In some tribes, women were emancipated even in comparison with many of today's standards. There were instances where women held high positions of power and authority. In other tribes, women were of low status. They were subordinate to their fathers, brothers, and husbands. In some instances, women were chattels, effectively property.

A woman had no share in inheritance because she was regarded as unwise and incapable of effectively managing her inherited property. There were also patterns of homicidal abuse of women and girls, including instances of killing female infants considered to be a liability. In his book Infanticide: Comparative and Evolutionary Perspectives, Glenn Hausfater details how Qais Bin Assem, a leader of the Tamim tribe, killed every daughter he had for fear of their capture (and his disgrace) in the inter-tribal wars that dominated Arabian society at that time. According to some scholars; during times of famine, especially, poorer families were likely to kill a daughter, regarding her as a burden on a starving family.

It is claimed by some Muslim writers and some scholars of Middle Eastern history that in pre-Islamic Arabia, women could not inherit land or wealth; holdings were usually considered the property of the tribe she was born or married in to. They claim Islam changed the very structure of the society and to a large degree unified the people, reforming and standardizing gender roles throughout the region. Some, however, disagree.