Gender Equality in the Egyptian Constitution: From 1923 to 2014

Abstract In this article I analyse how the political changes that were triggered by the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 affected women's rights on the constitutional level. Through a longue durée perspective, I look at women's rights starting from the 1923 Constitution. I then focus particularly on the two post-revolutionary constitutions (2012 and 2014) and on what they meant for gender equality. Even though the different constitutional texts represent the main source of this article, constitutions are social contracts and, as such, cannot be analysed without taking into account the historical context in which they were drafted and enacted. For this reason, I will also offer some input on the woman question and Egyptian feminism during the same period.