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Once Were Mahometans: Muslims in the South Island of New Zealand, mid-19th to late 20th century, with special reference to Canterbury A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Religious Studies at The University of Waikato by ABDULLAH MARTIN DRURY 2016 Abstract This thesis analyses and critically discusses the historical development of the Muslim community in the South Island of New Zealand from the 1850s up to the late 20th century. Islam in the South Island – referred to colloquially as the ‘Mainland’ – is a story of the gradual development of an immigrant community, particularly focused around the Muslim residents of the province of Canterbury and, to a lesser extent, Otago. It involves the stories of many contributing individuals and families, focusing on their individual activities as well as their cumulative interactions. At the terminus of this study, Canterbury Muslims were operating an independent religious Association. The scholarly challenge of this thesis is to make coherent sense out of these stories and the historical developments they reflect, determining where (if any) continuity exists. Research for this thesis has relied upon a combination of archival material pertaining to individuals and groups, critical analysis of various media (especially newspapers as well as Muslim community publications, such as newsletters), together with a close study of the limited scholarly output related to this area of investigation. The intention is to explore the South Island Muslim minority in history and to elucidate the reasons why the community developed in the way it has. There is a considerable amount of specific documentation on the activities and interactions of various individuals. The impact and influence of significant early forerunners and pioneering individuals, as well as later settlers and migrants will be examined together with the role played by international students. Themes such as leadership, diversity and co-existence with other settler groups, primarily the Anglo-European and then Pakeha majority, underpin the narrative. The intention is to present a balanced but fundamentally selective survey of the history of South Island Muslims based on hard evidence and clear narratives, and to make visible a religious group that has been neglected in mainstream histories to date; indeed, a social group which in more recent times has been frequently misunderstood and even vilified. Questions raised in the thesis include: How and when exactly did Muslims arrive? What were the determining factors and hermeneutical paradigms of Muslim settlement? What form(s) of Islam was articulated and practised? Does the Muslim community (the ummah) represent here one form of Islam or were there many? And if many, how did they co-exist? What were the tensions and accommodations that applied? The underlying aim of this thesis is to offer a much more nuanced comprehension of the complexities of the Muslim experience in New Zealand than has hitherto been attempted. i ii Acknowledgments: I would like to acknowledge my thesis supervisors, Professor Douglas Pratt (Religious Studies) and Dr Rosalind McClean (History), scholars from important disciplines who helped frame the complex nature of this research. Both have helped broaden my theoretical boundaries in order to grasp insights that I had not appreciated or fully understood. Their supervision was challenging and rewarding, their persistence and tolerance inspirational. The comments and suggestions I received provided excellent feedback guidance throughout the entire process. Thank you to you both. Other folk, both academic and non-academic, have made significant contributions that helped in a variety of ways. These include, but are not limited to: Dr William Shepard, Dr Erich Kolig, Dr Jacqueline Leckie, Dr Mustafa Farouk, Dr M. Alayan, Dr Todd Nachowitz, Sheikh Mohamed Amir, Richard Greenaway, Simon Grey, Mortaza Shams, Hazim Arafeh, Anafa Yusuf Keskin, Lyla al- Alawi, Sadiq Nicholson, Anthony Jamal Green, Mazhar Krasniqi, Ibrahim Abdulhalim, Suliman Kara, the late Hajji Abd Ala Ditta, Taoufik Elidrissi, Roy French, Steve Ali Johnston, Fawzan Hafiz, Miralem Musovich, Ian Blissett, David Spurdle, and an army of unnamed librarians and archivists from a myriad of institutions across the country who have helped me to pin down obscure documents in my research. Each helped contribute to this project, sometimes directly and sometimes indirectly. I would also like to thank the following organisations, associations and institutions that helped in both tangible and intangible ways: the Muslim Association of Canterbury, the Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand, and the