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All-Rounders

• Umm Salim: Umm Anas - She was the mother of the famous companion Anas. She was a highly respected Sahaabiyyah (Woman Companion). Ibn Hajar says, "Her laudable qualities are too many to mention and she was very famous." Imam an Nawawi calls her an excellent scholar among the Sahaabiyyah." (tahdhib at tahdhib vol.2 p 363)
• Umrah bint Abdu Rahmaan - Regarded as an authority of hadith and fiqh, she was the grand daughter of one of the famous companions, Asad ibn Zararah Ansari (radhiAllahu anhu). The scholar, Imam Bukhari said that she was like the secretary for Aisha (radhiAllahu anha), the Prophet(sallallahu alaiyhi wassallam)'s wife, and one of her best students. People who sent Aisha gifts/presents and letters, would send it through her.
• Aisha bint Talha - The grand daughter of Abu Bakr (radhi Allahu anhu), she was taught by the Prophe t(sallallahu alaiyhi wassallam)'s wife Aisha (radhi Allahu anha). Abu Zahra, the early Muslim said, "Aisha was cited because of her authentic knowledge." Aisha was also graced with physical beauty. Once Caliph Hisham invited her to his court where she engaged dialogue with eminent scholars of different fields. The Caliph was so impressed with her knowledge that he gave her a gift of 100,000 dirhams.
• Umm 'Atiyyah -Some Sahabah and learned scholars among the tabi'een used to come to her to learn various aspects of Islamic jurisprudence from her in Basrah. She also narrated many ahadith of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. Imam Nawawi said, "She was a scholarly Sahabiyah and one of those who went on jihad with Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam." (taghib al asma was sifaat vol w p 364)
• A'isha bint Sa'd bint ibn Abi Waqqas - She was the daughter of a great Sahabi. She was very learned in Islamic sciences to the point that Imam Malik, Hakim ibn Utaybah and Ayyub as Sakhtiyani, the famous jurists and scholars of ahadith were her pupils.
• Fatimah bint Qays - Her learning was so deep that she discussed a juristic point with 'Umar and 'A'isha radi Allahu anha for a long time and they also could not change or challenge her views. Imam Nawawi said, "She was one of those who migrated in the early days, and possessed great intellect and excellence." (tahdhib at tahdhib vol.2 p 353)
• Rabiyah Khatun - The sister of the Muslim General Salahuddin al Ayubbi, she was well educated and established a great institution for religious learning near Damascus. She established a waqf (trust) in the form of an endownment of a very large property which met the expenses that were generated by the institution.
• Kaamilah al Kawaaree - Her place of birth: the capital of Qatar [ad-Dawhah] and it is in ad-Dawhah that she grew up and memorized the Qur’aan. Having completed the memorization of the Qur’aan, she chose to undertake the path towards gaining Islaamic knowledge and so she went to study in the University of Sharee’ah in Qatar and in 1997 she completed her studies. At the present moment she is married and is working as a researcher.

Women Scholars of Hadeeth

• Women Scholars of Hadeeth by Dr. Muhammad  Zubayr Siddiqi
• Mu 'aadhah Al- 'Adawiyyah: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 (Final).  Mu’aadhah’s [rahimahallah] name occurs in different books of hadeeth, the most famous of which are Saheeh Al Bukhaari and Saheeh Muslim. This is a proof of her undisputed reliability and trustworthiness. Mu’aadhah [rahimahallah] met all requirements which qualified her to be a narrator for the most authentic books of hadeeth in the world; in fact, all the 6 famous books of hadeeth narrate ahaadeeth from her.
  
• Kareemah Bint Ahmad Al Marwaziyyah - Kareemah bint Ahmed [rahimahallah] gained a high status within the realm of Islaamic knowledge in Makkah, and more specifically in the science of Hadeeth due to her being a specialised narrator of Saheeh al Bukhari. In fact, she would narrate Saheeh al Bukhari with such precision and authenticity that when it came to her male contemporaries, who were also famous for narrating Saheeh al Bukhari, her name was at the forefront with theirs.
• Fatimah bint al Mundhir ibn al Zubayr ibn al ‘Awwam - Fatimah bint al Mundhir (rahmahaAllah) is respected as one of the leading ta’biaat of her time. She was a great scholar and was renowned as a Faqeehah (Jurist) and was married to her cousin Hishaam ibn ‘Urwah ibn al-Zubayr (rahmahullah). Hishaam (rahmahullah) was also a great scholar and narrator. Some of his leading students included: Imam Abu Hanifah (rahmahullah), Imam Malik (rahmahullah), Shu’bah (rahmahullah) and Sufyan al-Thawri (rahmahullah).
• Zaynab bint Makki bint Ali- one of the the teachers of the Shaykhs Ibn Taymiyyah, Al-Mizzi, al-Dhahabee, al-Birzaali, and other famous scholars of that time.
• Sitt al Wuzra bint Umar ibn al Munajja - Teacher of Shaykh al-Dhahabee
• Zaynab bint al-Kamaal d. 740 - one of the teachers of Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah
• Umm Zaynab Fatimah bint 'Abbas ibn Ali al-Fath al-Baghdaadiyyah - Ibn Taymiyyah was amazed by her knowledge and she knew most of al-Mughni (a book of fiqh which consisrs of 15 volumes) by heart. Shaykh Ibn Katheer and Shaykh al-Dhahabee have also mentioned her.
• Fatimah bin Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-Hadi- the teacher of Hafiz Ibn Hajr (his commentary of Saheeh al Bukhari- Fath al Bari is well reknowned and accepted by the scholars). But sadly, his teacher Fatimah is unknown to many, he says of her: ‘I read to her many books and ajza’ in Salihiyyah.’ (Ibn Hajar, Inba’ al-Ghumr, iv. 314.)
• Nafeesah bint Ameer al-Mu’mineen al-Hasan bin Zayd (d. 208) –Ibn Katheer mentioned as those who done favours to others, a devout, ascetic, and of abundant virtue. The teacher of Imaam ash-Shaafiee.
• Amat al Ghafoor bint Ishaaq al-Dihlawi - a great Muhaddithah, a non-Arab, of the 13th Century.
  ‘Non-Arab’ is outlined because many feel that these great women were great only because they were lucky to have Arabic as their mother-tongue and sinece their ancestry was from the Arabs. On the contrary, many of our great scholars, even from among the men, the likes of Imam Bukhari, were not from the lineage of the Arabs. In the same way, the Muhaddithah, Amat al-Ghafoor bint Ishaaq al-Dihlawee (rah), was from Delhi – India.
• Women Students of Shaykh Muqbil
  

