Background: Islamic inheritance law (faraidh) sets normative rules for estate distribution, but its socio-legal application varies across contexts. This study compares Mukalla (Yemen) and Kedungreja (Indonesia) to examine how legal pluralism mediates inheritance practices and balances textual fidelity with local socio-cultural adaptation.
Methods: Qualitative comparative analysis using interviews and document review in Mukalla and Kedungreja, analyzed through thematic coding.
Results: Two coherent models of inheritance implementation emerged. Mukalla demonstrates doctrinal continuity, where Shāfiʿī jurisprudence and religious institutions ensure textual fidelity and centralized authority. Kedungreja reflects a negotiated, context-sensitive approach, integrating family deliberation, customary norms, and state law, resulting in flexible outcomes.
Discussion: The findings illustrate that Islamic inheritance law operates as a living legal system, dynamically shaped by authority structures, interpretive frameworks, and socio-cultural environments.
Conclusion: Legal pluralism mediates the balance between normative prescriptions and social realities, confirming that both textual fidelity and contextual adaptation are legitimate manifestations of Islamic law.
Novelty: By combining normative fiqh analysis with empirical socio-legal comparison, the study provides an internationally relevant framework for understanding Islamic inheritance law across diverse institutional and cultural contexts.
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