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Redefining Muslim Women: Aga Khan III’s Reforms for Women’s Education

Publication Type  Article
Year of Publication  2011
Date Published  2011
Authors  Khoja-Moolji, Shenila.
Original Publication  South Asia Graduate Research Journal. Volume 20. University of Texas at Austin.
Publisher  undefined
Key Words  Aga Khan III; Women's Education; Reforms
Full Text  

In the history of Muslim India, the late nineteenth and early twentieth century formed a period that
witnessed intense public contestation over the role of women in society. Against that background, this article
explores the writings and institutional initiatives of the forty-eighth Imam (spiritual leader) of the Shia Ismaili
Muslims, Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan III, with reference to women’s education. It compares and contrasts his
thinking with the foundational texts on women’s education written by four other prominent Muslim leaders of that
time period: Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Nazir Ahmed, Mumtaz Ali and Ashraf Ali Thanawi. An analysis of the writings
demonstrates that the Aga Khan’s approach was markedly different; while other leaders saw women’s roles
primarily in the domestic sphere, as dependent daughters, wives or mothers, the Aga Khan recognized the dignity of
women as individuals worthy in and of themselves and not simply due to the function that they performed in society.
He, thus, not only advocated for women’s education to promote their socioeconomic well-being but also argued for
it as a basic right that could promote inner happiness through intellectual growth. The article discusses a variety of
factors that may have influenced the Aga Khan’s thoughts, including exposure to first-wave feminism, and
concludes with the implications of his reforms for Ismaili women today.


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