There is nothing in the Koran that sanctions honor killing, but it is nonetheless true that most honor killings take place in Muslim societies. Dr. Nawal Ammar of Kent State University argues that honor killings are a "pre-Islamic, tribal custom". It has been stated by anthropologist James Emery: "Prior to the arrival of Islam in AD 622, Arabs occasionally buried infant daughters to avoid the possibility that they would later bring shame to the family." Emery suggests that honor killing in the Middle East is an Arabic tribal custom, perpetuating social patterns from the pre-Islamic (jahilayah) era.

The second Caliph - Omar (Umar, died 644 AD) - was a close friend of Mohammed. He is said to have only cried once. This happened when he recollected that in the time of jahilayah he buried his infant daughter alive, and as he did so, she brushed away the dust from his beard. Under the first Caliphs, Islam was spread by the sword, and within three centuries it had expanded to Spain in the West and to Afghanistan and parts of India in the east. Yet it is true that in Indonesia, the most populous Muslim country, honor killing is almost unheard of. In Malaysia too, honor killings are apparently nonexistent. Islam did not arrive in South-East Asia until the 13th century, which may explain why honor-killing is not common in this region...

...Between 1998 and 2001, women's rights group CEWLA collected press clippings of honor killings. In only 9% of these instances was there actual adultery. 79% of such killings happened because adultery was only suspected, and 6% of cases happened to cover up cases of incest...