المعنى الاصطلاحي :

Separation between husband and wife.

الشرح المختصر :

"Furqah" (separation) means severing the marital relationship between the husband and wife and the breaking up of their marriage. The reasons for "furqah" are many, some of which are: divorce; annulment of the marriage contract; defects that prevent copulation, such as impotence or castration; "li‘ān" (mutual cursing); apostasy; having been breastfed by the same woman; as well as other reasons. There are two types of "furqah": 1. Obligatory "furqah": which depends neither on the ruler nor on either of the spouses; rather, it is established as soon as certain actions are committed, such as "furqah" due to apostasy and "furqah" due to mutual cursing. 2. Optional "furqah": which depends sometimes on the husband's choice, and this is called divorce, and sometimes on the wife's choice, in case there is a defect in the husband, or if the woman is manumitted while her husband remains a slave, and sometimes on the ruler's choice, such as the "furqah" due to "eelā’" (a husband's oath not to have intercourse with his wife).

التعريف اللغوي المختصر :

"Furqah": breakup and separation between things. Opposite: "ittisāl" (connection).