Yusuf Karaan (also written as Yousuf Abdullah Karaan) (15 November 1935 - 10 May 2015) was a South African

Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

scholar from

Strand Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline * Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa * Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa * Strand Street ...

who served as head mufti of

Muslim Judicial Council The Muslim Judicial Council SA (MJC), a non-profit umbrella body of Sunni Islamic clerics in South Africa, is headquartered in Cape Town, South Africa. It was established in 1945 by the Muslim Progressive Society. As of 2009, approximately 150 mos ...

Biography

Karaan was born on 15 November 1935. He acquired his primary education from Strand Moslem Primary School and Methodist Mission School and completed his matriculation from Athlone Secondary School in 1952. In 1957, he moved to India where he studied at

Darul Uloom Deoband The Darul Uloom Deoband is an Islamic seminary (darul uloom) in India at which the Sunni Deobandi Islamic movement began. It is located in Deoband, a town in Saharanpur district, Uttar Pradesh. The seminary was established by Muhammad Qasim ...

for five years and graduated in 1962. He was a co-founder of Strand Progressive society in 1955. He played a key role in unifying four groups of the Strand Muslim Community under the umbrella of one Strand Muslim Council in 1966. According to the author of ''Footprints'', M.A. Baderoen "The main catalyst in the formation of this new organization was Moulana Yusuf Karaan who was an outstanding speaker and impressed the local community with his sincerity, and enthusiasm to unite the community under a single governing body". He also played a key role in the foundation of United Ulema Council of South Africa in 1994. He died on 10 May 2015 in

Strand, Western Cape Strand (Afrikaans for 'beach') is a seaside resort town in the Western Cape, South Africa. It forms part of the Helderberg region of the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality, situated on the north-eastern edge of False Bay and near the f ...

. His son

Taha Karaan Taha Karaan (2 June 1969 – 11 June 2021) was a South African Muslim scholar and jurist. He was the head-mufti of the Muslim Judicial Council, South Africa. He was the founder of Mahajjah Research Institute and the Dar al-Uloom al-Arabiyyah al-I ...

was also an Islamic scholar who established Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in

Literary works

Karaan's works include his translations to Islamic theological texts. Some are: * ''Kitaabul Fiqh'', English translation of

Ashraf Ali Thanwi Ashraf Ali Thanwi (often referred as Hakim al-Ummat and Mujaddid e Millet; 19 September 1863 – 20 July 1943) was a late-nineteenth and twentieth-century Sunni Islam, Sunni scholar, jurist, thinker, Mujaddid, reformist and the revival of classic ...

's Hanafi fiqh manual ''Din Ki Baatein''. * ''A Gift to Muslim Couple'', English translation of Ashraf Ali Thanwi's ''Tuhfatuz Zawjayn''. * ''Stories of the Prophets'', English translation of

Hifzur Rahman Seoharwi Hifzur Rahman Seoharwi (1900 – 2 August 1962) was an Indian Sunni Islamic scholar and an activist of the Indian independence movement, who served as the fourth general secretary of the Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind. He fought against British rule for 25 ...

's ''Qassasul Ambiyaa''. * ''Tuhfatul Ikhwan'' of Ibrahim Ba'kathah. * ''Khutbaatul Ahkam'' of Ashraf Ali Thanwi. * ''Fadhail e Hajj'' of

Muhammad Zakariyya Kandhlawi Muḥammad Zakarīyā ibn Muḥammad Yaḥyá Ṣiddīqī Kāndhlawī Sahāranpūrī Muhājir Madanī (''Muḥammad Zakarīyā ibn Muḥammad Yaḥyá aṣ-Ṣiddīqī al-Kāndahlawī as-Sahāranfūrī al-Madanī''; 2 February 189824 May 1982) ...

. * ''Ma'ārif-e-Masnawi'' of Hakeem Muhammad Akhtar

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Karaan, Yusuf Darul Uloom Deoband alumni 1935 births 2015 deaths Arabic–English translators Urdu–English translators South African Sunni Muslim scholars of Islam South African Muslims Deobandis 20th-century translators