Ikhdam (providing a servant to a wife or to a bankrupt)

إخدام

Ikhdam means, in the lexicon, giving a servant. 1 The majority of jurists hold that a husband must provide a servant for his wife if she is of a class that is served, or else maintain the servant she brings with her. 1 The servant of a wife is treated under maintenance, and that of a bankrupt or an imprisoned debtor under bankruptcy. 1

Depth

At a glance

Era
The Prophetic Era
Region
Global / Diaspora
Review
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Family, marriage and kinship

Definition

Ikhdam means, in the lexicon, giving a servant, and the jurists' usage keeps this meaning. 1

General ruling

The giving of a servant may be made by a husband to his wife, if she is of a class that is served, or otherwise. The majority of jurists hold that a husband must provide a servant for his wife if she is of a class that is served, or maintain the servant she brings with her, since the purpose is achieved that way. 1

Where the topic is treated

The jurists treat ikhdam in several places. A husband's providing a servant for his wife is treated under maintenance. Providing a servant for a bankrupt man for his needs, if he is chronically ill and needs a servant beyond his maintenance or if his rank requires one, is treated under bankruptcy, in the part on what is done with the property of one placed under restraint for insolvency. A servant for an imprisoned bankrupt is treated where the jurists discuss imprisoning the bankrupt until he confesses what he owes. 1

People and things also explored

Taj Mahal· Abawan (the two parents)· Justice among co-wives· Obstructing a marriage (adl): the guardian and the husband· Fleshy growth in the wife's womb and the right to annul (afal)· Ahl al-Nasab (the kin by descent, and who counts as kin in bequests and endowments)· Akdariyya (a named inheritance case)· Brother (full, paternal and maternal) in law

Sources

  1. al-Mawsu'a al-Fiqhiyya al-Kuwaitiyya, Noor-Book copy (file named v3) , p.1972
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “Ikhdam (providing a servant to a wife or to a bankrupt)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/concept/ikhdam/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-23.

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