a glimpse at early women islamic scholars

8/14/2019 A Glimpse at Early Women Islamic Scholars

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Two article collected from Islam online.net 1 ) A glimpse of early women Islamic

scholar 2) Women hadith scholar Part 1 and 2

A Glimpse at Early Women Islamic Scholars *

Dr. Mohammd Akram Nadwi

Both men and women today need

to revive the rich Islamic heritage

of Muslim women scholars.

Related Links


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The following is a transcript of a lecture

delivered by Dr. Mohammad Akram Nadwi, a

Research Fellow in Oxford University's Centre

or Islamic Studies, on the role of women

scholars in preserving and transmitting

rophetic tradition (Hadith) in Islam. The

original transcript has been edited by Imam

Zaid Shakir to enhance readability.

From the very beginning of the human saga,

Allah makes it quite clear that men and women

are equal beings created from one single soul,sharing the same father and mother, and

subservient unto the same Lord. The versementioned above came to the Messenger ofAllah (peace upon him) at a time when women

were being humiliated and tortured.

Allah says: [and when the female child,

buried alive, will be asked: For what sin was

she killed.] (At-Takwir 81:8-9) This refers to

an ancient practice of the Arabs (and evensome modern societies through abortion) whowould kill their female children from fear of

being humiliated in the community, or out of

fear that they would not have the means to

provide for them.

Islam came to eradicate these ignorant practices, amongst others, and after twenty-

three years of prophetic teachings, it had conferred unto women a status that waspreviously unthinkable.

The first revelation: [Read in the name of your Lord who created] (Al-`Alaq 96:1)

left the Prophet (peace upon him) severely shaken, for he could not comprehend such

an event happening to an unlettered, orphaned, desert Arab.

It is related that he was consoled by Khadijah (may Allah be pleased with her) who

believed in him and comforted him in a time of great need and distress. She was the

backbone of his initial efforts for the advancement of the new faith, and a noble

business woman of high lineage.

Women Scholars of Hadith

(Part 1)

Women Scholars of Hadith

(Part 2)The Story of the Quran

Women: The Spiritual

Aspect

Position of Women in

Islam: Economic Aspect

Position of Women in Islam

Social Aspect

Hadith Textual Criticism: A

Reconsideration

The Sunnah: A Source of

Civilization

What is the Sunnah

It Is Reported That The

Prophet Said


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After three years of secrecy he was ordered by Allah to call his

own family to the faith. He (peace upon him) gathered hisfamily and openly called upon the tribe of Hashim and the

tribe of Àbdul-Muttalib to believe in his message.

Towards the end of the narration of this event, he (peace uponhim) specifically says to Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib (may

Allah be pleased with him): "I cannot benefit you on the Dayof Judgment." He uttered the same statement to his aunt,

Safiyyah bint Abdul-Muttalib and to his daughter, Fatimah (may Allah be pleased

with both of them). He added: "Ask me of my wealth in this world, but on the Day ofJudgment I cannot avail you in any way."

In this address the Prophet (peace upon him) specifically named two women and one

man, demonstrating that women possess independent religious responsibility that hasno connection to their gender.

This independence in faith is exemplified by the fact that the wives of Noah and Lot(peace upon them) both rejected faith. Hence, the Qur'an affirms that even the wife of a

Prophet is free to believe or disbelieve.

Furthermore, Umm Habibah became a believer while her father, Abu Sufyan, (may

Allah be pleased with them both), was a staunch opponent of the Prophet (peace upon

him). He possessed neither the power nor privilege to influence her independent

choice.

At the second Pledge of Àqabah, a covenant that involved specific political and

strategic obligations, the Prophet (peace upon him) took an oath from both men and

women. He was not content to have women confined to their houses, totally divorced

from any involvement in public affairs.

Women Perserving the Qur'an

The Qur'an, the most sacred and important source in Islam, was memorized by many

of the companions. After the Battle of Yamamah, where a large number of those

memorizers were killed, Ùmar (may Allah be pleased with him) advised Abu Bakr to

issue a standardized edition of the entire Qur'an in the dialect of Quraish, whose

protection he

The Prophet

demonstrated that

women possess

independent

religious

responsibility thathas no connection to

their gender.


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Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) issued such an edition. After his death it

passed into the protection of Ùmar (may Allah be pleased with him), and after his

passing, it was given to Hafsah bint Ùmar (may Allah be pleased with her) to be

carefully guarded and preserved.

During the caliphate of Ùthman (may Allah be pleased with

him) it was noticed that divergent and erroneous recitations ofthe Qur'an were emerging among the newly converted non-

Arab people in places like Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Ùthman (may Allah be pleased with him) then borrowed the

edition of the Qur'an in Hafsah's protection (may Allah be

pleased with her) to make six standardized copies to send to the

major political and cultural centers in the Islamic realm. He ordered all non-standardized editions to be burned. It is clear here that no one questioned Hafsah's

trustworthiness (may Allah be pleased with her), as to whether she had altered the

edition vouchsafed to her in any way.

Women and Hadith Studies

In the time of the Companions, the question never arose concerning the validity of

learning directly from women. If we were to consider, for example, the books of

Prophetic tradition (Hadith), in every chapter you will find women narrating as well as

men.

Imam Hakim Naisapuri states: "One fourth of our religion depends on the narrations of

women. Were it not for those narrations, we would lose a quarter of our religion."

