Muslim Women: Past and Present

Recommend a Muslim Woman

Throughout the ages, from the earliest days of Islam to contemporary times today, Muslim women have been and continue to be active leaders in their communities and countries across the world. This directory is a growing archive of leading Muslim women scholars, activists, writers, politicians, artists, religious and spiritual leaders, civil society leaders and more. Please contribute to this archive by suggesting Muslim women to be featured through our recommendation form.

  • By Category
  • By Name
  • By Century
  • By Country
  • Search


Hatoon Al Fassi

My parents were very keen to teach us about the spirit of Islam, about what is the essence of being a Muslim woman, that Islam has come to give respect to the human being, be it man or woman.

photo of Hatoon Al Fassi Photo courtesy of Hatoon Al Fassi.

Known For: Professor, King Saud University, Riyadh
Dates: Hijri 1384 – present (AH)
Common Era 1964 – present (CE)

Country: Saudi Arabia

About

Hatoon Al Fassi is a historian at Riyadh’s King Saud University and a crusader for women’s rights. Her areas of expertise include women’s history, women’s issues and Islamic rights, civil reform issues, history of the Arabian Peninsula, Ancient history, heritage preservation, and consumer’s rights.

She is a columnist for al-Riyadh Newspaper. She has had notable media appearances, including being interviewed by Frontline, and featured in a piece by Reuters.

In 2004 campaigned for women’s right in the suffrage in Saudi Arabia. In 2005, she joined the team to write the First Gulf Human Development Report, and was in charge of the section on women and development.

Sources

Saudi scholar finds ancient women’s rights

More Information

Frontline: Interview with Dr. Hatoon Al Fassi

RSS Bookmark and Share
This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women alphabetically by their first names. Many Muslim names have alternative spellings once rendered into English so if you cannot find the name you are looking for, please try the general search tab where you can enter keywords of your choice.
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women chronologically by the Common Era century. We are actively building the archive of Muslim women leaders from the past, as well as from today, and we would welcome your recommendations of women to feature. Please complete our “Recommend Muslim Women” form and check the site again in the near future as we actively expand this section of the portal with your suggestions.
This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women by their Country. We are actively building the archive of Muslim women leaders from the past, as well as from today, and we would welcome your recommendations of women to feature. Please complete our “Recommend Muslim Women” form and check the site again in the near future as we actively expand this section of the portal with your suggestions.
This search feature will enable you to find Muslim women leaders by entering the keyword(s) of your choice. If you cannot find a particular woman that you are looking for, please let us know by completing our “Recommend Muslim Women” form and check the site again in the near future as we actively expand this section of the portal with your suggestions.