclaim her; ear piercing had a similar func-
tion. Another was to bind the woman to the patrilineal clan
into which she married by ensuring her virginity and mari-
tal faithfulness, for her circumcision was inspected by the
groom’s female relatives. A circumcised woman was thought
to be more docile and obedient, ready to assume her place in
the family. Yet another purpose was to affi rm the belief that
circumcision, of both men and women, purifi ed people for
the next generation.
EGYPT
BY EMILY JANE O’DELL
Any discussion of gender must fi rst admit that categories of
gender and gender expression are largely constructed by the
society and culture from which they spring. Gender is usu-
ally defi ned in relation to biological sexual diff erences; how-
ever, there are many diff erent types of intersexuality. While
the numbers of genders in a society can vary across cultures,
ancient Egypt recognized female and male gender, and these
genders were correlated with biological sexual diff erences be-
tween men and women. However, before the law, men and
women were equal. Both men and women could inherit and
dispose of property as free agents, testify in court, initiate di-
vorce, and participate in business contracts.
Royal women enjoyed a great deal of prestige, privilege,
and power. Th eoretically, the throne in ancient Egypt passed
through the women of the royal family. Some of the pharaohs
married members of their own family to claim a throne, and
many other pharaohs married princesses in order to ally with
the royal family. While a royal woman could have only one
husband, a king could have multiple wives and concubines.
In the Old Kingdom (2575–2134 b.c.e.) royal wives, mothers,
and daughters held administrative positions as well as reli-
gious positions, such as priestesses of Th oth or Hathor. Th e
kingship, however, was not restricted to men. While the large
majority of pharaohs were men, there were also a handful of
female kings, such as Sebeknefru (r. ca. 1787–1783 b.c.e.) and
Hatshepsut (r. ca. 1473–1458 b.c.e.). When ruling the country,
these women were seen as “kings,” not queens. Many queens,
however, ruled as regents for their husbands or children.
Male kings built majestic and large burial places for their
prominent queens, such as the tomb of Nefertari (wife of
Ramses II) in the Valley of the Queens. Many queens, such
as Queen Ahhotep (of the Seventeenth Dynasty) and Queen
Ahmose-Nefertari (of the Eighteenth Dynasty), were vener-
ated long aft er their deaths. While women were denied many
of the key positions in the state’s bureaucracy, they did at-
tempt to assert their authority through other means. For ex-
ample, several conspiracies against the king were instigated
by queens, and harem conspiracies arose during the reigns of
Pepi I (r. ca. 2289–2255 b.c.e.), Amenemhet I (r. ca. 1991–1962
b.c.e.), and Ramses III (r. ca. 1194–1163 b.c.e.).
While men and women were equal in terms of legal
rights, men held more positions in the clergy and state bu-
reaucracy. Men and women received equal wages for their
jobs. While men dominated the bureaucracy, women held
many diff erent jobs, such as selling products and food in the
marketplace, harvesting crops, gathering and winnowing
wheat and fl ax, grinding grain and baking, weaving, brewing
beer, making perfume, and participating in the compulsory,
temporary state labor service. Women could also serve as su-
pervisors over these activities. Men were fi eld laborers as well
but could also be butchers or jewelers; some men made furni-
ture, leather products, and sculpture. In many lines of work, a
woman could also inherit her father’s position. However, men
dominated government positions because these jobs required
literacy.
While there were most likely elite, literate women as well,
they would have been the exception. While women in the Old
Kingdom did hold administrative positions, they seem to
have worked for high-ranking women, not the general state
bureaucracy. During the Old Kingdom in ancient Egypt, mu-
sicians and dancers were primarily women, but aft er the end
of the Old Kingdom men performed as musicians and dancers
at private parties, festivals, and religious ceremonies. During
the reign of Ramses III, women participated in the fi rst work
strike in history in support of their civil servant husbands.
Women were also in charge of managing the household and
the family. Aft er the Middle Kingdom (2040–1640 b.c.e.) they
had the title “mistress of the house.” Th ey were responsible
for raising the children, and the royal family also employed
royal wet nurses and tutors for the royal children.
In ancient Egyptian mythology there were both male
gods and female goddesses. Some gods and goddesses had
qualities that were peculiar to their gender, such as child-
bearing, but others had qua lities that were uncharacteristic of
their gender. For example, the goddess Neith was a goddess of
war, yet women in ancient Egypt did not participate in war-gender structures and roles: Egypt 495