Forms and Functions of Legal Discourse Intertextuality in Works of Jewish and Islamic Law and Literature – Quotations, Allusions, References, and Plagiarism

Marriages of minor girls were common in the medieval Jewish society from the 10th century until the 14th and beyond. Despite this, it was only in Muslim countries that fundamental objection to this phenomenon was present. The accepted assumption in research is that the status of the Jewish woman in medieval Germany was superior to that of her counterparts in other communities. At face value, it appears that the Ashkenazi rabbis should have fought for the welfare and wellbeing of minor girls. What gave rise to the difference between the communities? It appears that the answer to this question lies with the financial arrangements that founded the marriage, and from legal differences between canonical and Muslim law.