ABSTRACT: Rahmah El Yunusiah is one of the figures and fighters for the Indonesian women. Rahmah El Yunusiah (REY) was born on December 20^th, 1900 in the city of Padang Panjang, West Sumatra District, a small town in the western part of Indonesia. In the history of Indonesia, REY is known as the founder of the “Perguruan Diniyah Putri” or Ladies Religion School in Padang Panjang which is quite famous. The school still exists up to the present and has produced thousands of alumni who are scattered in various regions in Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia. The success of REY in managing the school was apparently supported by several things, among others, the Minangkabau matrilineal kinship system. Women as mothers or “Bundo Kanduang” have a kinship system and the freedom to carry out their ideals. With the properties owned by REY, she successfully managed to establish the school. Until her death in 1969, REY still remained faithful to maintain the existence of the school she started. Currently, the Ladies Religion School has various levels of education starting from kindergarten to university.

KEY WORDS: Rahmah El Yunusiah, position and roles the women, Minangkabau matrilineal system, and Islamic education institution.

About the Author: Dr. Magdalia Alfian is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of History, Faculty of Humanities UI (University of Indonesia), UI Campus, Depok, West Java, Indonesia. She can be contacted via her e-mail address at: magdalia_alf10@yahoo.com

How to cite this article? Alfian, Magdalia. (2012). “Rahmah El Yunusiah: Pioneer of Islamic Women Education in Indonesia, 1900 — 1960’s” in TAWARIKH: International Journal for Historical Studies, Vol.4(1) October, pp.55-66. Bandung, Indonesia: ASPENSI [Asosiasi Sarjana Pendidikan Sejarah Indonesia] and UVRI [Universitas Veteran Republik Indonesia], ISSN 2085-0980.

Chronicle of the article: Accepted (August 28, 2012); Revised (September 30, 2012); and Published (October 28, 2012).

Abdullah, Taufik. (1971). School and Politics: The Kaum Muda Movement in West Sumatera, 1927 — 1933. Ithaca, New York: Cornell University.

Alfian & Dewi Fortuna Anwar. (1983). Wanita dalam Masyarakat Minangkabau. Jakarta: Lembaga Riset Kebudayaan Nasional — LIPI [Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia].

Alfian, Magdalia [ed]. (2006). Sejarah Pemikiran Indonesia Sampai Tahun 1945. Jakarta: Direktorat Nilai Sejarah, Departemen Kebudayaan dan Pariwisata.

Alfian, Magdalia. (2010a). “Perempuan dan Pendidikan di Minangkabau Awal Abad XX: Pergulatan antara Adat dan Modernisasi” in Jurnal Sejarah, No.1. Jakarta: MSI [Masyarakat Sejarawan Indonesia].

Alfian, Magdalia. (2010b). ”Women Position in Minangkabau: Between Myth and Reality”. Paper presented in an International Conference on Sebumi in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on 12-13 July.

Anonymous. (n.y.). “Boekoe Peringatan 15 Tahoen Dinijah School Poetri Padang Pandjang”. Unpublished Text.

Anonymous. (1978). Buku Peringatan 55 Tahun Diniyah Putri Padang Panjang. Jakarta: Ghalia Indonesia.

Azra, Azyumardi. (2008). “Mambangkik Batang Tarandam: Wacana dan Praksis Revitalisasi Minang” in Reinventing Indonesia. Jakarta: Penerbit Mizan.

Depdikbud [Departemen Pendidikan dan Kebudayaan]. (1981). Sejarah Pendidikan Daerah Sumatera Barat. Padang: Proyek IDKD [Inventarisasi dan Dokumentasi Kebudayaan Daerah].

Kato, Tsuyoshi. (2005). Adat Minangkabau dan Merantau dalam Perspektif Sejarah. Jakarta: Balai Pustaka.

Mansoer, M.D. (1970). Sedjarah Minangkabau. Djakarta: Bhratara.

Naim, Mochtar. (1969). Merantau: A Migration Pattern of the Minangkabau Ethnicity. Yogyakarta: Gadjah Mada University Press.

Rashad, Aminuddin. (1982). “Perguruan Diniyah Putri Padang Panjang, 1923-1978: Suatu Studi Mengenai Perkembangan Sistem Pendidikan Agama”. Unpublished Ph.D. Dissertation. Jakarta: IAIN [Institut Agama Islam Negeri] Syarif Hidayatullah.

Subekti, Nanang [ed]. (2007). Membangun Masa Depan Minangkabau dari Perspektif Hak Azasi Manusia. Jakarta: Sekretaris Jenderal dan Kepaniteraan Mahkamah Konstitusi Republik Indonesia.