“Emancipating” Muslim Women in Early Nineteenth-Century Russia:Ākhūnd Fathullah bin Huseyn al-Uriwi, Ḥanafī Law, and Muslim Women’s Rights

Abstract

This paper examines the legal authority of Fathullah Huseyn ughli, a prominent jurist (ākhūnd) of the Volga-Ural region between the 1820s and his death in 1843. The analysis focuses on the fatwās he issued and legal cases he resolved regarding women’s divorce. Huseyn ughli’s fatwās reveal several significant points. Firstly, despite increased regulation of Muslim marriage and divorce by the Russian Empire during this period, Huseyn ughli maintained his legal authority and made independent legal decisions with the authorization of the Orenburg Assembly. Secondly, his fatwās highlight his support for women who were suffering and his efforts to find solutions for each unique case with the assistance of local Muslim communities. He utilized his legal authority to identify loopholes and deliver rulings that diverged from mainstream Ḥanafī opinions, particularly regarding divorce based on non-maintenance. However, his flexibility was limited after 1841–42, when Muftī Suleymanov intervened, establishing the mainstream Ḥanafī position that prohibited divorce in such cases and enforcing it as a rule for all Volga-Ural ʿulamāʾ.