Lecture
Qahramon Yakubov will be Central Asia Erasmus Fellow in April 2023
- Date
- Monday 17 April 2023 - Saturday 29 April 2023
- Location
- Matthias de Vrieshof 3
2311 BZ Leiden - Room
- Verbarium
In Leiden Dr. Yakubov will deliver two guest lectures as part of the Erasmus Mobility Plus project between Leiden University and the Al-Biruni Institute. The project is coordinated and hosted by the Central Asia Initiative at Leiden University.
Lecture: Women in the Context of Waqf in Khorezm under Qonghrat Dynasty
Thursday, 20 April 2023
Time: 11:15-13:00 hrs
Venue: Verbarium, M. de Vrieshof 3
The role of women in the daily life of Khorezm, and their participation in the socio-economic and cultural relations remains one of the least studied and often misinterpreted topics of scholarship. In particular, the historical works and manuscripts produced in Central Asia, of course, do not commonly depict or even contain general information about the social and economic positions of women in society. Because this topic is far from the goals of these historical sources and, most importantly, the day-to-day activity of women in a society heavily influenced by Islamic culture. However, the existence of qāḍī documents that demonstrate the counter side of the phenomena, make us to rethink the gender history of the region. Khorezmian women were active in waqf economy of cultural and religious establishments such as madrasas, mosques, tombs, premises of Koran reciters (qārīkhānas) by holding different positions. Moreover, the bulk of rental agreements and sale transactions reflect the involvement of women in these practices as lessor and purchaser (or seller) respectively. Thus, the lecture explores the socio-economic activity of women in property relations in Khorezm under Qonghrat Dynasty (1804-1920).
Lecture: Waqf Administration in Khorezm: Interaction between Sharia and Customary Law
Monday, 24 April 2023
Time: 15:15-17:00 hrs
Venue: Verbarium, M. de Vrieshof 3
The present study aims to examine the feature of legal practice in the context of waqf administration of the mosques of residential neighbourhoods. The mosque community was the smallest administrative and fiscal unit in Khorezm under Qonghrat dynasty (1770-1920) and usually it comprised at least 30 families. There were 65 mosque communities in the city of Khiva, the capital of the Khanate of Khiva in the early 20th century. Under each residential neighbourhood, the mosque operated as a centre of religious praying and ceremonies for the inhabitants of the residential neighbourhood/s. Khans, high officials and the wealthy established waqf institutions (madrasas, Sufi lodges, great mosques etc.) and promoted the further development of this waqf establishments; their sponsorship was continued by subsequent upper classes and power elites, whereas small waqf institutions such as mosques belonging to certain social units were generally supported by members of the local community. It should be noted that legal practice of waqf administration had a unique feature and thus differed from the legal instruction of other waqf institutions in Khorezm. Preliminary observations suggest the implementation of norms based on the rulings of the Sharia and customary law, which, in turn, indicates the coexistence of two legal practices within a single historic-geographical locality of Central Asia.