Kadriye Hüseyin: a forgotten female intellectual and a representation of Ottoman consciousness in early twentieth century Egypt

Abstract

Kadriye Hüseyin was a member of the Egyptian ruling family and a prolific female intellectual, who has been largely ignored by scholars of late Ottoman Empire and modern Egypt. Focusing on Kadriye Huseyin’s works, which she wrote in Ottoman Turkish, this study examines the situational nature of identity in early twentieth century Egypt and, challenging the conventional narratives, argues that Ottoman consciousness continued to inform the worldviews of the Egyptian ruling elite until the First World War. The article first presents Kadriye Hüseyin as an intellectual, who identified herself as an Ottoman in various historical contexts. It then demonstrates how she was influenced by the Islamic reformist thinkers who had a major impact among the Ottoman and Egyptian intelligentsia in the early 20th century. Finally, the article introduces Kadriye Huseyin as a female intellectual, whose works argued for improving women’s status in the Muslim world from an Islamic reformist perspective.