Home Knowledge 29 Most Famous Muslim Women Writers from (1870-2012)

29 Most Famous Muslim Women Writers from (1870-2012)

by Naz khaliq
Muslim Women writers
Muslim Women Writers

The history of women writing and Muslim women writers can be traced back to the Mughal period and the Mughal princess but at that time it was not so common for women to get an education or to write. Mughal princesses used to write diaries of their daily routine lives or songs for their children. These writing were not published.

Muslim women writers’ contribution to Poetry:

Begum, the daughter of Mir Taqi Mir is considered the first poetess of the Urdu language but Mir Taqi Mir did not mention her in Tazkra: Nikaatuss Shoara because in those days it was considered immoral for women to express their emotions. (Source: Muslim Women Writers of The Subcontinent)

Muslim women writers
Muslim Women writers

Apart from her, we have noted down 29 Muslim Women writers:

1) Zeb-un-Nisa (n.d):

The first Muslim women writer that is listed on our list is the daughter of Mughal king Aurangzeb Alamgir, Zeb-un-Nissa. She used to write with a pen name and the language was Persian, later the poems were translated. Her work was compiled by Magan Lal and Jessie Duncan Westbrook as Diwan-e-Makhfi.

2) Rehmat Begum (n.d):

Rehmat Begum was one of the most talented Muslim poets. She was born in Hyderabad in the nineteenth century. She used to write poetry in the form of Ghazal and her Ghazals were centred on serious social issues.

3) Bashirun-Nissa Begum (n.d):

She was also born in Hyderabad and received education in three different languages. She continued writing even after her marriage due to the support of her father-in-law and husband. Her poetry also dealt with social issues. Her Ghazals, poems, Marseeas and Qasaaid were published in Abgeena-e-Shair.

4) Sughra-Begum (1884-1954):

Sughra-Begum Ghazals and other pieces of poetry have been published in a book entitled Anwaar-e-Pareshan. She was also from Hyderabad and used to write with the pen name Haya.

5) Safia Begum (n.d):

Safia Begum is one of those Muslim women writers whose poetry revolves around women’s issues and social oppression and the role of women in the development of society. She belonged to Lucknow but later her family shifted to Hyderabad. Her pen name was Qamar. Her poems Aurat (woman) and Beti ki Qurbani (Sacrifice of the Daughter) deal with the issue of women’s place in the society of men.

6) Latif-un-Nissa Begum (n.d):

Her pen name was Latif and she was the wife of lecturer Sayyed Yusuf Ali Shahad. Latif was well-educated and her ghazals portray simplicity and purity of expressions.

7) Wahida Khatoon (1925-n.d):

Wahida Khatoon’s pen name was Naseem and born in Hyderabad. She was also highly educated. Her paternal and maternal grandfathers were also good poets. She started writing when she was in school.  The theme of her poetry was traditional such as romance and moral values. Her poetry collection includes different types of poetry like Saaghir-eSabha, Tabassum Hayaat, Tiflistaan covers Ghazals, comic verses and poems for children

8) Aneesa Begum Sherwani (1910-n.d):

Aneesa’s poetry was published under the title of Aneesiaat. She wrote poems and ghazals and themes are nationalism, praise of God, nature and morality etc.

It is a well-noted fact that the above mentioned Muslim women writers were from Hyderabad.

9) Zahida Khatoom Sherwani (1894-1922):

Zahida Khatoom Sherwani’s pen name was Zay Kay Sheen. Her father Muzammilullah Khan Sherwani was a rich and influential person who was prominent in the Aligarh  Movement and a poet of the Persian language. She was well-educated and trained by a proficient concubine. Her poems used to publish in newspapers and magazines of that time such as in Tamaddun Dehli, Ismat  Dehli and Tehzeeb-e-Niswaan, Lahore. At the young age of seventeen, her poems expressed clarity of thought. She can be termed a feminist.

10) Zehra Nigaah (1937-n.d):

Zehra Nigaah was recognized and got prominence in the 1950s. She was also born in Hyderabad. Her elder sister Surayya Bijia and her brother Anwar Maqsood are also well-acknowledged writers. The prominent theme of her works is the human relationship.

11) Adaa Jafri (1924-n.d):

Adaa was born in Badayuni and her real name was Aziza. She is considered the first well-known poetess in Pakistan. Her work published as Mein Saaz Dhoondti Rahi.

Work of Muslim Women Writers in Prose and Fiction:

Muslim Women writers
Muslim women writers

The early writings of Muslim women writers were inspired by Male writers. Here are the most famous Muslims Women writers in Fiction:

12) Begum Sultan Jahan (1858-1930):

She was the Begum of Bhopal and she helped to establish educational institutions for Muslim girls and women. An Account of My Life  (1912), Hayat-i-Qudsi (1918), Sabeel-e-Ibjanam and Purda are her originals work. An Account of My life is originally known as Taj-ul-Iqbal and was translated by Mr.H.C Barstow.  In this book, she recorded the history of Bhopal.

13) Rasheeda-tun-Nisa Begum (n.d):

She can be considered the first Muslim novelist. She wrote her first novel Islah-un-Nisa in 1881 and according to Dr.Syed Muzaffar Iqbal, the date and place of publication show that it is the first novel of Muslim women writers. In this novel, Rasheeda-tun-Nisa criticized society’s customs and traditions that were not according to Islamic values. She also criticizes all practices of society that exploit people in the name of Islam. The novel also describes that period when Muslims and Hindus used to live together and many customs and traditions were intertwined.

