How Islam Honoured Women: The 10 Rights Given 14 Centuries Ago (UK Muslim Guide 2026)
By Eaalim Institute on 4/27/2026
"How does Islam treat women?" is a question every British Muslim child is asked at some point — in school, at university, by colleagues, by curious neighbours. The mainstream British media often presents Islam as oppressive to women, while Muslim apologetics sometimes overcompensate with claims that don't survive scrutiny. The honest answer is more interesting: Islam at the time of revelation gave women legal, economic, and spiritual rights that were unprecedented in 7th-century Arabia and that Western legal systems only matched 1,200+ years later. The challenges in modern Muslim communities are mostly about cultural practices that Islam itself opposes. This UK guide presents the rights Islam gave women, where Muslim communities have fallen short, and what British Muslim families can take from the actual prophetic model.
What pre-Islamic Arabia did to women
Before Islam, women in much of Arabia faced:
- Female infanticide — baby girls buried alive at birth (Surah At-Takwir 81:8-9 explicitly condemns this).
- No inheritance rights — women inherited nothing from fathers, husbands, or sons.
- Treated as property in marriage — passed between men, divorced freely without recourse.
- No witness rights, no legal personhood in many tribes.
- Polygyny without limit (men taking dozens of wives without obligation).
What the Quran and Sunnah gave women
1. Personhood and dignity
"O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you." (Surah Al-Hujurat 49:13)
Equality before Allah; ranking by piety, not sex. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Women are the twin halves of men." (Sunan Abu Dawud 236)
2. Right to inherit
Islam introduced specific Quranic inheritance shares for daughters, mothers, wives, sisters — in some cases more than men in equivalent positions. Surah An-Nisaʾ chapter 4 lays out the precise framework. Before Islam, women inherited nothing; now they had legally defined shares.
3. Right to consent in marriage
The Prophet ﷺ ruled that a woman's marriage is invalid without her consent (Sahih al-Bukhari 5136). Forced marriage is forbidden in Islam. UK forced-marriage cases (still occurring in some communities) are violating Islamic law, not following it.
4. Right to divorce (khula)
The Quran (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:229) and Prophet's ruling in the case of Thabit ibn Qays's wife (Sahih al-Bukhari 5273) established a woman's right to initiate divorce when the marriage is unworkable.
5. Mahr (dowry) belongs to the woman
The mahr is paid by the husband to the wife (Surah An-Nisaʾ 4:4) — her property, not her family's. Pre-Islamic Arab practice often had the man pay her family; Islam corrected this.
6. Property rights independent of husband
Muslim women have always retained property they bring to or earn during marriage. They keep their own surnames after marriage (the Prophet's wives kept theirs — Aisha bint Abu Bakr, Hafsa bint Umar, Khadijah bint Khuwaylid). UK Muslim women keeping their maiden names is the Sunnah, not progressive innovation.
7. Legal witness
Women's testimony is accepted in Islamic law. Some specific contexts (financial transactions in Surah Al-Baqarah 2:282) ask for two female witnesses where one male is sufficient, classically interpreted as accommodating women's lower involvement in commercial life at the time. In specifically female matters (childbirth, women's medical issues, women's gender-segregated affairs), women's testimony is uniquely authoritative.
8. Education and scholarship
Aisha (RA) narrated 2,210 hadith and was one of the four most prolific scholars of all time. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim" — in classical Arabic this includes both genders. Throughout Islamic history, female scholars taught at the highest level: Karima al-Marwaziyya, Zaynab bint al-Sha'ari, and many others. UK Muslim women's education is the continuation of this tradition, not departure from it.
9. Right to keep working / own businesses
Khadijah (RA), the Prophet's first wife and one of his most beloved Companions, was a successful businesswoman who employed Muhammad ﷺ before marrying him. Her example is the Sunnah for Muslim women in business.
10. Sanctity of motherhood
The Prophet ﷺ said: "Paradise lies under the feet of mothers" (Ibn Majah 2781). When asked who deserves the most kindness, he answered "Your mother" three times before saying "Your father" (Sahih al-Bukhari 5971). Islam's elevation of motherhood is foundational.
Where Muslim communities have fallen short (honest assessment)
Mainstream Sunni scholarship acknowledges that some Muslim communities — including some parts of UK Muslim communities — practise things Islam itself prohibits:
- Forced marriage. Forbidden in Islam; still occurs in some UK communities. Karma Nirvana (UK helpline: 0800 5999 247) supports survivors.
- Honour-based abuse. Forbidden in Islam; cultural practice in some communities. The same helpline applies.
- Restricting women's education. Islam mandates education for both genders. Restricting daughters from education is cultural patriarchy, not religion.
- Misuse of the Surah An-Nisaʾ 4:34 verse. Mainstream Sunni scholarship is unanimous that domestic violence is haram — see our UK guide.
- Excluding women from mosques. The Prophet ﷺ said: "Do not prevent the women of Allah from the mosques of Allah" (Sahih Muslim 442). UK mosques without women's facilities are violating an explicit prophetic instruction.
- Social shame around divorce, remarriage, single motherhood. Khadijah (RA) had been twice-widowed before marrying the Prophet ﷺ. The shame is cultural, not Islamic.
What British Muslim families can take from this
- Know your rights and responsibilities precisely. Islamic law gave women specific rights 14 centuries ago; understand them, claim them, fulfil them.
- Distinguish religion from culture. When something feels oppressive, ask: is this Islam, or is this cultural baggage? Often the answer is the latter.
- Educate your daughters seriously. Aisha (RA) and Khadijah (RA) are the precedents. UK Muslim girls deserve full education through to university and beyond.