For example, Abu Hanifah considers there to be four units of supererogatory prayer

before the obligatory noon prayer, whereas the remaining Imams say that there are

only two. The latter depend on the narration of Àbdullah ibn Ùmar (may Allah be

pleased with him), while Abu Hanifah relies on Umm Habiba (may Allah be pleased

with her) and the other wives of the Prophet (peace upon him).

Abu Hanifah argues that since the Prophet (peace upon him), used to pray

supererogatory prayers in his house, the narration of his wives (may Allah be pleased

with them) is stronger.

In the time of the

Companions, the

question never

arose concerning

the validity of

learning directly

from women.


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Similarly, major events, such as the beginning of the call to the prophetic office, were

specifically narrated by women. Ài'shah alone narrates the tradition detailing the

circumstances of the first revelation, as recorded by Imam Bukhari, immediately after

the hadith mentioning that actions are judged based on the intention accompanying

them.

To give similar examples, we all know that performing ablution is essential for the

validity of ritual prayer (salah). A female companion, Rubiyya bint Muawidh ibn

Afrah (may Allah have mercy on her), whose family members died in the Battle of

Uhud, was a great narrator of Hadith.

Her narrations can be found in Bukhari, Muslim, Ibn Majah, and

other compilations. She narrated how the Prophet (peace upon

him), performed ablution after actually witnessing hisperformance of the purificatory ritual.

The companions would go to learn from her despite the fact thatAbu Bakr, Ùmar, Ùthman, Àli, Muàdh ibn Jabal, and

Àbdullah ibn Masùd (may Allah be pleased with them) were all

present in Madinah. She was regarded as the expert in theperformance of ablution. Her students included the likes of Àbdullah ibn Àbbas (may

Allah be pleased with him and his father) the great Qur'anic exegete, and also a

member of the family of the Prophet (peace and blessing of Allah upon him). He neverasked: "Why should I learn from her when I am from the family of the Prophet and

great exegete?"

The same is true for Ali Zain ul-Abideen, the great grandson of the Prophet (peace

upon him) and a great scholar himself. Their philosophy was to go to whoever

possessed knowledge, irrespective of their gender.Interestingly, there is no single Hadith which has been rejected from a woman on

account of her being a fabricating liar. Imam Dhahabi affirms: "There are many men

who have fabricated Hadith. However, no woman in the history of Islam has been

accused of fabrication." In light of this, if the intellectual integrity of anyone should be

questioned, it should be that of men. Women have always truthfully conveyed religious

knowledge.

Amrah bint Abdur-Rahman was amongst the greatest of the female Successors, the

generation that came after that of the companions of the Prophet (peace upon him). She

was a jurist, a mufti, and a Hadith specialist.

"There are many

men who have

fabricated Hadith.However, no

woman in the

history of Islam

has been accused

of fabrication."


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The great Caliph Ùmar ibn Abdul-Àziz used to say: "If you want to learn Hadith go

to Amrah." Imam Zuhri, who is credited with compiling the first systematically edited

compilation of Hadith used to say: "Go to Amrah, she is the vast vessel of Hadith."

During that time, the Judge of Madinah ruled in a case involving a Christian thief from

Syria who had stolen something. The judge had ordered that his hand to be severed.

When Amrah bint Abdur-Rahman heard of this decision, she immediately told one of

her students to go tell the judge that he cannot severe the man's hand because he had

stolen something whose value was less than a single gold coin (dinar). As soon as he

heard what Amrah had said, he ordered that the man be released, unharmed.

He did not question her authority, nor did he seek a second opinion from other

scholars, who were quite numerous in Madinah at the time. They included the likes of

Saìd ibn Al-Musayyib. This incident is recorded in the Muwatta'of Imam Malik, and

this ruling is also his opinion in such cases.

One of great Successors, Umm Darda, taught in both Damascus, in the great Umayyad

Mosque, and Jerusalem. Her class was attended by Imams, jurists, and Hadith scholars.

The powerful Caliph Abdul-Malik ibn Marwan, who ruled an empire stretching from

Spain to India, had a teaching license from Àbdullah ibn Ùmar (may Allah be

pleased with him) who was considered the greatest jurist of his time in Madinah.

When Àbdullah reached old age, the people asked him: "Who should we seek

religious verdicts from after you?" He replied: "Marwan has a son (Abdul-Malik), who

is a jurist so ask him." Hence, Abdul-Malik was endorsed by Abdullah. Yet even

Abdul-Malik ibn Marwan would attend the classes of Umm Darda and he would never

feel ashamed of learning from her.

Furthermore, he would humbly serve her. It has been recorded that when Umm Darda

was teaching she would lean on the shoulder of Abdul-Malik ibn Marwan, due to her

being advanced years, to go to mosque for salah. He would help her return to her place

of teaching after the prayer.


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The fact that these women taught men who were themselves regarded as great scholars

indicates the respect and status they had attained.

The mosque of the Prophet (peace upon him) is undoubtedly one of the most sacred

places in Islam, and his blessed grave is even more sacred. Around the beginning of

the 8th century of the Muslim calendar, Fatima bint Ibrahim ibn Jowhar, a famous

teacher of Al-Bukhari, under whom both Imams Dhahabi and Al-Subki studied the

entirety of Sahih Al-Bukhari appeared.

