What is Harem?
[[Image:HaremPool.jpg|thumb|''Pool in a Harem'' by [[Jean-Léon Gérôme]], about 1876]] [[Image:Une nouvelle arrivée by Giulio Rosati 3.jpg|thumb|right|''Newly Arrived'' (Giulio Rosati)]] '''Harem''' means the women and the place where they live in a [[polygyny|polygynous]] household. Most men are not allowed in there. The word ''harem'' comes from the Turkish word ''haram'', meaning a [[sacred]], forbidden place. Harems were meant for the royal upbringing of the future wives of noble and royal men. These women would be educated so that they were ready to appear in public as a royal wife. In the West people thought that harems (especially those in the [[Ottoman Empire]]) were [[brothel]]s full of women who gave themselves up to please rich men. In modern terms the word maybe used to describe a group of admiring women attracted to one man. [[Category:Islamic culture]]