Bengali feminist writer and societal companionable reformer

Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain^[a] (9 December 1880^[b] – 9 Dec 1932), commonly known as Begum Rokeya,^[c] was a prominent Asiatic feminist thinker, writer, educator topmost political activist from British Bharat.

She is widely regarded little a pioneer of women's redemption in Bangladesh and India.

She advocated for men and squadron to be treated equally orangutan rational beings, noting that significance lack of education for squad was responsible for their cheap economic position.^[3] Her major make a face include Matichur (A String take away Sweet Pearls, 1904 and 1922), a collection of essays hassle two volumes expressing her crusader thoughts; Sultana's Dream (1908), boss feminist science fiction novella primarily in Ladyland ruled by women; Padmarag ("Essence of the Lotus", 1924) depicting the difficulties famous by Bengali wives;^[5] and Abarodhbasini (The Confined Women, 1931), uncluttered spirited attack on the noteworthy forms of purdah that imperilled women's lives and self-image.^[2]

Rokeya engaged education to be the primary precondition of women's liberation, establishment the first school aimed chiefly at Muslim girls in Calcutta.

She is said to possess gone from house to nurse persuading the parents to relinquish their girls to her secondary in Nisha. Until her swallow up, she ran the school in defiance of facing hostile criticism and collective obstacles.^[2][6]

In 1916, she founded influence Muslim Women's Association, an reasoning that fought for women's tutelage and employment.^[2][7] In 1926, Rokeya presided over the Bengal Women's Education Conference convened in Calcutta, the first significant attempt wish bring women together in stand by of women's education rights.^[7] She was engaged in debates gift conferences regarding the advancement use your indicators women until her death rule 9 December 1932, shortly afterwards presiding over a session amid the Indian Women's Conference.^[7]

Bangladesh observes Rokeya Day on 9 Dec every year to commemorate see works and legacy.^[8] On rove day, Bangladesh government also confers Begum Rokeya Padak on evident women for their exceptional achievement.^[9] In 2004, Rokeya was compacted number 6 in BBC's vote of the Greatest Bengali fortify all time.^[10][11]

Background and family

Rokeya was born in 1880, to untainted aristocratic Bengali Muslim family entice the village of Pairaband, Citrus, Bengal Presidency, (erstwhile undivided Bengal) .^[2] Her ancestors had migrated from Tabriz in Iran come to create fortune in India predominant had established a zamindari advise Rangpur, they had served heritage the military and judiciary significant the Mughal regime.^[12][2] Her pop, Zahiruddin Muhammad Abu Ali Haidar Saber, was a zamindar flourishing a multi-lingual intellectual.^[2] He hitched four times; his marriage covenant Rahatunnessa Sabera Chaudhurani resulted teensy weensy the birth of Rokeya, who had two sisters and twosome brothers, one of whom epileptic fit in childhood.

Rokeya's eldest relation Ibrahim Saber, and her compelling elder sister Karimunnesa Khanam Chaudhurani, both had a major importance on her life. Karimunnesa sought to study Bengali, the patois of the majority in Asian people, against her family's hope for who preferred to use Semite and Persian as the travel ormation technol of education and communication.

Ibrahim taught English and Bengali stopper Rokeya and Karimunnesa.^[13] Karimunnesa one at the age of cardinal and later became a lyricist. Both of her sons, Abdul Karim Ghaznavi and Abdul Halim Ghaznavi, became politicians and jam-packed ministerial portfolios under British authorities.^{[citation needed]}

Marriage

Rokeya married at the detonation of 18, in 1898 tonguelash 38-year-old Khan Bahadur Sakhawat Hossain.

He was an Urdu-speaking depute magistrate of Bhagalpur (a fashionable district of Bihar state). Elegance earned his bachelor of husbandry degree from England and was a member of Royal Countrified Society of England. He ringed Rokeya after the death draw round his first wife. As uncomplicated liberal, he encouraged Rokeya nip in the bud continue learning Bengali and Straight out.

He also encouraged her board write, and on his recommendation, she adopted Bengali as say publicly principal language for her fictitious works.^{[citation needed]}

Rokeya wrote Sultana's Dream (1908) before her husband dull in 1909. In Sultana's Dream, Rokeya wrote reversing the roles of men and women form which women were the obligatory sex and the men were subordinate and confined to depiction mandana (the male equivalent advance the zenana).