When she came for the pilgrimage (Hajj) her fame was such that as soon as the

students of Hadith heard that she had reached Madinah, they requested her to teach in

the mosque of the Prophet (peace upon him).

Ibn Rushayd Al-Subki, who traveled from Marrakesh, describes one of her classes

thus: "She was sitting in front of the blessed head of Prophet (peace upon him), and

[due to her advanced years] she would lean on his grave. She would finish by writing

and signing the license to transmit her narrations (ijazah ), personally, for all of the

Hadiths that were read by every student present."

This, and similarly stories, makes it clear that women can teach in the best of mosques.

Pathetically, today there are debates in the Muslim world as to whether they can even

come to the mosque for prayer. This is an indication of our ignorance of our own

Islamic heritage, and of our digression from the practices of our pious predecessors.

Aishah bint Abdul-Hadi used to teach in the grand mosque of Damascus. She was

appointed by the Sultan of that time as the Master of Hadith and taught the compilation

of Imam Al-Bukhari. She represented the whole community and they could not find

any man better than her. Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani, considered by many to be the greatest

of all latter day Hadith scholars, traveled to Damascus and studied more than one

hundred books with her.

We do not have a


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Today, it would be difficult to find a "sheikh" who even knows

the names of her books, to say nothing of having read them. Inaddition to her intellectual acumen, her chain of narration in

Hadith is regarded as the strongest from her generation back to

the Prophet (peace upon him). Between her and Imam Al-

Bukhari are eight transmitters, and between Imam Al-Bukhariand the Prophet (peace upon him) there are variously, three, four or five transmitters.

No other chain of narrators allows one to reach the Prophet (peace upon him) with anequal or smaller number of narrators.

If we consider the great role of women such as Hafsah (may Allah be pleased with her

and her father) in the compilation of the Qur'an, and the role of women like Aishah

bint Abdul-Hadi in preserving and accurately conveying Hadith, it is clear that the two

most fundamental sources of our religion have been secured with the aid and blessing

of women.

Fatimah Al-Juzdani, a great scholar from Isfahan in present-day Iran, read one of the

great books of Hadith, Al-Mu`jam Al-Kabeer, with Abu Bakr ibn Rida, who himself

studied the entirety of the book with its author, Imam At-Tabarani. This book has been

published in thirty-seven volumes (unfinished). After mastering the book, she

subsequently taught it many times.

Not a single scholar alive today has studied this book, or even part of it with a teacher.

Furthermore, we do not have a single narration of this book except from women,

because it was forgotten by the male Hadith scholars.

In the time of Ibn Taymiyya, there were other scholars like Imam Dhahabi, Al-Mizzi,

Al-Birzali, Tajuddin Al-Subqi, and a little later, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Al-Qayyim, Ibn

Nasiruddin Al-Dimishqui, and Hafidh Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani. This was the golden age

of Hadith, when the development of Hadith literature and teaching was at its peak. Not

only were these men scholars, they were also reformers of their society.

At this very time, there was a woman in Syria, who was also known for her scholarship

and the powerful positive influence she had on society. She helped in the reformation

of communities in Damascus and Cairo by enjoining good and forbidding evil.

Ibn Kathir, the student of Ibn Taymiyya, has written in his highly acclaimed work of

from women,

because it was

forgotten by the

male Hadith

scholars.


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history, Al-Bidaya wal-Nihaya: "She reformed society by enjoining good and

forbidding evil, she accomplished what men are unable to do, that is to say, she did

more than the male scholars of her time." This testimony was written by a man. Hence,

no one can say it is the biased opinion of a woman, and thereby question its

authenticity. This was a golden age full of proactive, confident and talented women.

Hisham ibn `Urwah ibn Zubair (may Allah be pleasedwith him), is the teacher of Imam Malik, Abu Hanifa,

Sufyan al-Thawri, Saeed Qahtan, and is acknowledged as

a great Hadith scholar of that era. The most reliableHadiths narrated by him, found in both Bukhari and

Muslim, are those he narrates from his wife, Fatimah bint

Mundhir. Sadly, many Muslim men today would notmarry a woman more knowledgeable than themselves.

The men of our past would proudly marry and learn from

them.One of the best compilations in Hanafi fiqh is the masterpiece Badaya al-Sanayaby

Imam Kasani, whose wife was Fatimah Al-Samarqandiyya, daughter of Ala'addin Al-

Samarqandi. This book is a commentary on Tuhfat al-Fuqaha' written by the latter.

Fatimah was a great expert in Hadith and other religious sciences.

Imam Kasani's students narrate: "We saw our teacher at times would leave the

classroom when he could not answer a certain difficult question. After a while he

would return to elucidate the answer in great detail. Only later on did we learn that he

would go home to put the same question to his wife in order to hear her explanation."

Clearly, he depended on his wife in his scholarly life.

Not only were women scholars allowed to give binding religious verdicts (fatwas), but

if they differed with their male contemporaries there would be absolutely no objections

concerning their pronouncements. This was apparent from the earliest period.

Illustrative of this is the opinion of Fatimah bint Qais (may God be pleased with her),

who said that a husband need not provide support for his irrevocably divorced wife

during her period of waiting (iddah). She based her opinion on a narration from the

Prophet (peace upon him).

