Islamic Feminism

== Islamic feminism is a strain of feminism that developed in the Middle East and North Africa. It is the advocacy of women's rights within Islamic societies and Islamic context. It is recorded to have been founded in the late 1800s. There are four different strains of feminism within Islamic feminism-- apologist, reformist, hermeneutic, and rejectionist. ==
== Origins ==
The origin of feminism within the Mideast can be accredited to two women-- Huda Sha'rawi and Malak Hifni Nasif. Sha'rawi was heavily influenced by western feminism while Nasif worked within the context of Islamic societies such as demanding access to higher education for women. Qasim Amin is also credited as the founder of feminism in the Arab culture, however his work was actually promoting societal change for muslim countries through the advocacy of modernization; trying to give a 'modern, liberal, reformist and feminist reinterpretation of Islam'.
== Apologist Strain ==
Apologists attempted to reread the Islamic texts in order to rationalize gender equality but take a conciliatory approach and reach the same