- Defend Muslim women's rights actively. When you see honour-based abuse, forced marriage, or domestic violence in your community — speak. Islam stands with you.
- Build mosques and institutions that include women fully. Women's prayer halls, women's classrooms, women's voice in committee decisions.
How Eaalim teaches the women's rights material
The Quranic verses on women's rights (Surah An-Nisaʾ chapter 4, Surah Al-Ahzab 33:35, Surah At-Talaq) are part of standard Eaalim curriculum. Eaalim's online lessons are 30 minutes (15-20 for under-7s), GMT/BST, in pounds, free real trial. Start here.
Frequently asked questions
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Ten specific rights unprecedented at the time: (1) personhood and dignity; (2) right to inherit (Quranic shares for daughters, mothers, wives, sisters); (3) right to consent in marriage (Sahih al-Bukhari 5136); (4) right to initiate divorce (khula); (5) mahr/dowry as her own property; (6) full property rights independent of husband; (7) legal witness; (8) education (Aisha (RA) narrated 2,210 hadith); (9) right to work and own businesses (Khadijah (RA) was a successful businesswoman); (10) sanctity of motherhood ('Paradise lies under the feet of mothers'). Western legal systems only matched these rights 1,200+ years later.
Yes. Pre-Islamic Arabia practised the burying of newborn baby girls in some tribes. The Quran condemned this in Surah At-Takwir 81:8-9: 'And when the girl who was buried alive is asked for what sin she was killed.' This single act of revelation ended the practice across the Arabian peninsula and established the absolute sanctity of female life. The Prophet (peace be upon him) declared that whoever raised three daughters with goodness would enter Paradise (Sunan al-Tirmidhi 1916, sahih).
Yes — through khula. The Quran (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:229) and the Prophet's ruling in the case of Thabit ibn Qays's wife (Sahih al-Bukhari 5273) established a woman's right to initiate divorce when the marriage is unworkable. The wife returns the mahr; the marriage is dissolved. UK Sharia councils and recognised Muslim scholars can process khula. UK civil divorce through standard family courts is also available and recommended for legal status. Women's right to leave an abusive or unworkable marriage is established in Islamic law.
No. Forced marriage is haram. The Prophet (peace be upon him) ruled that a woman's marriage is invalid without her consent (Sahih al-Bukhari 5136). UK forced-marriage cases (still occurring in some communities) are violating Islamic law, not following it. Karma Nirvana (UK helpline 0800 5999 247) supports forced-marriage survivors; the Forced Marriage Unit of the UK government also provides assistance. Islam stands with women refusing forced marriage; UK law and the Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Act 2007 also do.
Yes. Khadijah (RA), the Prophet's first wife, was a successful businesswoman who employed Muhammad (peace be upon him) before marrying him. Her example is the Sunnah. Throughout Islamic history, Muslim women have worked as merchants, scholars, doctors, and public officials. UK Muslim women working as NHS doctors, teachers, lawyers, and professionals are fulfilling, not departing from, the Sunnah. Modesty in dress and conduct is required; the work itself is permitted.
This verse specifically concerns financial transactions in 7th-century Arabia, where men were typically more involved in commercial affairs and women less. The classical scholarly explanation: it accounts for the lower likelihood that a woman of that era was familiar with detailed commercial practice. In specifically female matters (childbirth, women's medical issues, women's gender-segregated affairs), women's testimony alone is authoritative. The verse is contextual to its time, not a general statement about women's reliability.
Yes — and the Islamic tradition has had female scholars from the start. Aisha (RA) narrated 2,210 hadith and corrected major male Companions. Throughout Islamic history: Karima al-Marwaziyya (a major Bukhari teacher), Zaynab bint al-Sha'ari, Fatima bint Sa'd al-Khayr, and many others taught at the highest level. UK Muslim women pursuing PhDs in Islamic studies, teaching at universities, and writing scholarly works are continuing this tradition. The hadith 'Seeking knowledge is obligatory upon every Muslim' uses the Arabic word for both genders.
Because cultural practice often departs from religious teaching. The Quran and Sunnah gave women rights 14 centuries ago, but cultural patriarchy (Arab, South Asian, North African, etc.) sometimes overrode the Islamic teaching. Honest acknowledgment: forced marriage, honour-based abuse, restricting daughters' education, exclusion from mosques are cultural practices that Islam itself opposes. Mainstream Sunni scholarship in the UK and globally is increasingly clear about distinguishing religion from culture. UK Muslim families should claim their Islamic rights against cultural pressures.
Yes — and the Prophet (peace be upon him) explicitly forbade preventing women from mosques: 'Do not prevent the women of Allah from the mosques of Allah' (Sahih Muslim 442). UK mosques without proper women's facilities are violating an explicit prophetic instruction. Most major UK mosques (Regent's Park, East London Mosque's Maryam Centre, Birmingham Central, Manchester Central, Cambridge Mosque) have full women's facilities. UK Muslim women should attend Friday Jumuah, Tarawih, Eid prayers, and weekly classes regularly.
Three steps. Read the Quranic verses on women's rights directly (Surah An-Nisaʾ chapter 4, Al-Ahzab 33:35, At-Talaq, Al-Baqarah). Read scholarly works by Muslim women: Asma Lamrabet, Ingrid Mattson, Yasmin Mogahed, Karen Bauer. Discuss with qualified scholars and Muslim women in the UK community. Eaalim teaches the relevant Quranic surahs with brief context — see https://eaalim.com/free-trial. The goal is informed, confident Muslim womanhood that knows its rights and responsibilities precisely.