Waikato Muslim Association. I would especially like to thank all of the secretaries and presidents of these organisations. Thanks are also due to numerous unnamed informants among the wider Muslim community who took the time to answer my various questions and communications over the past few years. Last but not least, I’d like to express my deepest and most heartfelt gratitude to members of my immediate and extended family for tolerating me when I was most grumpy and for supporting me unconditionally when I most needed it. This journey would not have been possible without them. In particular, I’d like to thank my parents for kick-starting my lifelong interest in history and religion when I was young, for encouraging and inspiring me in my pursuit of knowledge. Most importantly my deepest and profoundest gratitude, appreciation and love to my amazing wife, Hazra Bi, who supported me emotionally and our children Amina, Ismail and Yusuf, for their steadfast and ongoing encouragement and kind words. iii Dedication: I dedicate this to my beloved mother, Rosalind Ruth Bishop, without whom it would have been impossible for me to complete my university studies and thesis work. iv Illustrations ‘Ice Cream Charlie’ 1939 51 v Table of Contents Abstract i Acknowledgements iii Dedication iv Illustrations v Table of Contents vi Chapter 1. Introduction Introduction 1 Overview and Objectives 2 Historical Overview: Literature and Sources 9 Thesis Outline 14 Concluding Remarks 16 Chapter 2. Empire’s Reach: Muslim Migrants to the Mainland in the Nineteenth Century Introduction 17 Overview of Early Muslim Experience in New Zealand 17 Muslim Migration and Social Context 21 Case Study, Part One: Wuzerah and the Court 28 Case Study, Part Two: The Nabob and his Employees 31 Case Study, Part Three: Death and Legacy 33 Conclusion 35 Chapter 3. Integration and Interaction on the Margins: Muslims in the South Island in the Early Twentieth Century Introduction 39 Overview 40 Sheikh Mohammed Din 41 Ice Cream Charlie 48 Kara Family and Others 53 The Turk of Dunedin 57 Conclusion 62 Chapter 4. A Shared Space: Muslim Communities and Identities in the South Island Introduction 64 The Formation of the Muslim Association of Canterbury 65 The Impact of Foreign Students 70 Mosque Building in Canterbury 76 ‘Asabiyyah in the South Island? 83 Conclusion 84 vi Chapter 5. Continuity and Change, Diversity and Tensions Introduction 86 Dawah and the Mosque 86 Evolving Community Tensions 93 Dawah and Theology 100 Conclusion 106 Chapter 6. Consolidation: Commerce and Expression of Community Introduction 107 The Federation of Islamic Associations of New Zealand: South Island Foundations 108 Halal Food: Certification and Development of Trade 112 Publications: National Newsletter and Overseas Booklets 116 Conclusion 123 Chapter 7. Conclusion: Muslim Group Solidarity in the South Island Introduction 126 From Mahometans to Muslims 128 The Implications of Asabiyyah 129 Future Research Options 136 Conclusion 136 Appendices 138 Appendix A: ‘Supreme Court Lyttelton’, Lyttelton Times, 13 March 1858, p.4. Appendix B: M. Ridswan ‘The Canterbury Malaysian Students Association’, Unpublished Master’s thesis (Canterbury University, 1972), pp. i-iii. Glossary of Islamic Terms 140 Bibliography 149 vii CHAPTER ONE Introduction The spread of Islam in the South Island is largely a story of the gradual development of a growing immigrant Muslim community, particularly focused around the Muslim residents of Canterbury and Otago. In this thesis I will map out this evolution from the earliest point to the 1970s when the Muslim Association of Canterbury was established and the first purpose built mosque was erected over 1983-1984. The history of Muslims of the South Island (known colloquially and popularly as ‘the Mainland’) is essentially the story of many contributing individuals and, usually, their families. Perhaps uniquely in Pacific-Islamic history (compared to China for example) we have a considerable amount of specific documentation on the cumulative interactions of these early Muslim forerunners and pioneers who brought Islam to this country – dates and names abound. The challenge here is in making some sort of coherent sense out of it all and determining where (if any) continuity exists and how. Most New Zealand Muslims take scant interest in history and so determining a clear historiographical tendenz can be both challenging and rewarding. Early Muslim migrants and visitors to New Zealand – especially the hawkers, sailors and labourers – were basically sojourners who for the most part had no intention of settling down. Most lived the hard, difficult lives of colonial pioneers and evidentially planned to ‘go home’ once they had ‘made their fortune’.