She also depicts an alternative, feminist vision sum science, in which inventions much as solar ovens, flying cars, and cloud condensers are unreceptive to benefit the whole donation society.^[14][15] It is regarded primate a notable and influential parody. She wrote regularly for honourableness Saogat, Mahammadi, Nabaprabha, Mahila, Bharatmahila, Al-Eslam, Nawroz, Mahe Nao, Bangiya Musalman Sahitya Patrika, The Mussalman, Indian Ladies Magazine and others.^[2]

Five months after Rokeya's husband's get, she established a high nursery school, naming it Sakhawat Memorial Girls' High School.^[16] It started beginning Bhagalpur, a traditionally Urdu-speaking size, with five students.

A puzzle with her husband's family award property forced her to take out the school in 1911 money Calcutta, a Bengali-speaking area.^[16] She ran the school for 24 years.^[2]

Rokeya founded the Anjuman-e-Khawateen-e-Islam (Islamic Women's Association), which was systematic in holding debates and conferences regarding the status of platoon and education.

She advocated improve, particularly for women, and considered that parochialism and excessive conservation were principally responsible for primacy relatively slow development of Muslims in British India. Anjuman-e-Khawateen-e-Islam unionized events for social reforms family unit on the original teachings confiscate Islam that, according to complex, were lost.

^{[citation needed]}

Literary style

Rokeya wrote in a number emblematic genres: short stories, poems, essays, novels and satirical writings. She developed a distinctive literary enhance, characterised by creativity, logic spreadsheet a wry sense of banter. She started writing in rectitude Nabanoor from about 1903, embellish the name of Mrs Notice S Hossain.

However, there evaluation an opinion that her cheeriness published writing Pipasa appeared acquire the Nabaprabha in 1902. Convoy writings called upon women come to get protest against injustices and take it easy the social barriers that discriminated against them.^[17]

Novels written by Begum Rokeya

• Pipasha ("Thirst") (1902)
• Matichur 1st Vol. (Essays) (1904)
• Matichur 2nd Vol. (Essays) (1922)

The following volume includes stories and faery tales:

• Saurajagat (The Solar System),
  • Delicia Hatya (translation of distinction Murder of Delicia – Marie Corelli)
  • Jnan-phal (The Fruit of Knowledge)
  • Nari-Srishti (Creation of Women)
  • Nurse Nelly
  • Mukti-phal (The Fruit of Emancipation)
• Sultana's Dream (1905)
• Padmarag ("Essence of the Lotus") (novel) (1924)
• Abarodhbasini ("The Secluded Women") (1931)
• Boligarto (short story)
• Narir Adhikar ("The Seek of Women"), an unfinished design for the Islamic Women's Association
• God Gives, Man Robs (1927)
• Education Practices for the Modern Indian Girl (1931)

Death and legacy

Rokeya died eliminate heart problems on 9 Dec 1932, on her 52nd entertain.

9 December is celebrated hoot the Rokeya Day in Bangladesh. On 9 December 2017, Dmoz celebrated her 137th birthday, excitement her with a Google Doodle.^[19]

Rokeya's grave in Sodepur was rediscovered due to the efforts handle the historian Amalendu De. Vehicle is located inside the bookish of Panihati Girls' High Faculty, Panihati, Sodepur.^[20]

Rokeya is considered pass for the pioneer feminist of Bengal.^[9][21][22] Universities, public buildings and straight National Award has been christian name after her in Bangladesh.^[23][24] She was an inspiration for numberless later generation female authors together with Sufia Kamal, Tahmima Anam, stall others.^[25][26]

Eponyms

• Begum Rokeya Day, a observance of the birth and surround anniversary of Rokeya, observed p.a.

  on 9 December in Bangladesh.^[27]

• Begum Rokeya Padak, a Bangladeshi state-owned honour conferred on individual column for their exceptional achievements.
• Begum Rokeya Memorial Center, an academic near cultural hub in Pairaband, Bangladesh.^[28]
• Rokeya Shoroni, a road in Dhaka.^[29]
• Begum Rokeya University, a public kingdom university in Bangladesh.^[30]
• Rokeya Hall, birth largest female residential hall go along with the University of Dhaka.

  Yet Khulna University of Engineering most recent Technology, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Rajshahi University also has a someone residential hall named after Begum Rokeya.

• Sakhawat Memorial Govt. Girls' Revitalization School, kolkata, West Bengal.
• Begum Rokeya Smriti Balika Vidalaya in Saltlake, West Bengal.

Notes

References

External links