Al-Muhaddithat: The Women Scholars of Hadith

In 2007, Shaykh Dr. Akram Nadwi, a globally renowned scholar of hadith and fiqh and Dean of Cambridge Islamic College, published a 40-volume biographical dictionary revealing a rich history of female Hadith transmitters spanning the course of Islam’s 1,400-year history. When he first began to research women Hadith transmitters for an addendum to another project, Nadwi had expected to find two-dozen muhaddithat. Ultimately, he researched and compiled the biographies of over 9,000 women scholars transmitting and teaching Quran and Hadith, issuing fatwas (legal opinions), and engaging in public discourse with male contemporaries. The existence of thousands of muhaddithat attests to a long and robust tradition of women trained in the Islamic sciences and earning ijazah qualifications to teach their male and female contemporaries, including caliphs and scholars. However, this history has largely been forgotten, making Nadwi’s scholarship a critical bridge to introducing students and laypersons alike to Islam’s tradition of female scholarship.

This one-day course is based on Nadwi’s book, ‘Al-Muhaddithat: The Women Scholars in Islam,’ an introduction to his 40-volume dictionary. He will be in conversation with Anse Dr. Tamara Gray and Dr. Ingrid Mattson about the scholars detailed in his biography, detailing the histories and the legal and educational impact of both famous and lesser-known individuals, drawing lessons for a contemporary audience. Dr. Gray, an author and translator, is the founder of Rabata, an organization dedicated to promoting positive cultural change through creative educational experiences. Dr. Mattson, an internationally recognized scholar of the Quran, is the London and Windsor Chair in Islamic Studies at Huron University College.

Students: $30 (present Student ID and ticket)

General Admission: $50

Livestream: $40