Mrs Nor Ismah

Nor Ismah is a PhD student at Leiden University Institute for Area Studies (LIAS) in the Netherlands, sponsored by the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) of the Ministry of Finance of Republic Indonesia (2016 -2020). She is a senior research associate at the Institute of Southeast Asian Islam at the State University for Islamic Studies Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta, Indonesia. Her PhD research focuses on female ulama, authorities, and fatwa rulings in Indonesia. Her publications include “Destabilising Male Domination: Building Community Based Authority among Indonesian Female Ulama”, Asian Studies Review, vol.4 no.4, December 2016.

Amplifying Authority: Female Ulama and Mass Mediated Fatwas in the Public Spheres of Indonesia

My paper attempts to look at the shift in fatwas issued by female ulama as an oral form of communication to become a form of written communication published and mediated through magazines and websites. My study will answer three questions. First, how do female ulama issue fatwas through print and online media in the broader context of public sphere? Secondly, how do they articulate their fatwas? Thirdly, what space has the format of Questions and Answers given to female ulama to exercise their Islamic authority?