Despite the fact that `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) and other senior

companions disagreed with her, based on their understanding of a verse in the Qur'an,

Not only were women

scholars allowed to give

binding religious verdicts,

but if they differed with

their male contemporaries

there would be absolutely

no objections concerning

their judgement.


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they did not question her faith, impose sanctions on her, nor did they prevent her from

continuing to narrate the Hadith and issuing her fatwa.

This incident is interesting in that it presents the opinion of a woman that advances a

ruling that is not deemed favorable to woman. In so doing she opposes an opinion

advanced by men that is deemed favorable to women. If this incident had occurred in

our times it would have surely been the point of much contention and discussion.

The above are just some of the evidence that establishes the enormous contribution of

women to the Islamic scholarly enterprise. The book it is excerpted from contains

many more arguments and can be found at http://www.interfacepublications.com.

I hope that this article empowers us to help women attain the status and dignity that

was given to them by our pious predecessors, based on the inspiration they received

from the leader of all the prophets, our exemplary master, Muhammad, the chosen one,

(peace and mercy of God upon him).

* This article originally appeared inwww.newislamicdirections.com. It is republished

here with kind permission.Dr. Mohammad Akram Nadwi is currently a Research Fellow at the Oxford Centre for

Islamic Studies, Oxford. He specialized and taught Hanafi fiqh at the Nadwat al-Ulama

(India). He has written over20 books in Arabic biographical studies of Islamic

scholars, Arabic grammar and syntax, Quranic sciences and Hadith sciences. He is

currently working on the introduction to a (just completed) 40-volume biographical

dictionary of women scholars of hadith in the Islamic world. He has just begun to write

books in English. The following are forthcoming in 2007: al-Fiqh al-Islami (Angelwing);

al-Muhaddithat: Women Scholars in Islam (Interface Publications,October 2006); and

Madrasah Life: A Day in the Life of a Student in Nadwatul Ulama (al-Turath

Publications).

Women Scholars of Hadith (Part 1) *


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By Dr. Muhammad Zubayr Siddiqi

In the Early Days of Islam In the Period of the Successors The Compilation of Hadith

Part1

Part2

History records few scholarly enterprises, at least before

modern times, in which women have played an important

and active role side by side with men. The science ofHadith forms an outstanding exception in this respect.

Islam, as a religion which (unlike Christianity) refused toattribute gender to the Godhead,

(1)and never appointed a

male priestly elite to serve as an intermediary betweencreature and Creator, started life with the assurance that

while men and women are equipped by nature for

complementary rather than identical roles, no spiritualsuperiority inheres in the masculine principle.

(2)As a

result, the Muslim community was happy to entrust

matters of equal worth in God's sight to both men andwomen. Only this can explain why, uniquely among the classical Western religions,

Islam produced a large number of outstanding female scholars, on whose testimony and

sound judgment much of the edifice of Islam depends.

In the Early Days of Islam

Since Islam's earliest days, women took a prominent part in the preservation and

cultivation of Hadith, and this function continued down the centuries. At every period in

Muslim history, there lived numerous eminent women scholars of Hadith, treated by theirbrethren with reverence and respect. Entries on very large numbers of them are to be

found in the biographical dictionaries.

During the lifetime of the Prophet (peace and blessings

be upon him), many women were not only the instancefor the evolution of many hadiths, but were also theirtransmitters to their sisters and brothers in faith.

(3)After

the Prophet's death, many women Companions,particularly his wives, were looked upon as vital

custodians of knowledge, and were approached for instruction by the other Companions,

to whom they readily dispensed the rich store which they had gathered in the Prophet'scompany. The names of Hafsah, Umm Habibah, Maymunah, Umm Salamah, and

After the Prophet's death,

many women Companions,particularly his wives, were

looked upon as vital

custodians of knowledge.


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À'ishah, are familiar to every student of Hadith as being among its earliest and most

distinguished transmitters.(4)

In particular, À'ishah is one of the most important figuresin the whole history of Hadith literaturenot only as one of the earliest reporters of the

largest number of Hadith, but also as one of their most careful interpreters.

In the Period of the Successors

In the period of the Successors, too, women held important positions as scholars ofHadith. Hafsah, the daughter of Ibn Sirin,

(5)Umm Ad-Darda' the Younger (d. AH 81/700

CE), and Àmrah bint Àbdur-Rahman, are only a few of the key women scholars ofHadith of this period. Umm Ad-Darda' was held by Iyas ibn Muàwiyah, an important

scholar of Hadith of the time and a judge of undisputed ability and merit, to be superior to

all the other Hadith scholars of the period, including the celebrated masters of Hadith likeAl-Hasan Al-Basri and Ibn Sirin.

(6)Àmrah was considered a great authority on

traditions related by À'ishah. Among her students, Abu Bakr ibn Hazm, the celebrated

judge of Madinah, was ordered by the caliph Ùmar ibn Àbdul-Àziz to write down all

the traditions known on her authority.

