❖ Should Only a Legally Responsible Man Be Appointed as Mu’adhdhin?
Written by: Imran Ayub Lahori
✦ Instruction from the Prophet ﷺ Regarding Appointment of Mu’adhdhin
Hazrat Uthman bin Abi al-‘Aas (رضی اللہ عنہ) narrates:
He said, “O Messenger of Allah! Appoint me as the Imam of my people.” The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) replied:
“You are their Imam, and take care of the weak among them.
And appoint a Mu’adhdhin who does not take wages for giving the Adhan.”
[Abu Dawood 531, Kitab al-Salat: Bab Akhdh al-Ujrah ‘ala al-Adhan; Bukhari 630; Tirmidhi 209; Nasa’i 2/23; Ibn Majah 714; Al-Bayhaqi 1/429; Musnad Ahmad 4/21]
✦ Is the Mu’adhdhin Required to Be a Mukallaf Male?
Some scholars have stipulated the condition that the Mu’adhdhin must be a “mukallaf” (legally responsible person), meaning someone who is:
✔ Male
✔ Adult
✔ Sane
✔ Muslim
Their reasoning is that Adhan is an act of Shari’ah-based worship, and such acts are only valid when performed by those legally accountable in Islamic law.
However, this restriction has no explicit evidence from the Shari’ah itself. There is no authentic text clearly stating that only a mukallaf person may give the Adhan.
✦ Why Must the Mu’adhdhin Be Male?
The requirement that the Mu’adhdhin be a male is drawn from consistent historical practice.
Throughout:
◈ The Prophetic era
◈ The time of the Companions
◈ The period of the Tābi‘īn
◈ The time of the Tābi‘ al-Tābi‘īn
— there is no recorded instance of any woman giving the legislated Adhan, which is the formal call to prayer meant to notify others of prayer times and summon them to the masjid.
Thus, the condition that the Mu’adhdhin should be male is supported by the uninterrupted and unanimous practice of the earliest and most authoritative generations of Muslims.
[Al-Sayl al-Jarrār 1/198–199]
✔ Summary
◈ The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم) emphasized choosing a Mu’adhdhin who is sincere and does not seek compensation for Adhan.
◈ There is no clear Shari’ah evidence making it obligatory for the Mu’adhdhin to be a mukallaf, but this is a preferred scholarly opinion.
◈ Being male, however, is essential—backed by the entire historical record of Islamic practice.
◈ Women never performed the formal, legislated Adhan in public congregations, thus excluding them from this role in general consensus.
والله أعلم
