Women have had a strong presence in society since the beginning of Islam. Khadeejah bint Khuwaylid, may Allah be pleased with her, was the first person ever to believe in the Prophet, . She was a great support for the Da‘wah (Islamic propagation) until her demise in the tenth year after the Bi‘thah (the beginning of the mission of the Prophet, , as a prophet and messenger sent by Allah The Almighty to convey His message). The Prophet, , called that year “The Year of Grief”.
The first person to sacrifice her soul in the cause of Allah The Almighty was a woman. She was the first martyr in Islam: Sumayyah bint Khabbaat, may Allah be pleased with her.
The first one to emigrate in the cause of Allah The Almighty was a woman: Ruqayyah, may Allah be pleased with her, the daughter of the Prophet, . It is said that she and her husband, 'Uthmaan bin 'Affaan, may Allah be pleased with him, were the first people to emigrate in the cause of Allah after Prophet Loote (Lot), may Allah exalt his mention. She emigrated to Abyssinia to escape persecution in Makkah.
Muslim women did not only achieve great feats in terms of faith, emigration and sacrifice. Rather, their achievements cover the fields of scholarship and education as well. There were among them scholars of Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence), Hadeeth (narration) and Muftis (scholars entitled to issue religious verdicts) who were the center of attraction for seekers of knowledge and some great and prominent Muslim scholars. They were even consulted about public affairs. There were women scholars who held assemblies of knowledge in the largest Islamic mosques and who attracted students from all over the world.
There were some women scholars of Fiqh and narrators of Hadeeth who traveled a great deal in pursuit of knowledge, to many of the centers of knowledge in Egypt, Ash-Shaam (the Levant) and Al-Hijaaz (Western Arabia) such that they became well-versed in knowledge and the narration of Hadeeths. Many of them wrote books and contributed to literature.
Their rooms were beacons of light
During the early stage of Islam, the Mothers of the Believers and a number of women Companions were the pioneers of women’s education and scholarship. The rooms of the virtuous Mothers of the Believers were beacons for knowledge, culture and literature. ‘Aa’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, was the greatest in this regard. She was eloquent, well-versed in genealogy and poetry. The Prophet, , himself would listen to some of the poems that she narrated.
In the field of narrating the Prophetic Hadeeths, she occupies the third rank among Hadeeth narrators, for she narrated 2210 Hadeeths. Some reported citations stated that she alone was the repository of half of the religious knowledge. Hence, the Companions used to refer to her to find an answer for some difficult issues of knowledge and Fiqh, especially those which are relevant to the life of the Prophet, . She used to urge her questioner not to be bashful by saying, “Ask! I am your mother.” About 299 of the Companions and the Taabi‘oon (successors of the Companions),including 67 women, were taught by her.
Umm Salamah, may Allah be pleased with her
Ath-Thahabi described her saying that she was one of the scholars of Fiqh among the women Companions. She narrated many Hadeeths on the authority of the Prophet, . About 101 Companions and Taabi‘oon, including 23 women, narrated Hadeeths on her authority.
There were many women Companions and Taabi‘oon renowned for their knowledge and narration of Hadeeths. The books of Hadeeth, narration and biographies abound with the names of women who narrated Hadeeths and on whose authority Hadeeths were narrated; such as Asmaa’ bint Abu Bakr, Asmaa’ bint ‘Umays, Juwayriyah bint Al-Haarith, Hafsah bint ‘Umar and Zaynab bint Jahsh, may Allah be pleased with them all.
Producing scholars
Great writers of biographies did not overlook the biographies of Muslim women especially in the field of narrating Hadeeth. Muhammad ibn Sa‘d mentioned many of the female Companions and Taabi‘oon who narrated Hadeeths in his book At-Tabaqaat-ul-Kubra. In his book Asad Al-Ghaabah, Ibn Al-Atheer specified one whole volume for the biographies of women. In Taqreeb At-Tahtheeb, Ibn Hajar Al-‘Asqalaani mentioned the names of 824 women who were known for narrating Hadeeths at the beginning of the third Hijri century.
