Gender Relations in the Qur'an: Efforts to Humanize Women Through a Feminist Interpretation Perspective
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33367/al-karim.v3i2.7912Keywords:
Humanization of Women, Relational Verses, Feminist InterpretationAbstract
This study examines women’s emancipation as an essential mission of the Qur’an in promoting justice and peace. While numerous Qur’anic verses condemn oppressive pre-Islamic practices and affirm women’s full human dignity, patriarchal traditions rooted in Jahiliyyah norms continue to shape gender relations in many Muslim societies. To address this gap, gender-sensitive Qur’anic interpretation remains crucial. This article analyzes gender relations in pre-Islamic Arab society and explores Qur’anic verses that dismantle these oppressive traditions, demonstrating the Qur’an’s transformative vision of humanizing women.Employing a feminist interpretive framework, combined with contextual and textual approaches, this study reveals how the Qur’an reconstructs the position of women as whole, autonomous human beings. Pre-Islamic gender relations were characterized by systemic violence against women, including female infanticide, commodification of women, and discriminatory treatment during menstruation. The Qur’an challenges these practices through explicit prohibitions and ethical reforms. Key themes include the prohibition of violence against women, expressed in Q.S. al-Nahl 58–59 on female infanticide, Q.S. al-Nur 33 on protection from sexual coercion, Q.S. al-Baqarah 222 on reproductive health, and Q.S. al-Nisā’ 32 on domestic violence. Meanwhile, the principle of gender equality is articulated in Q.S. al-Ṭūr 56 and Q.S. al-Baqarah 30, affirming men and women as equal servants and vicegerents of God. The contextual interpretation of Q.S. al-Nisā’ 34 further emphasizes the flexibility and reciprocity of marital rights and obligations.
Contribution: The main contribution of this study lies in offering an integrative Qur’anic gender hermeneutic that combines feminist, textual, and contextual readings to highlight the Qur’an’s emancipatory ethos. This approach provides a framework for re-evaluating patriarchal interpretations and strengthens contemporary efforts toward gender-just Islamic thought.
Downloads
References
Adel, Samiullah, Mahmood Rahimi, and Asadullah Mohammadi. Rethinking Quranic Interpretation : Insights from al-Tabari’s Classical Tafsir. ZAIN Publications, January 2025. https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14576/472.
Affandi, Yuyun, Agus Riyadi, Romlah Widayanti, Asep D. Abdullah, Kurnia Muhajarah, and Nasitotul Janah. “The Humanisation of Women in the Tafsir Faidh Ar-Rahmân by Kiai Saleh Darat.” HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies 79, no. 1 (July 2023): 5. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v79i1.8732.
Afsaruddin, Asma. “Islamic Feminism(s): Promoting Gender Egalitarianism and Challenging Constitutional Constraints.” In Social Difference and Constitutionalism in Pan-Asia, edited by Susan H. Williams, 292–315. Cambridge University Press, 2012. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139567312.016.
Ali, Tazeen M. “Qur’anic Literacy as Women’s Empowerment: Cultivating Interpretive Authority at the Women’s Mosque of America.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion 89, no. 4 (2021): 1434–61. https://doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/lfab098.
Al-Krenawi, Alean. “One Father, Many Mothers: Sibling Relationships in Polygamous Families.” In Brothers and Sisters: Sibling Relationships Across the Life Course, edited by Ann Buchanan and Anna Rotkirch, 153–69. Springer International Publishing, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-55985-4_9.
Anjum, Tanvir. Review of Review of Women and Gender in Islam: Historical Roots of a Modern Debate, by Leila Ahmed. Islamic Studies 45, no. 3 (2006): 443–49.
Anwar, Etin. A Genealogy of Islamic Feminism. In A Genealogy of Islamic Feminism. 2018. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315193090.
Aram, Mohammad Reza, Mohammed Hussain Rajabi Davani, and Davood Mahdavizadeghan. “The Change of the Family from the Pre-Islamic Era to the Time of Amir al-Mo’menin (AS).” The Women and Families Cultural-Educational 16, no. 57 (January 2022): 127–55.
