Hajjah Hajjah ( ar, حَجَّة, Ḥajjah) is the capital city of Hajjah Governorate in north-western Yemen. It is located 127 kilometres northwest of Sana'a, at an elevation of about 1800 metres. As of 2003, the Hajjah City District had a population o ...

Fatimah binte Sulaiman (), also known as Hajjah Fatimah and as the "Sultana of

Gowa Gowa (''Makassar language : '') is a Regencies of Indonesia, regency in the province of South Sulawesi, Indonesia. It has an area of 1,883.33 km2 and a population of 652,329 at the 2010 census, increasing to 765,836 at the 2020 census; the of ...

", was a Singaporean merchant and philanthropist. After the death of her second husband, she combined his business with her own boats and built it into a successful naval trading operation. Fatimah is best known for commissioning the mosque that bears her name,

Masjid Hajjah Fatimah The Hajjah Fatimah Mosque ( ms, Masjid Hajjah Fatimah, Jawi: ) is a mosque located along Beach Road in the Kampong Glam district within the Kallang Planning Area in Singapore. The mosque was designed in a mix of Islamic and European archit ...

. In recognition of her philanthropy in funding the creation of the mosque, as well as homes for the poor that were adjacent to it, Fatimah was inducted into the

Singapore Women's Hall of Fame The Singapore Women's Hall of Fame is a virtual hall of fame that honors and documents the lives of historically significant women in Singapore. The hall is the creation of the Singapore Council of Women's Organisations (SCWO), and grew out of an ea ...

in 2014

Background

Fatimah binte Sulaiman was born in

Malacca Malacca ( ms, Melaka) is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. Its capital is Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site si ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

, to a family of successful traders. The year of her birth is not certain, but is believed to be 1754. After the collapse of an unsuccessful first marriage, she married Daing Chanda Pulih, a

Bugis The Bugis people (pronounced ), also known as Buginese, are an ethnicity—the most numerous of the three major linguistic and ethnic groups of South Sulawesi (the others being Makassar and Toraja), in the south-western province of Sulawe ...

prince and merchant from

South Sulawesi South Sulawesi ( id, Sulawesi Selatan) is a province in the southern peninsula of Sulawesi. The Selayar Islands archipelago to the south of Sulawesi is also part of the province. The capital is Makassar. The province is bordered by Central Sula ...

(then known as Celebes). Pulih had a trading post in Singapore, and brought Fatimah binte Sulaiman with him to the island. Pulih died while Fatimah was still young, and she combined his business with her own boats and built a successful

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

and

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

-based trading operation. Before her husband died, Fatimah had a daughter with him, Raja Siti. Raja would go on to marry Syed Ahmad Abdulrahman Alsagoff, whose

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

would become known for their philanthropy, like Fatimah herself. Fatimah is commonly referred to as "

Fatimah", indicating that she made the a pilgrimage to

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...

, or

Hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...

. The exact date of her death is unknown, but her family claims that Fatimah lived to the age of 98. She is buried on the grounds of the

, along with her husband, her daughter and son-in-law's, and several of their descendants.

Masjid Hajjah Fatimah

Fatimah's wealth led to her becoming known as the "Sultana of

". It also made her residence in

Kampong Glam Kampong Glam (Malay: Kampung Gelam; Jawi: کامڤوڠ ڬلم ; ; Tamil: கம்போங் கிளாம்) is a neighbourhood and ethnic enclave in Singapore. It is located north of the Singapore River, in the planning area of Roc ...

the target of thieves, who burgled it twice and set it on fire during the second burglary. After the fire, Fatimah — thankful that she was not present for the burglaries and thus was not harmed — donated money and the land that her house was on in provide for the construction of a mosque, which became the

. Fatimah rebuilt her own house, and also funded the construction of houses for the poor, in the land adjacent to the new. The Masjid Hajjah Fatimah is one of only a small number of mosques that are named after women. For her philanthropy and role in establishing the mosque that bears her name, Hajjah Fatimah binte Sulaiman was inducted into the

in 2014, the Hall of Fame's inaugural year. She had previously been honored in a nine-member Wall of Fame that evolved into the larger Hall of Fame.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fatimah, Hajjah Singaporean philanthropists People from Malacca Singaporean businesspeople Year of death uncertain Year of birth uncertain 1750s births 1850s deaths