Marriage and transnational family life among Somali migrants in Finland

Authors

  • Mulki M Al-Sharmani University of Helsinki, Faculty of Theology, Study of Religions Unit, Finland
  • Abdirashid A Ismail Department of Social Research, University of Helsinki

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.59670/ml.v14i1.314

Keywords:

transnational kinship, marriage, Somali migrants, generation, Finland

Abstract

In this article, we investigate how marriage practices of Somali migrants in Finland are influenced by their transnational kinship. We examine how transnational family ties play a role in migrants’ spouse selection, marriage arrangements, and management of spousal resources. We also identify the factors that enable migrants to successfully navigate marital challenges caused by their transnational kin-based ties. These factors are: companionate marriage relationship based on emotional closeness and flexible spousal roles, compatibility in spousal resources, and the cooperation of couples in navigating transnational family obligations. We show how gender and generation are at play (in complex ways) in the interplay between transnational kinship and marriage. We draw on interview data from 16 married male and female interviewees, taken from a larger sample of 37 informants of different marital statuses. Our analysis is also based on data from focus group discussions

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Author Biographies

Mulki M Al-Sharmani, University of Helsinki, Faculty of Theology, Study of Religions Unit, Finland

Mulki Al-Sharmani (Ph.D. Docent) is an Academy Research Fellow at Faculty of Theology, Study of Religions Unit, University of Helsinki. Her research work and publications cover the following areas: modern Somali Diasporas with a focus on gender and transnational family life; Muslim marriage norms and practices; Islamic jurisprudence and Muslim family laws; gender reform and feminist legal activism, and Islamic feminism. She is currently working on two projects funded by Academy of Finland: the first is her own project on Islamic feminism (2013−2018), and in the second group project on Transnational Muslim Marriages (2013-2017), she is leading the sub study on marriage norms and practices among Somali Finnish families. 

Abdirashid A Ismail, Department of Social Research, University of Helsinki

Abdirashid Ismail has obtained a D.Sc. (econ) from Hanken School of Economics in 2010 and the title of his dissertation was “Somali State Failure: Players, Incentives & Institutions”. Ismail is a post-doctoral researcher at the Department of Social Research, University of Helsinki, where he works in the Transnational Muslim Marriages project. He is also an economics policy fellow with the Heritage Institute for Policy Studies (HIPS) in Somalia. Previously he served as visiting researcher and guest lecturer in some universities and research institutions in Somalia.  Ismail studies immigration and diaspora, with a focus on Muslims, particularly Somalis in Europe. His main interest is transnational family and child well-being. In addition, his areas of interest include political economy of conflict, post-conflict economy and state formation, political history of Somalia.

 

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Published

2016-08-22

How to Cite

Al-Sharmani, M. M., & Ismail, A. A. (2016). Marriage and transnational family life among Somali migrants in Finland. Migration Letters, 14(1), 38–49. https://doi.org/10.59670/ml.v14i1.314

Issue

Vol. 14 No. 1 (2017): Special Issue: Transnational Migrant Families: Navigating Marriage, Generation, and Gender in Multiple Spheres

Section

Special Dossier

License

CC Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0