Auda, Jasser. “M a q A>s{i d a l - S h a r I>a h a s P h Il o s o p h y o f I s l a m i c L a w ( a S y s t e m s A p p r o a c h.” The International I n s t i t u t e o f I s l a m i c T h o u g h t L o n d o n, 2007.
Bakhshizadeh, Marziyeh. “A Social Psychological Critique on Islamic Feminism.” Religions 14, no. 2 (February 2023): 202. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14020202.
Caniago, Sulastri, Firdaus, Zainal Azwar, Dian Pertiwi, and Dasrizal Marah Nainin. “Gender Integration in Islamic Politics: Fiqh Siyasah on Women’s Political Rights since Classical to Contemporary Interpretations.” MILRev: Metro Islamic Law Review 3, no. 2 (2024): 411–31. https://doi.org/10.32332/milrev.v3i2.9962.
Davids, Nuraan. “Are Muslim Women in Need of Islamic Feminism? In Consideration of a Re-Imagined Islamic Educational Discourse.” British Journal of Religious Education 37, no. 3 (2015): 311–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/01416200.2014.944096.
Farrin, Raymond K. “Surat Al-Nisa and the Centrality of Justice.” AlBayan 14, no. 1 (2016): 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1163/22321969-12340028.
Fathurrohman, Aceng, Agna Fikri Al Rifai, and Astri Aisyah Darma. “Islam, Feminisme, Dan Gender: Pesrpektif Tafsir Maudhu’i.” JISMA: Jurnal Ilmu Sosial, Manajemen, Dan Akuntansi 3, no. 1 (2024): 1293–306.
Ginting, Lestari Dara Cinta Utami, Vivi Adryani Nasution, Aris Suhendar, Alya Rahma Nasution, and All Rizky Ramadhan. “Women in the Public Sphere: Gender Equality in Islamic Theology.” Pharos Journal of Theology 105, no. 1 (2024): 1–12. https://doi.org/10.46222/pharosjot.10518.
Hakim, Lukman. “Corak Feminisme Post-Modernis Dalam Penafsiran Faqihuddin Abdul Kodir.” Jurnal Studi Ilmu-Ilmu Al-Qur’an Dan Hadis 21, no. 1 (January 2020): 237–59. https://doi.org/10.14421/qh.2020.2101-12.
Ibrahim, Celene. Women and Gender in the Qur’an. Women and Gender in the Qur’an. Oxford University Press, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780190063818.001.0001.
Iqbal, Roshan. “Nurturing Gender Justice: Qurʾanic Interpretation and Muslim Feminist Thought.” Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion 39, no. 2 (2023): 59–61.
Karim, Ahmed A., Huda Al-Jundi, and Radwa Khalil. “Female Pioneers in Islamic Middle Ages: A Theological and Psychological Perspective.” In Female Pioneers from Ancient Egypt and the Middle East: On the Influence of History on Gender Psychology, edited by Ahmed A. Karim, Radwa Khalil, and Ahmed Moustafa, 29–45. Springer Singapore, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-1413-2_3.
Kasap Çetingök, Yeşim. “On the possibilities for transforming secularly- and Islamically-shaped feminist discourses and the subject positions of Muslim women.” Osterreichische Zeitschrift fur Soziologie 41 (2016): 145–60. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11614-016-0235-5.
Koburtay, Tamer, Ahmad Abualigah, Jawad Syed, and Abbas J. Ali. “Misconceptions and Misunderstandings: An Exploration of the Interplay of Religion, Culture and Gender from Muslim Scholars and Clerics.” Career Development International 28, nos. 6–7 (2023): 649–65. https://doi.org/10.1108/CDI-03-2023-0082.
Kodir, Faqihuddin Abdul. Qira’ah Mubadalah. IRCiSoD, 2021.
Köse, Feyza Betül. “Women in Pre-Islamic Arab Society.” Akademik Siyer Dergisi, no. Cahiliye Özel Sayısı (December 2024): 76–91. https://doi.org/10.47169/samer.1459683.
