This is an exploration of the notion of "household" as the site and organizing model, not only of production but also of politics in Yemen's past and present. Based on three years' fieldwork, the study is written from the vantage point of women's society but, insisting that domestic government is not the same as women's private domain, it is not confined to a study of women. Instead, Mundy links the idea and organization of the household with property and suggests subtle ways in which household and house relate to locality, region and wider notions of government and legal authority. Seeking to place the study of Arab society within the mainstream of anthropolgy and social history, this should be of interest to students of sociology, development studies and gender studies, as well as to anthropologists.