Ancient women as actors in the legal systems of Arabia Petraea: Evidence from the Babatha Archive

My thesis investigates the experiences of women as actors in the ancient legal systems of the second century CE, focusing on multi-legal systems in Arabia Petraea that emerged to integrate Jewish legal traditions with Roman laws. I present a case study of the Babatha Archive—a collection of 35 legal documents belonging to a twice-widowed Jewish woman living in Arabia Petraea near the Dead Sea—to argue that Jewish women experienced reduced legal status as a result of the imposition of Roman law. Specifically, I conduct a textual analysis of the contracts, deeds, and personal correspondence contained in the Babatha Archive to examine legal practices associated with guardianship, marriage, and inheritance. I conclude from Babatha’s experiences that women suffered diminished legal status under multi-legal systems, particularly Jewish women whose access, agency, rights, and privileges were more protected under pre-existing Jewish laws and customs than under imperial Roman law.