Highlights:
- Fatima Sheikh co-founded one of the first schools for girls in India along with Savitribai Phule.
- Google released a doodle to commemorate the 191st birthday of India’s first female Muslim teacher, Fatima Sheikh.
- She went door to door inviting people to her Indigenous Library to learn.
On January 9, Google released a doodle to commemorate the 191st birthday of India’s first female Muslim teacher, Fatima Sheikh. Fatima Sheikh, one of India’s earliest educators during British rule, co-founded one of the country’s first schools for females alongside Savitribai Phule.
Fatima Sheikh’s background
Fatima Sheikh was an educator and a feminist. She is largely regarded as India’s first Muslim female teacher. Along with Savitribai Phule and Jyotirao, she co-founded the Indigenous library in 1848.
She was born in the city of Pune in the year 1831. She shared a home with her brother. Her brother was Mian Usman Sheikh. When Savitribai Phule and Jyotirao Phule were evicted for educating the lower castes, the Sheikhs opened their home to them. Jyotirao Phule was a social reformer and activist. Savitribai Phule and he educated the women of the country. They wished to abolish the caste system and the concept of untouchability. Fatima encountered them in Cynthia Farrar’s American missionary. She was a teacher at each of the Phules’ five schools.
Library of Indigenous Peoples
It was inaugurated under the Sheikh’s patronage. Fatima Sheikh and Savitribai Phule taught dalit and lower caste Muslims’ children here. They also taught women and children who were forbidden an education because of their caste, religion, or gender.
The contribution of Sheikh
She went door to door inviting people to her Indigenous Library to learn. Her efforts were met with opposition from the ruling elites.
Satyashodhak Samaj is a Hindu religious organisation.
Sheikh was an enthusiastic participant in Satyashidhak Samaj’s activities. Jyotibai Phule established it in 1873. The organization’s major goal was to educate the underprivileged and promote social justice and equality. It mostly targeted Maharashtra’s Shudras and Dalits. The Brahmanical traditions were opposed by the Samaj. It also opposed the priests’ social and political dominance. It was pitted against the Shetji – Bhatji. They were the landlords with the moneylenders. The Samaj was revived by the Shahu maharaj, the Maratha ruler, after Phule’s death.
Honours
Sheikh’s achievements were highlighted by the Indian government in 2014, when her profile was included in Urdu textbooks.
