Divorce settlement among the Uyghurs during the Republican era in Xinjiang.

Family law is an important constituent of law that deals with social relations within the family and the household. It regulates conflicts concerning marriage, divorce, child custody, adoption, inheritance and so on. During the Chinese Republican era (1912–1949), as a continuation of the practice in Imperial China, the settlement of conflicts emerging in the Uyghur domestic sphere was governed by Islamic law. In this article, based on several text corpora consisting of legal documents originating in southern Xinjiang (Khotan and Kashgar) from the Republican era, I will analyse the reasons behind such disputes and the final decisions made by Muslim judges. It will also touch upon women's position in pre-socialist Uyghur society, the role of village elders and fathers-in-law, patterns of dispute settlement, the influence of the different forms of divorce, and the parameters for further research on the texts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]