(7)

After them, Àbidah Al-Madaniyyah, Àbdah bint Bishr,

Umm Ùmar Ath-Thaqafiyyah, Zaynab the

granddaughter of Àli ibn Àbdullah ibn Àbbas, Nafisahbint Al-Hasan ibn Ziyad, Khadijah Umm Muhammad,

Àbdah bint Àbdur-Rahman, and many other women

excelled in delivering public lectures on Hadith. Thesedevout women came from the most diverse backgrounds,

indicating that neither class nor gender were obstacles to

rising through the ranks of Islamic scholarship. For example, Àbidah, who started life as

a slave owned by Muhammad ibn Yazid, learned a large number of hadiths with theteachers in Madinah. She was given by her master to Habib Dahhun, the great Hadith

scholar of Spain, when he visited the holy city Jerusalem on his way to the Hajj. Dahhun

was so impressed by her learning that he freed her, married her, and brought her toAndalusia. It is said that she related 10,000 hadiths on the authority of her Madinan

teachers.(8)

Zaynab bint Sulayman (d. AH 142/759 CE), by contrast, was princess by birth. Her fatherwas a cousin of As-Saffah, the founder of the Abbasid dynasty, and had been a governor

of Basrah, Oman, and Bahrain during the caliphate of Al-Mansur.(9)

Zaynab, who

received a fine education, acquired a mastery of Hadith, gained a reputation as one of themost distinguished women scholars of Hadith of the time, and counted many important

men among her pupils. (10)

The Compilation of Hadith

These devout women came

from the most diverse

backgrounds, indicating

that neither class nor gender

were obstacles to rising

through the ranks of Islamic

scholarship.


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This partnership of women with men in the

cultivation of the Prophetic Tradition continued inthe period when the great anthologies of Hadith

were compiled. A survey of the texts reveals that all

the important compilers of Hadith from the earliest

period received many of them from womenteachers: every major collection gives the names of

many women as the immediate authorities of the

author. And when these works had been compiled,the women scholars themselves mastered them and

delivered lectures to large classes of pupils, to

whom they would issue their own ijazah

(permission to transmit hadiths or a book of Hadith).

In the fourth century we find Fatimah bint Àbdur-Rahman (d. AH 312/924 CE), known

as As-Sufiyyah on account of her great piety; Fatimah, granddaughter of Abu Dawud of

Sunan fame; Amat Al-Wahid (d. AH 377/987 CE), the daughter of distinguished juristAl-Muhamili; Umm Al-Fath Amat As-Salam (d. AH 390/999 CE), the daughter of the

judge Abu Bakr Ahmad (d. AH 350/961 CE); Jumuàh bint Ahmad, and many other

women, whose classes were always attended by reverential audiences.(11)

The Islamic tradition of female Hadith scholarship

continued in the fifth and sixth centuries after Hijrah.

Fatimah bint Al-Hasan ibn Àli ibn Ad-Daqqaq Al-Qushayri, was celebrated not only for her piety and her

mastery of calligraphy, but also for her knowledge of

Hadith and the quality of the isnads (chains of narrators) she knew.(12)

Even more

distinguished was Karimah Al-Marwaziyyah (d. AH 463/1070 CE), who was consideredthe best authority on the Sahih of Al-Bukhari in her own time. Abu Dharr of Herat, one

of the leading scholars of the period, attached such great importance to her authority that

he advised his students to study the Sahih under no one else because of the quality of herscholarship. She thus figures as a central point in the transmission of this seminal text of

Islam.(13)

As a matter of fact, writes Goldziher, her name occurs with extraordinary

frequency of the ijazas for narrating the text of this book.(14)

Among her students wereAl-Khatib Al-Baghdadi

(15)and Al-Humaydi (AH 428/1036 CEAH 488/1095 CE).

(16)

Aside from Karimah, a number of other women scholars of Hadith occupy an eminent

place in the history of the transmission of the text of the Sahih.(17)

Among these, onemight mention in particular Fatimah bint Muhammad (d. AH 539/1144 CE; Shahdah the

Writer (d. AH 574/1178 CE), and Sitt Al-Wuzara bint Ùmar (d. AH 716/1316 CE).(18)

Fatimah narrated the book on the authority of the great scholar of Hadith Saìd Al-Àiyar;

she received from the Hadith specialists the proud title ofmusnidat Asfahan (the greatHadith authority of Asfahan).

Shahdah was a famous calligrapher and a scholar of great repute; the biographers

The Islamic tradition of

female Hadith scholarship

continued in the fifth and

sixth centuries after Hijrah.


14/20



womanhood. Her great-grandfather had been a dealer in needles, and thus acquired the

sobriquet Al-Ibri (needle-seller). But her father, Abu Nasr (d. AH 506/1112 CE) hadacquired a passion for Hadith and managed to study it with several masters of the subject.(19)

In obedience to the Sunnah (the Prophet's way and teachings), he gave his daughter a

sound academic education, ensuring that she studied under many Hadith scholars of

accepted reputation.

She married Àli ibn Muhammad, an important figure with some literary interests, who

later became a boon companion of the caliph Al-Muqtadi, and founded a college and a

Sufi lodge, which he endowed most generously. His wife, however, was better known:She gained her reputation in the field of Hadith scholarship, and was noted for the quality

of herisnads.(20)

Her lectures on Sahih Al-Bukhari and other Hadith collections were

attended by large crowds of students; and on account of her great reputation, some people

even falsely claimed to have been her disciples.(21)

Also known as an authority on Al-Bukhari was Sitt Al-Wuzara, who, besides her

acclaimed mastery of Islamic law, was known as the musnidah (the great Hadithauthority) of her time, and delivered lectures on the Sahih and other works in Damascusand Egypt.

