A consideration of the role and status of women in the religion of Islam is a complex undertaking as Islam encompasses many diverse cultures and each of these cultures has had a unique cultural response to the religion. Thus, the scope of the topic necessitates a very generalized treatment of the subject matter here. For the sake of cohesiveness, emphasis has been placed upon similarities rather than diversities in the woman's role in societies under Islamic influence. This paper is presented in three parts:

I. Islamic history and the role of the women before Islam and at the inception of Islam. Concentration in this section rests in the social system.

II. Material from interviews with three Persian women.

III. Conclusion