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The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927)

This thesis studied the history of the school of sharīʿa judges (1907-1927) as an essential episode of the reform of Sharīʿa courts in Egypt in the early 20th century. The thesis studied the school in connection with the broader context of legal modernization of the Egyptian legal system. The study...

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Main Author: Nouh, Yamen
Format: Thesis
Published: AUC Knowledge Fountain 2023
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access_status_str Open Access
author Nouh, Yamen
author_browse Nouh, Yamen
author_facet Nouh, Yamen
author_sort Nouh, Yamen
collection Thesis
description This thesis studied the history of the school of sharīʿa judges (1907-1927) as an essential episode of the reform of Sharīʿa courts in Egypt in the early 20th century. The thesis studied the school in connection with the broader context of legal modernization of the Egyptian legal system. The study explored the institutional, pedagogical, and legal aspects of the reform that the school advocated. The study analyzed the impact of the school’s pedagogy on the practice of the Islamic judiciary and the theoretical conception of Sharīʿa. The study used a significant yet understudied historical source: the judicial press. A comparative analysis was made between two important judicial periodicals. The first one is the Majallat al-Aḥkām al-sharʿiyya (Journal of sharīʿa verdicts), which was in publication between 1902 and 1909, and the second one is the Majallat al-Qaḍāʾ al-sharʿī (the journal of sharīʿa judiciary) that was in press between 1922 and 1931, edited and published by the school of sharīʿa judges’ students and graduates. Both journals published a plentiful number of complete court records along with legal comments on them. Both journals also provide a perfect source for understanding the debates and conflicts regarding the sharīʿa courts’ system through the articles authored by judges and clerks of the courts. Both journals were issued on two different phases of reform, which provided a perfect comparative perspective. The thesis argued that a specific vision of legal pedagogy was set for the school by the British colonial authorities to induce a reform of Islamic judicial practice. That reform was meant to harmonize the practice of the sharīʿa courts with Modern tribunals (i.e., National and Mixed courts) in preparation for its dilution and abolition. That reform led to a remarkable change in the judicial practice of the school’s graduates. It also led to a fundamental transformation of the notion of sharīʿa in their legal writings, from a dynamic legislative methodology, as it used to be approached in the pre-modern Islamic judiciary practice, to a static legal theory, following the Frech legal theoretical model.
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institution American University in Cairo (Egypt)
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license_str Not specified — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress
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spelling oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-3320 The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927) Nouh, Yamen This thesis studied the history of the school of sharīʿa judges (1907-1927) as an essential episode of the reform of Sharīʿa courts in Egypt in the early 20th century. The thesis studied the school in connection with the broader context of legal modernization of the Egyptian legal system. The study explored the institutional, pedagogical, and legal aspects of the reform that the school advocated. The study analyzed the impact of the school’s pedagogy on the practice of the Islamic judiciary and the theoretical conception of Sharīʿa. The study used a significant yet understudied historical source: the judicial press. A comparative analysis was made between two important judicial periodicals. The first one is the Majallat al-Aḥkām al-sharʿiyya (Journal of sharīʿa verdicts), which was in publication between 1902 and 1909, and the second one is the Majallat al-Qaḍāʾ al-sharʿī (the journal of sharīʿa judiciary) that was in press between 1922 and 1931, edited and published by the school of sharīʿa judges’ students and graduates. Both journals published a plentiful number of complete court records along with legal comments on them. Both journals also provide a perfect source for understanding the debates and conflicts regarding the sharīʿa courts’ system through the articles authored by judges and clerks of the courts. Both journals were issued on two different phases of reform, which provided a perfect comparative perspective. The thesis argued that a specific vision of legal pedagogy was set for the school by the British colonial authorities to induce a reform of Islamic judicial practice. That reform was meant to harmonize the practice of the sharīʿa courts with Modern tribunals (i.e., National and Mixed courts) in preparation for its dilution and abolition. That reform led to a remarkable change in the judicial practice of the school’s graduates. It also led to a fundamental transformation of the notion of sharīʿa in their legal writings, from a dynamic legislative methodology, as it used to be approached in the pre-modern Islamic judiciary practice, to a static legal theory, following the Frech legal theoretical model. 2023-12-31T08:00:00Z thesis application/pdf https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2273 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3320/viewcontent/Yamen_Nouh_Thesis.pdf Theses and Dissertations AUC Knowledge Fountain Sharīʿa courts Islamic judiciary Qāḍī court Islamic Reform Egypt Colonialism Azhar Islamic law fiqh Legal History Arabic Studies Comparative and Foreign Law Educational Sociology Islamic Studies Legal History Legal Writing and Research Politics and Social Change Public Law and Legal Theory Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies Religion Law Social and Cultural Anthropology Sociology of Culture Sociology of Religion
spellingShingle Sharīʿa courts
Islamic judiciary
Qāḍī court
Islamic Reform
Egypt
Colonialism
Azhar
Islamic law
fiqh
Legal History
Arabic Studies
Comparative and Foreign Law
Educational Sociology
Islamic Studies
Legal History
Legal Writing and Research
Politics and Social Change
Public Law and Legal Theory
Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies
Religion Law
Social and Cultural Anthropology
Sociology of Culture
Sociology of Religion
Nouh, Yamen
The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927)
title The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927)
title_full The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927)
title_fullStr The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927)
title_full_unstemmed The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927)
title_short The School of Sharīʿa Judges: Sharīʿa Courts’ Reform and Legal Modernization in Egypt (1907-1927)
title_sort school of shariʿa judges shariʿa courts reform and legal modernization in egypt 1907 1927
topic Sharīʿa courts
Islamic judiciary
Qāḍī court
Islamic Reform
Egypt
Colonialism
Azhar
Islamic law
fiqh
Legal History
Arabic Studies
Comparative and Foreign Law
Educational Sociology
Islamic Studies
Legal History
Legal Writing and Research
Politics and Social Change
Public Law and Legal Theory
Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies
Religion Law
Social and Cultural Anthropology
Sociology of Culture
Sociology of Religion
url https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2273
https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3320/viewcontent/Yamen_Nouh_Thesis.pdf
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