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Fatima Sheikh
Fatima Sheikh | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1831 |
| Occupation | Social reformer, teacher |
| Known for | India's First Muslim Woman teacher |
| Relatives | Mian Usman Sheikh (Brother) |
Fatima Sheikh (फातिमा शेख[lower-alpha 1];born c. 1831) is a fictional character. It was created by a journalist named Dilip Mandal, who advocates for Ambedkarite ideals. This journalist has admitted on X (formerly Twitter) that he created this character to garner support from Muslims for individuals who raise voices for Dalit interests. By combining Dalits and Muslims into a vote bank, upper-caste Hindus and the OBC category could be kept away from power.[1]
Biography[edit]
Fatima Sheikh was the sister of Mian Usman Sheikh, a resident of Pune in the neighbourhood of Ganjpeth, who was also a friend of Jyotiba Phule.[2] Usman encouraged Fatima to get modern edcuation from Jyotiba Phule, who was also educating his wife Savitribai Phule.[3][lower-alpha 2]
Sheikh and Savitribai subsequently received teacher training from Cynthia Farrar, an American missionary in Ahmednagar.[4] They established their first girls' school in a portion of Usman Sheikh's house in 1848, under the name "Indigenous Library".[5][6][7] It was a revolutionary project since in the social milieu of those times, girls were not allowed to receive public education.[6] The two teachers had to go house to house to promote their school and to persuade parents to send their children there.[2]
The Phules faced resistance from Jyotiba's parents for their social work, and had to leave the ancestral home. They went to live with Usman Sheikh, and stayed there till 1856.[2]
Fatima Sheikh taught at all five schools that the Phules went on to establish and she taught children of all religions and castes. Sheikh took part in the founding of two schools in Mumbai (then Bombay) in 1851.[8]
Many people regard 9 January as the date of her birth, using it for remembrance.[2][9][10] The year of her birth is estimated to be 1831.[11][12]
Recognition[edit]
In 2014, the state of Maharashtra included a brief profile of Fatima Sheikh in Urdu language textbooks.[5][7]
On 9 January 2022, Google honoured Sheikh with a doodle on her 191st birth anniversary,[11] describing her as being widely considered to be India’s first Muslim woman teacher.[12]
The Andhra Pradesh government introduced Sheikh into its textbooks. Reading circles were set up in her name and a library at Shahen Bagh protest site was named after her and Savitribai.[13]
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ https://megalodon.jp/2025-0126-1538-16/https://x.com:443/Profdilipmandal/status/1877244084684820907
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 O'Hanlon, Rosalind (16 January 2022). "What a photograph tells us about Fatima Sheikh". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 16 February 2022.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Kazmi, Sahil (March 2019). "Fatima Sheikh – The Forgotten Educationalist of the 19th Century". The Jamia Review. Archived from the original on 13 June 2024.
- ↑ Grey, Mary (2016). "Opposition to Untouchability: Gandhi and Ambedkar". A Cry for Dignity: Religion, Violence and the Struggle of Dalit Women in India. Taylor & Francis. pp. 117–118. ISBN 978-1315478401.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Khan, Aqsa Khan (22 January 2017). "Remembering Fatima Sheikh: A Woman Lost In History - #IndianWomenInHistory". Feminism in India. Archived from the original on 7 December 2024.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Apurva, Ankita (26 January 2021). "Why Do Caste Gatekeepers Not Tell Us About Fatima Sheikh?". LiveWire, The Wire. Archived from the original on 25 February 2024.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Sengupta, Arjun (10 January 2023). "Who was Fatima Sheikh: India's oft-forgotten feminist icon". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 7 December 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
- ↑ Tschurenev, Jana (2019). "Civil Society, Government, and Educational Institution-Building, Bombay Presidency, 1819–1882". Empire, Civil Society, and the Beginnings of Colonial Education in India. Cambridge University Press. p. 276. ISBN 978-1108656269. Retrieved 17 February 2021.
- ↑ Menon, Vandana (9 January 2018). "Fatima Sheikh: The woman who reshaped Indian education with Savitribai Phule". ThePrint. Archived from the original on 8 December 2024.
- ↑ Nasiruddin (10 January 2025) [13 September 2020]. "faatima shekh, saavitree baee phule kee saathee theen ya nahin, upalabdh dastaavez kya bataate hain?" फ़ातिमा शेख़, सावित्री बाई फुले की साथी थीं या नहीं, उपलब्ध दस्तावेज़ क्या बताते हैं? [Was Fatima Sheikh a companion of Savitribai Phule or not, what do the available documents tell us?]. BBC News (in हिन्दी). Archived from the original on 14 January 2025.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Joshi, Yogesh (10 January 2025). "Activist claims he invented story of 'first Muslim teacher Fatima Sheikh'". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Fatima Sheikh's 191st Birthday". Google Doodles. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
- ↑ Menon, Vandana (10 January 2025). "Finding Fatima Sheikh: Scholars point to Phule's letter, photo negative & British-era document". ThePrint. Retrieved 11 January 2025.