(22)Classes on the Sahih were likewise given by Umm Al-Khayr Amatil-

Khaliq (AH 811/1408 CEAH 911/1505 CE), who is regarded as the last great Hadith

scholar of the Hijaz.(23)

Still another authority on Al-Bukhari was À'ishah bint Àbdul-Hadi.

(24)

*Excerpted with some modifications from: www.studyislam.com

(1) Maura O'Neill, Women Speaking, Women Listening(Maryknoll, 1990CE), 31:

Muslims do not use a masculine God as either a conscious or unconscious tool in the

construction of gender roles.

(2) For a general overview of the question of women's status in Islam, see M. Boisers,

L'Humanisme de l'Islam (3rd ed., Paris, 1985), 10410.

(3) Al-Khatib, Sunnah , 534, 6970.

(4) See above, 18, 21.

(5) Ibn Sa`d, VIII, 355.

(6) Suyuti, Tadrib , 215.

(7) Ibn Sa`d, VIII, 353.

(8) Maqqari,Nafh , II, 96.

(9) Wustenfeld, Genealogische Tabellen , 403.


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(10) Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi, Tarikh Baghdad, XIV, 434f.

(11) Ibid., XIV, 441-44.

(12) Ibn Al-Ìmad, Shadharat Adh-Dhahah fi Akhbar man Dhahah (Cairo, AH 1351), V,

48; Ibn Khallikan, no. 413.

(13) Maqqari,Nafh , I, 876; cited in Goldziher, Muslim Studies , II, 366.

(14) Goldziher, Muslim Studies , II, 366. It is in fact very common in the ijazah of the

transmission of the Bukhari text to find as middle member of the long chain the name of

Karimah Al-Marwaziyyah (ibid.).

(15) Yaqut, Mu`jam Al-Udaba', I, 247.

(16) COPL, V/i, 98f.

(17) Goldziher, Muslim Studies , II, 366.

(18) Ibn Al-Ìmad, IV, 123. Sitt Al-Wuzara' was also an eminent jurist. She was once

invited to Cairo to give her fatwa on a subject that had perplexed the jurists there.

(19) Ibn Al-Athir,Al-Kamil(Cairo, AH 1301), X, 346.

(20) Ibn Khallikan, no. 295.

(21) Goldziher, Muslim Studies , II, 367.

(22) Ibn Al-Ìmad, VI. 40.

(23) Ibid., VIII, 14.

(24) Ibn Salim,Al-Imdad(Hyderabad, AH 1327), 36.

Women Scholars of Hadith*

(Part 2)

By Dr. Muhammad Zubayr Siddiqi November 30, 2005


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Inpart 1, the author highlighted the scholarly efforts of

Muslim women in learning and teaching Hadith. He tracedthese efforts in the early days of Islam, in the period of the

successors, and in the period of Hadith compilation. He

cited many names of women who participated, side by side

with men, in teaching Hadith, especially the Sahih of ImamAl-Bukhari.

Apart from these women, who seem to have specialized in

the great Sahih of Imam Al-Bukhari, there were others,

whose expertise were centered on other texts. Umm Al-Khayr Fatimah bint Àli (d. 532/1137) and Fatimah Ash-

Shahrazuriyah delivered lectures on the Sahih of Imam Muslim (Ibn Al-Ìmad IV: 100).

Fatimah Al-Jawzdaniyyah (d. 524/1129) narrated to her students the three Mu`jams ofAt-Tabarani (Ibn Salim 16).

The lectures of Zaynab of Harran (d. 68/1289) attracted a large crowd of students. She

taught them the Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal, the largest known collection of Hadith(Ibn Salim 28f).

Juwayriyah bint Ùmar (d. 783/1381), and Zaynab bint Ahmad ibn Ùmar (d.

722/1322), who had traveled widely in pursuit of hadiths and delivered lectures inEgypt as well as Madinah, narrated to her students the collections of Ad-Darimi and

Àbd ibn Humayd. And we are told that students traveled from far and wide to attend

her discourse (Ibn Al-Ìmad VI:56).

Zaynab bint Ahmad (d. 740/1339), usually known as Bint Al-Kamal, acquired a camelload of diplomas; she delivered lectures on the Musnad of Abu Hanifah, the Shamail

of At-Tirmidhi, and the Sharh Maàni Al-Atharof At-Tahawi, the last of which she

read with another woman traditionist, Àjibah bint Abu Bakr (d. 740/1339) (Ibn Al-Ìmad VI:126; Ibn Salim 14, 18; Al-Ùmari 73). On her authority is based, says

Goldziher, the authenticity of the Gotha Codex. ... In the same isnada large number oflearned women are cited who had occupied themselves with this work (Goldziher

II:407). With her, and various other women, the great traveler Ibn Battuta studied

traditions during his stay at Damascus (Ibn Battuta 253).

The famous historian of Damascus Ibn Àsakir, who tells us that he studied under morethan 1,200 men and 80 women, obtained the ijazah [a certificate of learning a number

or a collection of hadiths from a certain traditionist, entitling its holder to teach these

hadiths] of Zaynab bint Abdur-Rahman for the Muwattaof Imam Malik (Yaqut,

Mu`jam Al-Buldan, V:140f). Jalal Ad-Din As-Suyuti studied theRisalah of Imam Ash-Shafiì with Hajar bint Muhammad (Yaqut, Mu`jam Al-Udaba, 17f). Àfif Ad-Din

Junayd, a traditionist of the ninth century after Hijrah, read the Sunan of Ad-Darimi

with Fatimah bint Ahmad ibn Qasim (COPL, V/i, 175f).

