The Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement Blog

Women as house owners like men

The Quran instructs Muslims:

"There is no blame on the blind man, nor any blame on the lame, nor blame on the sick, nor on yourselves that you eat in your own houses, or your fathers’ houses, or your mothers’ houses, or your brothers’ houses, or your sisters’ houses, or your paternal uncles’ houses, or your paternal aunts’ houses, or your maternal uncles’ houses, or your maternal aunts’ houses…" (24:61)

Firstly, houses of males and females are mentioned equally here. Secondly, it shows home ownership by women. Now someone may say that houses of "your sisters" and "your aunts" might be owned by their husbands. But even if that were so, still your sister or aunt has the right to entertain you in that house.

But what about "your fathers' houses and your mothers' houses"? Each of the other pairs mentioned here (your brothers and sisters, your father's brothers and sisters, and your mother's brothers and sisters) would normally have a separate house. Thus the wording about the pair fathers and mothers indicates that someone's father and mother may own houses each in his/her own right. When you have the right to own property, it means you have all the rights of a human being to conduct your affairs.

In the UK, before the Married Women's Property Act of 1870: "any money made by a woman either through a wage, from investment, by gift, or through inheritance automatically became the property of her husband once she was married. Thus, the identity of the wife became legally absorbed into her husband, effectively making them one person under the law. Once a woman became married she had no claim to her property as her husband had full control and could do whatever suited him regarding the property" (see link).

Zahid Aziz