‘Ervat Davar: Divorce Among the Karaites in Ottoman Egypt

Dotan Arad’s article provides us with a rare glimpse into the family life of Egyptian Karaites during the Ottoman period. He delves into the incomparably significant corpus of manuscripts known as the Firkovitch collection held by the Russian National Library in St. Petersburg and concentrates on divorce issues among the Karaites and the particular differences between the rabbinate and the Karaite halakhic (Jewish law) process in this matter.Arad discusses the types of physical defects and moral flaws of a woman that are considered “ervat davar” (obnoxious behavior or mannerisms) and serve as legitimate causes for a husband to divorce his wife, and also situations in which obtaining a bill of divorce (get) is considered in the best interests of the woman. He concludes that the tendency of the Karaites to limit the motives for divorce is used as a means of protecting women from their husbands’ caprices and from divorce without just cause. However, at times, protecting women required obligating a husband to divorce his wife and at the same time secure her financial and other rights.