Kugle, Scott, and Stephen Hunt. “Masculinity, Homosexuality and the Defence of Islam: A Case Study of Yusuf al-Qaradawi’s Media Fatwa.” Religion and Gender 2, no. 2 (2012): 254–79. https://doi.org/10.1163/18785417-00202005.
Lahmuddin, Lahmuddin, Alber Oki, and Henri Toga Sinaga. “Indonesia The Position Of Muslim Women From The Perspective Of The Quran: A Critique Of Feminism.” ZAD Al-Mufassirin 6, no. 1 (June 2024): 145–59. https://doi.org/10.55759/zam.v6i1.147.
Lanani, Arbia. “Aspects of Maqāṣid-Based Renewal and Its Impact on Fatwas Involving Women and the Family by Sheikh Yūsuf al-Qaraḍāwī.” Journal of College of Sharia and Islamic Studies 43, no. 1 (2025): 81–105. https://doi.org/10.29117/jcsis.2025.0400.
Louiz, Serine. “Guiding Women’s Roles in the Thought of Imam Yūsuf al-Qaraḍāwī.” Journal of College of Sharia and Islamic Studies 43, no. 1 (2025): 269–94. https://doi.org/10.29117/jcsis.2025.0407.
Mah}mu>b bin ’Umar al-Zamakhshariy al-Khawa>rizmiy. Al-Kashsha>f ’an H{aqa>’iq al-Tanzi>l Wa ’Uyu>n al-Aqa>wil Fi> Wuju>h al-Ta’wi>l. Beirut: Da>r al-Ma’rifat, n.d.
Mernissi, Fatimah. Women and Islam: An Historical and Theological Enquiry. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1991.
Mir-Hosseini, Ziba. “Muslim Women’s Quest for Equality: Between Islamic Law and Feminism.” Critical Inquiry 32, no. 4 (2006): 629–45. https://doi.org/10.1086/508085.
Mosse, Julia Cleves. Half the World Half a Chance: An Introduction to Gender and Development. Oxfam GB, 1993. https://oxfamilibrary.openrepository.com/handle/10546/122709.
Mustaqim, Abdul. Paradigma Tafsir Feminis. Yogyakarta: Logung Pustaka, 2008.
Nadia, Zunly, and Niswatin Faoziah. “Gender Equality within Family in Islamic Perspective: Insights from The Hadiths of Ummul Mukminin.” Jurnal Studi Ilmu-Ilmu Al-Qur’an Dan Hadis 25, no. 1 (June 2024): 161–86. https://doi.org/10.14421/qh.v25i1.5260.
Nasution, Karimuddin, and Mohd Faizulamri Mohd Saad. “Analysis of Feminist Principels in The Da’wah Agenda of Gender Equality.” International Journal of Media and Communication Research 1, no. 2 (July 2020): 14–23. https://doi.org/10.25299/ijmcr.v1i2.5269.
Nathan, K. S., and Mohammad Hashim Kamali. Islam in Southeast Asia: Political, Social and Strategic Challenges for the 21st Century. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2005.
Noor, Muhammad Fauzi. “A Feminist Interpretation of Qur’anic Texts By Amina Wadud And Zaitunah Subhan.” INTIHA: Islamic Education Journal 1, no. 3 (August 2024): 144–56. https://doi.org/10.58988/intiha.v1i3.311.
Nuraini, Shinta. “Al-Quran Dan Penciptaan Perempuan Dalam Tafsir Feminis.” HERMENEUTIK, ahead of print, 2019. https://doi.org/10.21043/hermeneutik.v12i1.6023.
Onstine, Suzanne. “Gender and the Religion of Ancient Egypt.” Religion Compass 4, no. 1 (2010): 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-8171.2009.00178.x.
Paracha, Kalsoom, and Aiman Khalid. “Inclusiveness of Women’s Empowerment in Muslim Societies.” Islamic Studies 62, no. 2 (2023): 275–88. https://doi.org/10.52541/isiri.v62i2.2362.
