Is a Woman Allowed to Perform a Marriage Ceremony?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
Is it allowed in our religion for women to perform the marriage ceremony (nikah) and announce the boy and the girl “husband and wife” with women witnesses from both sides?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
I pray you are in good faith and health.
It is allowed for a woman to conduct and officiate a marriage ceremony. However, it is superior for a man to do so. So, if a woman officiated a marriage ceremony, in a case where she is the only learned person, or it is a group of converts or any similar sensitive situation, then it is valid. The role of the officiator is only of a facilitator and representor.
Most Important Matter in a Marriage Ceremony
The most important matter in a marriage contract ceremony is the presence of two male witnesses or one male witness along with two female witnesses to witness the marriage. Therefore the presence of female witnesses only will not validate the marriage.
This is why if the bride and groom just offer and accept by presenting themselves to a valid number and gender of witnesses or a mixed group of people, the marriage will be valid.
Marriage is concluded and contracted with the offer and acceptance in the presence of two male witnesses or one male and two female witnesses. [Maydani, al-Lubab fi Sharh al-Kitab]
Related: A Guide to Marriage: SeekersGuidance Reader
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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.