Women participated in raising and bringing up great scholars. The celebrated scholar of Hadeeth and historian, Al-Khateeb Al-Baghdaadi the compiler of Taareekh Baghdad studied under Taahirah bint Ahmad ibn Yoosuf At-Tanookhiyyah (d. 436 A.H.). She was a scholar of Fiqh and Hadeeth.
Amat Al-Waahid bint Al-Husayn ibn Ismaa‘eel (d. 377 A.H.) was among the most knowledgeable scholars about the Shaafi‘i school of Fiqh. She was well-acquainted with the knowledge of distributing the shares of inheritance, mathematics and Arabic grammar (Nahw). She used to issue Fatwas (religious verdicts) and her narrations of Hadeeth were written down by her students.
Jaleelah bint ‘Ali ibn Al-Hasan Ash-Shajari lived in the fifth century of Hijrah. She traveled seeking the knowledge of Hadeeth in Iraq and Ash-Shaam. Some of the great scholars; such as As-Sam‘aani studied under her. She used to teach Quran to the children.
Zaynab bint Makki ibn ‘Ali ibn Kaamil Al-Harraani (d. 688 A.H.) was among the female scholars who spent their whole life seeking the knowledge of Hadeeth and narrating it. Students gathered at the door of her home at foot of the Mount Qasiyoun in the city of Damascus. They heard Hadeeths from her and read before her many books.
Zaynab bint Yahya ibn Al-‘Izz ibn ‘Abdul-Salaam (d. 735 A.H.) was the only person to narrate the Hadeeths of Al-Mu‘jam As-Sagheer through an uninterrupted chain of narrators. The celebrated Muslim historian, Shams Ad-Deen Ath-Thahabi said about her that there was goodness in her, love of worship and of narrating the Hadeeths. Many parts of Hadeeth compilations were read before her on the day of her demise.
Zaynab bint Ahmad ibn ‘Umar Ad-Dimishqiyyah (d. 722) was among the remarkable narrators of Hadeeth, such that many students headed for her in pursuit of knowledge.
Female scholars earning their living by sewing
The great traveler Ibn Battootah mentioned that he visited Al-Masjid Al-Umawi in Damascus and heard Hadeeths from some of the female scholars of Hadeeth in that age; such as Zaynab bint Ahmad ibn ‘Abdul-Raheem . She was well-versed in knowledge and Hadeeth. ‘Aa’ishah bint Muhammad ibn Al-Muslim Al-Harraaniyyah held a session for teaching knowledge at the Masjid. She used to earn her living by sewing. Ibn Battootah read before her some books.
Some women, who were narrators of Hadeeth, were the only persons to narrate certain versions of Hadeeths; such as Zaynab bint Sulaymaan ibn Ibraaheem (d. 705 A.H.). Taqiyy-ud-Deen As-Subki was one of her students.
Some female scholars in the field of narrating Hadeeths gave Ijaazah (licence) to a number of great scholars. Zaynab bint ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Abdul-Haleem ibn Taymiyyah (d. 725 A.H.) gave Ijaazah to Ibn Hajar Al-‘Asqalaani . He also narrated on the authority ‘Aa’ishah bint Muhammad ibn ‘Abdul-Haadi . She had a sound uninterrupted chain of narrators and many people narrated on her authority. She never prevented anyone from listening to the Hadeeths from her and she was kind. She narrated Hadeeths on the authority of two female narrators: Sitt Al-Fuqahaa’ bint Al-Waasiti and Zaynab bint Al-Kamaal .
In his book, Al-Mu‘jam Al-Mu’assas lil-Mu‘jam Al-Mufahras, Ibn Hajar mentioned many of the women teachers under whom he studied, and those who learned with him under the same Shaykhs (teachers). He described one of them as Musannifah (compiler); she was ‘Aa’ishah bint ‘Abdullaah Al-Halabiyyah .