Other important traditionists included Zaynab bint Ash-Sha`ri (d. 615/1218). Shestudied Hadith under several important traditionists, and in turn, lectured to many

studentssome of whom gained great reputeincluding Ibn Khallikan, author of the

well-known biographical dictionary Wafayat Al-A`yan (Ibn Khallikan, no. 250).


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Another was Karimah the Syrian (d. 641/1218), who is described by biographers as the

greatest authority on Hadith in Syria of her day. She delivered lectures on many worksof Hadith on the authority of numerous teachers (Ibn Al-Ìmad V: 212, 404).

In his workAd-Durar Al-Karimah, Ibn Hajar gives short biographical notices of about

170 prominent women of the eighth century, most of whom are traditionists, and under

many of whom the author himself studied.2 Some of these women were acknowledgedas the best traditionists of their period. For instance, Juwayriyah bint Ahmad, to whomwe have already referred, studied a range of works on traditions, under both male and

female scholars who taught at the great colleges of the time, and then proceeded to give

famous lectures on the Islamic disciplines. Some of my own teachers, says Ibn Hajar,and many of my contemporaries, attended her discourses (Ibn Hajar I, no. 1472).

Àishah bint Àbdul-Hadi (AH 723816), who for a considerable time was one of Ibn

Hajars teachers, was considered to be the finest traditionist of her time, and manystudents undertook long journeys in order to sit at her feet and study the truths of

religion (Ibn Al-Ìmad VIII: 120f).

Sitt Al-Àrab (d. 760/1358) had been the teacher of thewell-known traditionist Al-Ìraqi (d. 742/1341), and of

many others who derived a good proportion of theirknowledge from her (Ibn Al-Ìmad VI, 208).

3Daqiqah

bint Murshid (d. 746/1345), another celebrated woman

traditionist, received instruction from a whole range ofother women.

Information on women traditionists of the ninth century

is given in a work by Muhammad ibn Àbdur-Rahman

As-Sakhawi (830897/14271489), calledAd-Daw al-

Lami`, which is a biographical dictionary of eminent

persons of the ninth century.4 A further source is theMu`jam Ash-Shuyukh of Àbdul-Àziz ibn Ùmar ibn Fahd (812871/14091466),

compiled in AH 861 and devoted to the biographical notices of more than 1,100 of the

authors teachers, including over 130 women scholars under whom he had studied.Some of these women were acclaimed as among the most precise and scholarly

traditionists of their time, and trained many of the great scholars of the following

generation.

Umm Hani Maryam (778871/13761466), for instance, learned the Quran by heart

when she was still a child, acquired all the Islamic sciences that were being taught atthe timeincluding theology, law, history, and grammarand then traveled to pursue

Hadith with the best traditionists of her time in Cairo and Makkah. She was alsocelebrated for her mastery of calligraphy, her command of the Arabic language, and hernatural aptitude in poetry, as also her strict observance of the duties of religion (she

performed the Hajj no fewer than 13 times). Her son, who became a noted scholar of

the 10th century, showed the greatest veneration for her and constantly waited on hertowards the end of her life. She pursued an intensive program of learning in the great

college of Cairo, giving ijazahs to many scholars. Ibn Fahd himself studied several

technical works on Hadith under her (As-Sakhawi XII, no. 980).


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Her Syrian contemporary, Bai Khatun (d. 864/1459), after having studied traditions

with Abu Bakr Al-Mizzi and numerous other traditionalists, and having secured theijazahs of a large number of masters of Hadith, both men and women, delivered

lectures on the subject in Syria and Cairo. We are told that she took special delight in

teaching (As-Sakhawi XII, no. 58).

Àishah bint Ibrahim (760842/13581438), known in academic circles as Ibnat Ash-Sharaihi, also studied traditions in Damascus and Cairo (and elsewhere), and deliveredlectures which eminent scholars of the day spared no efforts to attend (As-Sakhawi XII,

no. 450). Umm Al-Khayr Saida of Makkah (d. 850/1446) received instruction in Hadith

from numerous traditionists in different cities, gaining an equally enviable reputation asa scholar (As-Sakhawi XII, no. 901).

So far as may be gathered from the sources, the involvement of women in Hadith

scholarship, and in the Islamic disciplines generally, seems to have declined

considerably from the 10th century after Hijrah. Books such asAn-Nur As-Safirof Al-Àydarus, theKhulasat Al-Akhbarof Al-Muhibbi, and the As-Suhub Al-Wabilah of

Muhammad ibn Àbdullah (which are biographical dictionaries of eminent persons ofthe 10th, 11th, and 12th Hijri centuries respectively) contain the names of barely a

dozen eminent women traditionists. But it would be wrong to conclude from this thatafter the 10th century women lost interest in the subject. Some women traditionists,

who gained good reputations in the 9th century, lived well into the 10th and continued

their services to the Sunnah. Asma bint Kamal Ad-Din (d. 904/1498) wielded greatinfluence with the sultans and their officials, to whom she often made recommendations

which, we are told, they always accepted. She lectured on Hadith and trained women in

various Islamic sciences (Al-Àydarus 49).