14) Muhammadi Begum (1879-n.d):

Muhammadi Begum was born in Delhi in 1879. At that time education was not so common even for males and it was impossible for women to get an education. However, her parents tried their best to give her education. She used to write lullabies, poems and stories for her child and got the motivation to start a career as a writer.

She was one of those Muslim women writers who not only wrote books and poems for children but also published a magazine Mosheer-e-Madar about instructions for mothers that how they can raise their children. However, due to workload, she could not continue it and her other magazine Tehzeeb-e-Niswaan played a vital role in women’s awakening. She wrote three novels, Shareef Beti, Safia Begum and Aaj Kal.

15) Akbari Begum (n.d):

Akbari Begum is the author of four novels Guldasta-e-Muhabbat, Iffat-e-Niswan, Shoulaa Pinhaan and Godaar Ka Lal. She used to write with different pseudonyms. She criticized arranged marriages that completely ignore the choice of a person to choose the life partner and she asserted religious education too along with other education.

16) Nazar Sajjad Hyder (1894-1967):

Nazar Sajjad Hyder was the sister of Akbar Begum. Her number of essays and short stories were published in famous magazines. “She was also the editor of Phool, an Urdu weekly magazine for children”. She also worked for social development. Her famous novels are Akhter-un-Nisa Begum, Suraiya, Najma, Ah-i-Mazlooman, Jaan Baaz and her last novel Kharma Nasib.

17) Hijab Imtiaz Ali Taj (1908-1999):

Hijab Imtiaz Ali Taj was a modern novelist and the romantic theme was prominent in her work. “She was also the first female pilot of the Subcontinent”. She translated Turkish literature at the beginning of her writing career with the collaboration of Sajjad Hyder Yaldram.

Her first novella is Meri Na Tamam Muhabbat came out in the episodic form in a magazine named Nerang Magazine and later published in book form. She also “introduced gothic elements in Subcontinent’s fiction”. She also wrote psychological essays that were introduced in the magazine Saqi.

18) Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain (1880-1932):

She is one of the prominent Muslim women writers of the early twentieth century. She is also famous for her work for women and social reforms. She established a school for girls and also Islamic Women’s Association named Anjuman-e-Khawateen-e-Islam. She has also written in English language and her famous work is Sultana’s dream, Women in Captivity, Essence of the Lotus and The Rights of Women.

19) Sughra Hamayun Mirza ( 1884-1954):

The notable thing about Sughra Hamayun is that she wrote six Travelogues and her five novels are Mohini, Zohra Bibi, Turi Ka Khawab, Awaz-e-Gaib and Safina-e-Najat. She also worked as an editor for some magazines such as Musheer-e-Niswan, Al Nisa and Zaib-un-Nisa. She also wrote poetry with the pseudonym, Haya.

20) Begum Jahanara (1896-1979):

She played a vital role in the development of women and was also a prominent Muslim leader during the Pakistan Movement. Her Urdu novel Tehzib-e-Niswaan was published in 1916 and she also wrote many articles. She emphasized women’s education in her writings.

21) Khatoon (n.d):

The first novel of Khatoom is Shaukat Ara Begam which was published in 1917. She also used mockery and satire in her novels.

22) Alif-Zuwad Hassan Begum (n.d):

Roshnak Begum is one of her novels and was published in 1920. It is a historical novel and it covers social and political events of that period.

23) Zia Bano (n.d):

She was also one of the women novelists of that time period. She published three novels Fughan Ashraf, Fareb-e-Zindagi and Anjum-e-Zindagi.

24) Qurat-ul-ain Hyder (1928-2007):

She started her career as a writer in 1936 due to the great socio-political turbulence. Her famous works are Sanam Khane, Aag Ka Darya, Aakhir Shab K Hamsafar, Kare Jahan Daraz Hai, Safeena-e-Gham Dil and Gardish Rang Chamak.

25) Rashid Jahan (1905- n.d):

She was born in Delhi. She wrote two stories Dili ki Sair and Parday ke Peechay for Angaaray (that consist of stories by different writers but faced a ban due to controversial topics that writers discussed). Her work includes Nai Musibatain, Saasur Bahu, Chadda ki Maan, Asif Jahan ki Bahu, Bezuban which also covers the issues of women. She also wrote an essay Aurat Ghar Say Bahar in which she discussed traditions and social norms that are forced on women by the patriarchal society.

26) Razia Sajjad Zaheer (1917-1979):

She was the wife of Sajjad Zaheer who was an active member of Angaaray and Progressive Writer’s movement. Her focus in writing was mainly on social injustices and class distinction. Her short stories include Allah ki Marzi and Raang Rotay Hein, Neech.

27) Ismat Chughtai (1915-1992):

One of the famous names of Muslim women writers is Ismat Chugtai.  Sexuality was an important theme in her works and she did not hesitate to write about it. One of the prominent features of her writings was diction. She used the diction of a common woman in her novels. Her novels are admired for the powerful diction. Her works are Ziddi, Theri Lakeer, Masooma, Choti ka Jora, Gainda, Lihaf.

28) Khadija Mastoor (1927-1982):

Her most famous work is Angan which highlights the role of women on the Sub-Continent. She was a keen observer of Psyche and Psychic oppressions.  Khail and Bochar are two of her short story collections.

29) Hajira Masroor (1930- 2012):

Hajira was the sister of Khadija Mastoor and her famous work are Hai Allah, Mohni, Mera Bhai, and Bandar Ka Ghaoare. She wrote against women’s exploitation and the theme of sexuality.

Source:

Book: Muslim Women Writers of The SubContinent (1870-1950), the book is edited by Munazza Yaqoob and Sofia Hussain and published in 2014.

You can buy the book from here.

1 comment

Ambreen Naz May 10, 2020 - 1:04 am

great

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