Women Scholars of Fiqh

• Rabi'ah Bint Mu'awwad - She was a great scholar of fiqh. The intellectual scholars of Madina like Abdullah ibn Abbas, Abdallah ibn Umar, Salman ibn Yasar, Abbad ibn Walid and Nafi' use to go to her to learn from her. (tahdhib at tahdhib vol.12 p 444)
• Zaynab: daughter of Umm Salama - Like her mother, she was also an expert in jurisprudence. Ibn Abdul Barr said, "She was a theologian of greater status than others of her contemporaries." (al isti'ab fi asma' al as hab)
• Ukhtul Mazni - The sister of al-Mazni, a noted student of Imam Shafi, she was a highly placed scholar of Islamic Jurisprudence. It is said that because of her knowledge her opinions were highly respected including the difference of opinion she had with Imam Shafi regarding the zakat which was to be paid on minerals.
• Fatima bint Yahya - Fatimah bint Yahya (rah) was a great Mujtahidah of the 9th Century. A Mujtahidah (which is the female conjugation for Mujtahid) is a scholar of great calibre who can deduce from the sources of Islamic law. In turn they use these deductions to give rulings in accord with both the contemporary and individual needs of the society. For one to be given the title ‘Mujtahidah’, one must have knowledge on both the consensus and opposing views of the Companions, the Successors, and the leading Scholars of Fiqh and Mujtahidoon. Hence, to be a Mujtahidah was not small matter, but Fatimah bint Yahya (rah) truly deserved it.
• Fatimah bint Muhammad ibn Ahmad - We are now going to meet one of the greatest Faqeehah (woman-scholar of Islamic Jurisprudence) of her time. She was renowned for her grounded knowledge of Hanafi Jurisprudence and was no other than the daughter of the great scholar and jurist, Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abu Ahmad `Ala' al-Din al-Samarqandi (rah), whose book ‘Tuhfat al Fuqaha’ is well-known by the scholars and students of knowledge. Not only did she learn Fiqh from her father, but she memorised his book ‘Tuhfat al Fuqaha’.

Women Scholars in the Qur’anic Sciences

• Hafsah bint Sireen (d. 101H) - The sister of the scholar Muhammad ibn Sireen, she had memorized the Quran by the age of 12, and by the age 14 she was well versed in the exegesis (explanation) of the Quranic verses. She became famous for her beautiful recitation of the Quran. Her recitation was of such a high standard that when her brother had difficulty with recitation he would ask her to correct him.
• Umm Al-Sa'ad Al-Askandariyyah - Umm Al-Sa'ad was born into a poor family in a town called Bandaariya, one of the towns of the larger city Munofiya (north of Cairo). She was afflicted by blindness shortly after her first year and, as was the practice of many in rural areas in dealing with blindness, her family sent her to learn the Qur'aan. She completed her memorization in Alexandria at the age of 15. She then completed the memorization of the ten recitations of the Qur'aan from Shaykha Nafeesah when she had reached the age of 23.
• Kareema Carol Czerepinski - Kareema Carol Czerepinski is the author of a series of three books called ‘Tajweed Rules of the Qur'aan’, one of the best books in the English language for learning tajweed rules. Although it is advised for those who would like to study the books to find a teacher who is proficient in tajweed, these books are an excellent addition to the bookshelf of any student of knowledge.
  
• Farhat Hashmi - Farhat Hashmi is one of the most influential contemporary Muslim scholars or Ulema particularly in Pakistan, the United Kingdom and the United States. She has had a profound impact on the religiosity and understanding of Islam by women since the 1990s when she started her program of Qur'anic education.

Women Scholars of Arabic/Caligraphy

• Maryam bint Jahsh - Muslim women excelled, not only Fiqh, Ahaadeeth and Tafseer but also in other Islamic Sciences. One such example is of Maryam bint Jahsh (rah), who lived in the 4th Century; she was an expert of the language in which Allah (az) chose to reveal the Qur’aan. She was married to the great Yemeni scholar Jamaal al-Deen ‘Ali ibn Abee l-Fawaaris al-Hamdani (rah). Not only was it due to her knowledge of the Arabic language, but also the acuteness of her mind, that Maryam bint Jahsh (rah) was able to subtly resolve a difficult point for her husband.

• Shad Khanum - A descendant of the famous conqueror Amir Taymur, she was a master of calligraphy with no one else in her time being able to match her skills of calligraphy of the Quran. It was said that in 1045 AH, she sent a gift of the Quran written by her calligraphy to the then ruler, which he most appreciated.