Àishah bint Muhammad (d. 906/1500), who married the famous judge Muslih Ad-Din, taught traditions to many students and was appointed professor at the Salihiyah

College in Damascus (Ibn Abi Tahir; see COPL, XII, no. 665ff.). Fatimah bint Yusuf ofAleppo (870925/14651519) was known as one of the excellent scholars of her time

(Ibn Abi Tahir, see COPL, XII, no.665ff.). Umm Al-Khayr granted an ijazah to a

pilgrim at Makkah in the year 938/1531 (Goldziher II:407).

The last woman traditionist of the first rank who is known to us was Fatimah Al-Fudayliyah, also known as Ash-Shaykhah Al-Fudayliyah. She was born before the end

of the 12th Hijri century and soon excelled in the art of calligraphy and the various

Islamic sciences. She had a special interest in Hadith, read a good deal on the subject,

received the diplomas of a good many scholars, and acquired a reputation as animportant traditionist in her own right. Towards the end of her life, she settled at

Makkah, where she founded a rich public library. In the Holy City she was attended bymany eminent traditionists, who attended her lectures and received certificates fromher. Among them, one could mention in particular sheikh Ùmar Al-Hanafi and sheikh

Muhammad Sali. She died in 1247/1831 (Ibn Humaid. See COPL, XII, no. 758).

Throughout the history of feminine scholarship in Islam it is clear that the women

involved did not confine their study to a personal interest in traditions, or to the privatecoaching of a few individuals, but took their seats as students as well as teachers in


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pubic educational institutions, alongside their brothers in faith. The colophons of many

manuscripts show them both as students attending large general classes, and also asteachers delivering regular courses of lectures. For instance, the certificate on folios

238-40 of theAl-Mashikhat ma At-Tarikh of Ibn Al-Bukhari, shows that numerous

women attended a regular course of 11 lectures that was delivered before a class

consisting of more than 500 students in the Ùmar Mosque at Damascus in the year687/1288. Another certificate, on folio 40 of the same manuscript, shows that many

female students, whose names are specified, attended another course of six lectures on

the book, which was delivered by Ibn As-Sayrafi to a class of more than 200 students atAleppo in the year 736/1336. And on folio 250, we discover that a famous woman

traditionist, Umm Àbdullah, delivered a course of five lectures on the book to a mixed

class of more than 50 students at Damascus in the year837/1433 (COPL, V/ii, 54).

Various notes on the manuscript of theKitab Al-Kifayah

of Al-Khatib Al-Baghdadi, and of a collection of

various treatises on Hadith, show Ni`mah bint Àli,

Umm Ahmad Zaynab bint Al-Makki, and other womentraditionists delivering lectures on these two books,

sometimes independently, and sometimes jointly with

male traditionists, in major colleges such as theÀziziyah Madrasa and the Diyaiyah Madrasa, to

regular classes of students. Some of these lectures were

attended by Ahmad, son of the famous general SalahAd-Din (Saladin).

5

(Part 1)

Sources:

Al-Àydarus.An-Nur As-Safir. Goldziher. Muslim Studies. Ibn Battuta.Rihlah. Ibn Hajar Al-Àsqalani.Ad-Durar Al-Karimah fi A`yan al-Mi'ah Ath-Thaminah.

Ibn Al-Ìmad. Shadharat Adh-Dhahab fi Akhbar man Dhahab. Ibn Khallikan. Wafayat Al-A`yan. Ibn Salim.Al-Imdad. Ibn Humaid, Muhammad ibn Àbdullah.As-Suhub Al-Wabilah ÀlaDaraih Al-Hanabilah.

As-Sakhawi.Ad-Daw Al-Lami` li Ahl Al-Qarn At-Tasi`. Al-Ùmari. Qitf Ath-Thamar. Yaqut. Mu`jam Al-Buldan. Yaqut. Mu'jam Al-Udaba.

* Excerpted with some modifications from: www.studyislam.com.

1- Various manuscripts of this work have been preserved in libraries, and it has been

published in Hyderabad in 348-50. Volume VI of Ibn Al-Ìmad's Shadharat Adh-


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Dhahab, a large biographical dictionary of prominent Muslim scholars from the first to

the tenth centuries of the Hijrah, is largely based on this work.

2- Goldziher, accustomed to the exclusively male environment of 19th-centuryEuropean universities, was taken aback by the scene depicted by Ibn Hajar. Cf.

Goldziher, Muslim Studies, II, 367: When reading the great biographical work of Ibn

Hajar Al-Àsqalani on the scholars of the eighth century, we may marvel at the numberof women to whom the author has to dedicate articles.

3- We are told that Al-Ìraqi (the best known authority on the hadiths of Ghazali's Ihya

Ùlum Ad-Din) ensured that his son also studied under her.

4- A summary by Àbdus-Salam and Ùmar ibn Ash-Shamma` exists (C. Brockelmann,

Geschichte der arabischen Litteratur, second ed. (Leiden, 1943-49CE), II, 34), and a

defective manuscript of the work of the latter is preserved in the O.P. Library at Patna(COPL, XII, no. 727).

5- For some particularly instructive annotated manuscripts preserved at the Zahiriya

Library at Damascus, see the article of Àbd Al-Àziz Al-Maymani inAl-Mabahith al-Ìlmiyah (Hyderabad: Dairat Al-Maàrif, 1358), 1-14.

a glimpse at early women islamic scholars

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