Topic
The Quran sets no minimum age of marriage but requires maturity (4:6); modern Muslim-majority countries have set minimum ages in law.
What it means
The Quran speaks of orphans “reaching marriageable age” and of testing their sound judgement before returning their property (4:6). Classical jurists differed: some allowed a father to contract a minor’s marriage, with consummation delayed until she is able, and others held that consent and maturity are required. Reports on Aisha’s age are discussed in her entry.
What the sources say
Egypt, Turkey, Tunisia, Morocco and others have set a minimum age, usually eighteen, by law, and Muslim scholars have defended such laws as being in line with the aims of sharia, which protect the person’s welfare. Child marriage today is more a matter of poverty and custom than of religion, and exists in non-Muslim societies too.