Letter: T-S NS J175a + T-S NS J175b

Description

Letter probably from a woman, in Alexandria, to [...] b. Avraham, in Fustat. In Judaeo-Arabic. (The clue for the gender of the writer is the verb ending with "-ī" in line 28 of recto where she is quoting the addressee's words.) The sender may be the mother-in-law of the addressee's daughter, as the daughter is under her charge, and the addressee has been accusing her of oppressing his daughter. The addressee's sister also lives with or near the sender. Either the sister or the daughter has a son named ʿAyyāsh. This letter is a detailed report on the scandalous behavior of one of the women with a young male neighbor for the last year and the writer's efforts to intervene. At one point, the woman and the man vowed not to see each other for 10 days, but the sender nevertheless found them talking to each other at all hours of the night. At this point, ʿAyyāsh and his mother vowed not to speak to the woman in question any more, which led to a period of peace and quiet. But clearly matters are still tense, as the sender felt the need to send this strongly-worded letter exonerating herself of all misdoings. She urges the addressee to "act with her this time the same way as last time." ASE