Qadri, Busran, and Ihsan Mulia Siregar. “Islamic Renewal in the Field of Family Law: A Historical Analysis of Gender Equality.” El-Usrah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga 6, no. 2 (December 2023): 444–55. https://doi.org/10.22373/ujhk.v6i2.17128.
Rhodes, Jerusha Tanner. “Feminist Exegesis and beyond: Trajectories in Muslima Theology.” In Muslim Women and Gender Justice: Concepts, Sources, and Histories, 17–32. Taylor and Francis, 2019. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351025348-2.
Sarwanih. “Reinterpreting Female Sexuality in Islam: A Maqāṣidī Exegesis of QS Āli ‘Imrān:14 toward Gender-Just Hermeneutics.” Al Furqan: Jurnal Ilmu Al Quran Dan Tafsir 8, no. 1 (August 2025): 107–18. https://doi.org/10.58518/alfurqon.v8i1.3586.
Shafie, Hassan al-. “The Qur’an, Faith and the Impact of the Feminist Interpretative Movement on the Arabic Text and its Legacy.” Journal of Qur’anic Studies 6, no. 2 (2004): 170–83. https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2004.6.2.170.
Shahin, Farah. “Islamic Feminism and Hegemonic Discourses on Faith and Gender in Islam.” International Journal of Islam in Asia 1, no. 1 (2020): 27–48. https://doi.org/10.1163/25899996-01010003.
Shamsudin, Roshimah, and Aiza Maslan Baharudin. “The Creation of Women from the Perspective of Mufassirun and Muhaddithun between Past and Present Scholars.” MATEC Web Conf. 150 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/201815005064.
Sholikhah, Zumrotus. “Rekonstruksi Gender Dalam Islam: Studi Kritis Atas Tafsir Tradisional Perspektif Feminisme.” IJouGS: Indonesian Journal of Gender Studies 6, no. 1 (2025). https://jurnal.iainponorogo.ac.id/index.php/ijougs/article/view/11623.
Subhan, Zaitunah. Tafsir Kebencian: Studi Bias Gender Dalam Tafsir Al-Quran. Yogyakarta: LKiS, 1999.
Syarif, Ahmad Arif. “Relasi Gender Suami Istri: Studi Pandangan Tokoh Aisyiyah.” Sawwa: Jurnal Studi Gender, ahead of print, 2018. https://doi.org/10.21580/sa.v13i1.2743.
Umar, Nasaruddin. Argumen Kesetaraan Jender Perspektif Alquran. Jakarta: Paramadina, 2001.
Wadud, Amina. Qur’an and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman’s Perspective. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Wijaya, Aksin, Ibnu Muchlis, and Dawam Multazam Rohmatulloh. “Rethinking Gender Justice in the Quran: A Critical Exploration of Muslim Feminist Perspectives.” Jurnal Studi Ilmu-Ilmu Al-Qur’an Dan Hadis 26, no. 1 (March 2025): 77–98. https://doi.org/10.14421/qh.v26i1.5704.
Yelsalı Parmaksız, Pınar Melis. “Thirty Years of Gender and Women’s Studies in Turkey.” Women’s Studies International Forum 77 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2019.102279.
Zulaiha, Eni. “Tafsir Feminis: Sejarah, Paradigma Dan Standar Validitas Tafsir Feminis.” Al-Bayan: Jurnal Studi Ilmu Al- Qur’an Dan Tafsir, ahead of print, 2016. https://doi.org/10.15575/al-bayan.v1i1.1671.
Zulkarnaini, Zulfikri. “Feminist Exegesis in Hamka’s Tafsir Al-Azhar.” Jurnal Studi Ilmu-Ilmu Al-Qur’an Dan Hadis 22, no. 2 (July 2021): 403–26. https://doi.org/10.14421/qh.2021.2202-07.
Abstract
Views:
57, 
PDF downloads: 35
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Halya Millati, Elima Amiroh Nur Azizah, Mohammad Chaedar Syed Abdurrahman Al-Yahya, Muhammad Miqdam Makfi
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
-
The formal legal aspect of access to any information and articles contained in this journal site refers to the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) license.
-
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
Licensed under a 