Imaam Ath-Thahabi also mentioned many of his women teachers in his book, Mu‘jam Shuyookh Ath-Thahabi.
Women played a prominent role in teaching and raising the great scholar of Fiqh, Ibn Hazm Al-Andalusi . They taught him the Noble Quran, reading, writing, poetry and he remained under their care until the age of puberty. He related his experience, saying, “I was brought up by women and I did not know other than them or sit with men until I reached the age of my youth. They taught me the Quran and many poems. They taught me writing.” This upbringing and education had a great effect on his taste and personality.
Qualified for Fatwa and wife of a scholar of Fiqh
The respected scholar, Faatimah bint Muhammad ibn Ahmad As-Samarqandi assumed a high rank in the fields of Fiqh and Fatwa. She used to teach and compiled many books. The just king, Noor Ad-Deen Mahmood, used to consult her on some domestic affairs of the state and some issues that were related to Fiqh. Her husband, the renowned scholar of Fiqh, Al-Kaasaani the author of Al-Badaai,‘ used to listen to her corrections when he fell short to reach the right opinion. She used to issue Fatwas and her husband used to respect her Fatwas. The issued Fatwa used to be signed in her name, and that of her father or husband. When her father died, she and her husband used to sign the Fatwa because of the broad and reliable scope of her knowledge.
In his large encyclopedia, Adh-Dhaw’ Al-Laami‘ li-Ahl il-Qarn At-Taasi‘, As-Sakhaawi mentioned the biographies of more than 1070 women who were prominent in that century; most of them were scholars of Fiqh and narrators of Hadeeth.
The encyclopedic scholar, Jalaal ud-Deen As-Suyooti said his women teachers played a prominent role in his acquiring knowledge. He learned from Umm Haani’ bint Al-Hooreeni . He called her ‘Al-Musnad’; she was also a scholar of Nahw (Arabic grammar) and he put her biography among the scholars of Nahw in his book Bughyat Al-Wu‘aah fee Akhbaar An-Nuhaah. He also learned from Umm Al-Fadhl bint Muhammad Al-Maqdisi, Khadeejah bint Abu Al-Hasan Al-Mulaqqin, Nashwaan bint ‘Abdullaah Al-Kanaani, Haajar bint Muhammad Al-Misriyyah, Amat Al-Khaaliq bint ‘Abdul-Lateef Al-‘Uqbi and many other female scholars .
Some of these female scholars assumed charge of some centers of knowledge such as Zayn Al-‘Arab bint ‘Abdul-Rahmaan ibn ‘Umar (d. 704 A.H.). She assumed charge of Ribaat As-Saqlaatooni and then Ribaat Al-Haramayn.
The women Muslim scholars did not stop at imparting knowledge and teaching during times of peace and welfare. Rather, she played a prominent academic role during the hardest times of crises. When the forts of Islam fell in Andalusia and the Muslims were forced to become Christians and there were the worst ever Inquisitions and torture against Muslims; some Muslims had to show that they were Christians and practiced Islam in secrecy. Despite coercive Spanish policies, Muslims continued their pursuit of knowledge. There were two women scholars who were the highest referential authorities for Muslims in the knowledge of Sharee‘ah (Islamic legislation). They taught many Muslim scholars who bore the flag of Islam for years. Those two women were Muslimah Abdah and Muslimah Ablah. The Morisco scholar of Fiqh ‘the Young Man from Arévalo’ (Mancebo de Arevalo) compiled many books of Tafseer (exegesis) and Sunnah (tradition) in the Aljamiado language which was invented by Muslims there.
To conclude, Muslim women had a prominent presence in the Islamic scholarly society. They used to learn, teach and travel seeking knowledge. They were sought by knowledge seekers, compiled books, issued Fatwas and were consulted on public affairs. Women were not confined to their homes or restricted to certain professions. They had a broad field of activity and achievement under the aegis of the true spirit of Islamic Sharee‘ah which protected their chastity and modesty while enabling them to achieve great feats of scholarship.