This resource focuses on Fatima Sheikh, an Indian educator and advocate during the 19th century. She has been described as a peer of the husband-and-wife duo of Jyotirao and Savitribai Phule. She is also known as the first Muslim woman teacher in India. Historians generally agree that not much can be researched or written about her (ThePrint; Wikipedia, Fatima Sheikh). Our resource about Savitribai Phule contains more information about this family.
Information about Fatima Sheikh
There is comparatively little information available about her. The letter by Savitribai Phule to her husband Jyotirao Phule in which she wrote, “his (Jyotirao’s) absence must be causing a lot of trouble to Fatima”, has been referenced by supporters of and detractors of her position as the first Muslim woman teacher (ThePrint; The Mooknayak, India’s First Muslim Woman Teacher’s Legacy Questioned: Fatima Sheikh). In another article, The Mooknayak, Fatima Sheikh and Savitribai Phule: Concerns of History, states that she is mentioned in a single sentence in the said letter. In the article Jyotirao Phule: The Friend of Widows and Mahars by Sambhaji Bhagwat, it is referenced that Jyotirao Phule and his wife Savitribai stayed with Fatima and her brother Usman Sheikh, when they started their first school (Wikipedia, Jyotirao Phule).
Fatima Sheikh and Savitribai Phule: the popular version
According to Wikipedia, after the Phules moved out of Jyotirao’s father’s house, they moved to the house of Jyotirao’s friend Usman Sheikh. There, it says, Usman’s sister Fatima, along with Savitribai, continued her work of initiating girls’ education in the neighborhood. (Wikipedia, “Savitribai Phule”). As noted by Nasreen Sayyed, Fatima was already able to read, her brother motivated her for teacher training and she along with Savitribai got their teacher training from Normal School. (Wikipedia, “Fatima Sheikh”). Again, as per the same source, they started their first school in Usman Sheikh’s house in 1849 (Wikipedia, “Savitribai Phule”). I’ve included the original notes, since these pieces of information are from subsequently-written records and do not contain any of the Phules’ personal accounts.
What historians question
According to ThePrint, an eminent historian at Savitribai Phule Pune University, Dr. Shraddha Kumbhojkar, has said that there is no evidence to show that Fatima Sheikh was the first Muslim woman educator in India. Mooknayak says that no primary sources support any of her achievements and that the month and year of her birth and death are also not supported by primary sources (Mooknayak, “Concerns of History”). The same website says that an objection was raised by Hari Narke when Google released its Doodle to commemorate Fatima’s birthday (Mooknayak). The complete works of the Phules also do not support that she was a teacher along with them, and 1856 is the only year which supports her claim, according to Mooknayak (Mooknayak, “India’s First Muslim Woman Teacher’s Legacy Questioned”). The same article says Dalit historians responded to the letter which supports that Fatima existed, and the issue was lack of emphasis on her by historians during the 20th century (Mooknayak). It is also debated if a picture which shows Savitribai along with two of her students also contains the image of Fatima. (The Print, Wikipedia).
Fatima Sheikh Google Doodle
In January 2022, on the 191st anniversary of the birth of Fatima Sheikh, Google posted a doodle celebrating her. She is reported to be ‘widely considered to be India’s first Muslim woman teacher’ (Wikipedia, ‘Fatima Sheikh’). In January 2022, The Print reported that since the publication of the doodle, there has been an intensive debate about Sheikh’s existence. In 2020, three years before the doodle was published, the date of Sheikh’s birth was accepted to be January 9, 1831 by some historians. This was the year of the accepted birth date of another important figure in Indian women’s history, Savitribai Phule (The Mooknayak, ‘Concerns of History’).
Sheikh, the textbook, and a statue
In 2020, the government of Maharashtra included short biographies of Fatima Sheikh in Urdu language textbooks (Wikipedia, ‘Fatima Sheikh’). A lesson on Fatima Sheikh was introduced in the school curriculum of Andhra Prdesh in 2022 (Siasat Daily, Wikipedia). A statute of Sheikh was unveiled in Andhra Prdesh in January 2023 (Siasat Daily, Wikipedia). The Mooknayak cites a book titled India’s First Muslim Woman Teacher – Revolutionary Fatima Sheikh (The Mooknayak) and ThePrint cites a book in Marathi, published in 1984, Women of Phule-Castesat Movement which mentions Fatima Sheikh and the Phule’s Women’s Education Movement (The Print). ThePhule’s Women’s Education Movement was an outreach to lower case women and Dalits. The movement is covered in our Guide to Dalit Women. Other works of the movement include coverage of the Pasmanda Muslims.
Evaluating a historical claim
When evaluating a historical claim, evidence from the period being discussed is ideal. The 1856 letter is one such piece of evidence. Other claims about a school in 1849, a shared course of study and a birthday appear in accounts written many years later. Historians differ in judgement about the degree to which we can trust these later accounts. Our article regarding Ambedkar’s degrees evaluates a similar claim in a more academic manner. Published blogs strive to be trusted; evaluating claims against source material determines a blog’s status. The Ambedkar-ite Educational Program, is a trusted, and free resource, where you can learn Blog Writing, Website Development and Email Marketing for 297 Rs (3.94$ USD). Join the program, and the movement for free.
Areas where the sources fail to agree
- Was she the first Muslim woman teacher? According to the History Professor, there is no evidence to support this claim.
- Was she born on January 9, 1831? Popular accounts state this, but scholars have said no primary source supports this claim.
- What was her role at the school? We learn of a school in 1849 from accounts many years later.
- What is the context of the photograph? It is stated to be of Savitribai and Fatima, but this has been challenged.
- What is her full name? Fatima Sheikh or Fatima Shaikh?
Takeaway
Fatima Sheikh is listed by name in Savitribai Phule’s letter dated October 10, 1856. Other accounts mention the Phules taking shelter with her brother, Usman Sheikh. She is credited as the first Muslim woman teacher in India and as a co-worker of Savitribai Phule in her effort toward educating girls. Some scholars, however, dismiss the lack of supporting evidence during her time and after her death to authenticate these reports.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Fatima Sheikh?
A teacher and social reformer active in the mid-19th century, and a contemporary and colleague of Savitribai and Jyotirao Phule.
Is there evidence that Fatima Sheikh existed?
Yes. We have Savitribai’s letter dated October 10, 1856. Beyond this, opinions vary.
Was Fatima Sheikh the first Muslim woman teacher?
It is a widely accepted attribution and a university professor said there is no evidence to support it.
What is the Fatima Sheikh Google Doodle?
A 2022 Doodle released on what Google termed her 191st birthday.
Who was Usman Sheikh?
Brother of Fatima and a friend of Jyotirao Phule.
SOURCES
- Wikipedia, “Fatima Sheikh”
- Wikipedia, “Savitribai Phule”
- Wikipedia, “Jyotirao Phule”
- ThePrint, “Finding Fatima Sheikh: Scholars point to Phule’s letter, photo negative and British-era document”
- The Mooknayak, “Fatima Sheikh and Savitribai Phule: Concerns of History”
- The Mooknayak, “India’s First Muslim Woman Teacher’s Legacy Questioned: Fatima Sheikh”
- Wikiwand, “Fatima Sheikh” (Wikipedia mirror, with the Siasat Daily references)
- Savitribai Phule, letter to Jyotirao Phule, October 10, 1856 (please add a reference to a published edition)
- Nasreen Sayyed, work on Fatima Sheikh (please add a reference)
