To this day, 32-year-old Salma’s* mother – along with a substantial part of her social circle – still has no idea that she met her husband on OKCupid. Her mother’s stance on online dating had always been clear: a woman actively seeking a partner implies desperation. Salma, on the other hand, sees it differently and believes the decision to put herself out there was both “honest and vulnerable.” Vulnerable, it was. When she first created her account in 2012, she had no idea what to expect. Online dating was new to Egypt during the pre-Tinder era and most users were only resorting to it for hookups. “I was very hesitant on whether this was the way to [pursue a relationship]; I felt like there was no way in hell this would have a fruitful end,” she recalls. However, her decision to put herself out there paid off, and Salma has been happily married for almost six years. The stigmatization of online dating in Egypt The stigma surrounding online dating in Egypt has decreased significantly compared to when Salma first met her husband – particularly with the emergence of the many…
