Islam in Africa 
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| Title: | Following in the steps of 'A' isha: Hassaniyya-speaking Tijani women as spiritual guides (Muqaddamat) and teaching Islamic scholars (Limrabutat) in Mauritania |
| Author: | Frede, Britta |
| Year: | 2014 |
| Periodical: | Islamic Africa (ISSN 2154-0993) |
| Volume: | 5 |
| Issue: | 2 |
| Pages: | 225-273 |
| Language: | English |
| Geographic term: | Mauritania |
| Subjects: | Islam authority women teachers leadership Sufism |
| External link: | http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/10.5192/215409930502225 |
| Abstract: | Women in Hassaniyya-speaking Sunni Muslim communities in Mauritania have long served as spiritual guides (muqaddamat) and as teaching scholars (limrabutat) for other women. Yet those who have done so have tended to come from a small number of prominent scholarly families. Furthermore, their activities have usually remained hidden outside of their immediate social circles and are actively excluded from the historical record. In recent years, however, a boom in Islamic learning has led to a diversification in the social backgrounds of women acting as Islamic teachers and spiritual guides. At the same time, women's spaces of Islamic learning have become increasingly visible. This article illustrates these changes in women's exercise of Islamic authority by recounting the life stories of several female spiritual guides and teaching scholars in Nouakchott who adhere to the Tijani Sufi order. It also draws on historical documents and government survey data to contextualize these changes. The stories presented here highlight important aspects of women's performance of religious authority. One is the centrality of the concept of 'knowing Islam,' which entails familiarity with the Qur'an and a range of other Islamic texts. Another is the centrality of historical models, especially that of the Prophet's wife 'A'isha, in offering contemporary women justification for engaging in the teaching and production of Islamic knowledge. Ultimately, however, estimating changes in women's participation in Islamic knowledge and authority remains a difficult task because it has long been hidden and even actively erased from the historical record. Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. [Journal abstract] |
