Wine and Zam Zam
Governing food, drink, and Islam in Dubai
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19225720 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Joud Alkorani (0000-0001-5840-5578, Radboud University Nijmegen, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Pages | 1-21 |
| Publication date | 2026-05-16 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Food Culture & Society (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1552-8014 • E-ISSN: 1751-7443 |
| Publisher | Routledge (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/15528014.2026.2674439 |
| OpenAlex | W7161450161 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 27 |
This article explores how the UAE – and the emirate of Dubai in particular – regulate food and drink with the aim of governing Islam. It lays out how a series of food-related initiatives have left a profound impact on religion and society in the UAE since the early 2000s, focusing on the 1) decriminalization of alcohol 2) deregulation of public eating during Ramadan and 3) granting of liquor licenses to new kinds of establishments. Drawing on ethnographic accounts and interviews with Muslim women living in the superdiverse city of Dubai, I show how encounters with others in sites of work and leisure encourage women to reflect and experiment both in their culinary habits and religious practices. I thus analyze how legal changes around food impact not only how Muslims eat (and drink), but also what it means to be Muslim in the first instance, foregrounding the role of secular power and the state in this process
Context (archaeology) · Government (linguistics) · Islam · Wine · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Global Maritime and Colonial Histories · Halal products and consumer behavior
Money, Markets, and Monarchies
What Is Islam?
Muslim Food Culture
Work-related Alcohol Use
Religion, Identity and Human Security
Questioning Secularism
The Politics of Secularism in International Relations
The Game is Still Beautiful without Beer
It Is You and Allah
Reckoning with God
Alcohol in The Muslim Worlds
Contesting Intoxication
Disgust as Embodied Critique
Some kind of family
The Republic Unsettled
Eating Ashure on Ashura
What You Wear, What You Eat, and Whom You Love
Alcohol in the Islamic Middle East
Good Muslim, Bad Muslim
Islamism and the Politics of Fun
The Abu Dhabi adhan
Thinking About Tradition, Religion, and Politics in Egypt Today
Can Muslims Drink? Rumi Vodka, Persianate Ideals, and the Anthropology of Islam
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |