(which is paid at time of marriage (nikah), and the portion that is promised but deferred is called a ghaire mu'ajjal (غیر معجل) (which is paid after completion of marriage). A deferred promise to pay does not make the full amount of the mahr any less legally required. There are differences between the nature of mahr, definition of proper contract and conditions of enforceability depending on the regional fiqh and school of Islamic jurisprudence. Etymology and history The word Mahr is related to the Hebrew word and the Syriac word "Mahrā", meaning “bridal gift”, which originally meant “purchase-money”. The word implies a gift given voluntarily and not as a result of a contract, but in Muslim religious law it was declared a gift which the bridegroom has to give the bride when the contract of marriage is made and which becomes the property of the wife. Among pre-Islamic Arabs, a bride price called Mahr was an essential condition for a legal marriage. The Mahr was given to the guardian (Wali) of the bride, such as her father, brother or another relative. In earlier times, the bride received no portion of the Mahr. Some scholars believe that in the period shortly before Muhammad, the Mahr, or at least a part of it, was already given to the bride, while a few others regard its transformation into wife's property as a "revolutionary" Quranic innovation. Structure of mahr A mahr is part of many Muslim marriage contracts. The mahr may be separated into two parts. First, there is the muqaddam, or the prompt mahr, which the wife must receive at or immediately after the marriage ceremony. The second part of the mahr, called the mu'akhar, is a deferred and promised amount, payable at any agreed upon date following the consummation of the marriage. Often the deferred amount is larger than the amount paid at marriage. In theory, the deferred amount is supposed to provide the wife with a means of support, and is associated with the death or divorce of the husband, however this is a more traditional rather than Islamic stance on the matter. The mu'akhar should be viewed as importantly as the initial dower payment as it is an obligation to be fulfilled by the husband and is considered debt if it is not given to the wife within the timeframe agreed upon between the couple. The mahr in any Islamic