From Canada’s first mosque to the Senate and engineering: Muslim women who made Canadian history

Muslim women have not stood on the sidelines of Canada’s Muslim story.

One helped drive the effort to build the country’s first mosque. Another broke barriers in education decades before diversity became a familiar part of Canada’s public conversation. An Egyptian-Canadian engineer changed the face of university leadership, while a refugee from Uganda became Canada’s first Muslim senator.

As Canada marks Canadian Islamic History Month this October, Tawasul looks at six Muslim women whose achievements moved beyond their own communities and into the country’s institutional, cultural and public history.

Hilwie Hamdon and Canada’s first mosque

In 1930s Edmonton, a small Muslim community was looking for a permanent place where families could worship and pass their faith and traditions to their children.

City of Edmonton historical records credit local Muslim women — most notably Hilwie Hamdon — with leading the proposal and fundraising campaign that resulted in the construction of Al Rashid Mosque, opened in 1938 as Canada’s first mosque.

Her story places a Muslim woman at the centre of one of the earliest institutional milestones in Canadian Muslim history.

Lila Fahlman accumulated a remarkable list of firsts

Born in Saskatchewan in 1924, Lila Fahlman became an educator, social justice advocate and founder of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women.

Federal records identify her as the first woman in Canada to earn a PhD in educational psychology, the first Muslim woman to serve on a Canadian public school board and the first Muslim woman in North America to serve as a university chaplain.

She was invested into the Order of Canada in 2002 for her service to the Muslim community and her work supporting women who had experienced abuse.

Hoda ElMaraghy broke engineering barriers

Egyptian-Canadian engineer Hoda ElMaraghy became the first Canadian woman to earn a PhD in mechanical engineering and, in 1994, the first woman to become dean of an engineering faculty in Canada.

Her significance extends well beyond those firsts. Her research in flexible and intelligent manufacturing systems influenced how manufacturers adapt to changing technologies and markets, and she has published more than 500 papers while mentoring generations of engineers and researchers.

She has since been honoured with both the Order of Ontario and the Order of Canada.

Mobina Jaffer went from refugee to the Senate

Mobina Jaffer came to Canada after her family was forced to flee Uganda during Idi Amin’s rule.

She went on to become the first South Asian woman to practise law in Canada and, in 2001, became Canada’s first Muslim senator, as well as the first African-born senator and first senator of South Asian descent.

During 23 years in the Senate, Jaffer worked extensively on human rights, women’s rights and discrimination, chaired major committees and served as Canada’s Special Envoy for Peace in Sudan.

Zarqa Nawaz put Muslim family life at the centre of Canadian television

Not every historic shift happened in government or academia.

Writer and creator Zarqa Nawaz brought Muslim characters and family life to mainstream Canadian television through Little Mosque on the Prairie, using comedy to explore faith, work, neighbours and generational tensions as everyday Canadian experiences.

Canadian Heritage has identified Nawaz among Muslim Canadian trailblazers who have enriched the country, specifically recognizing her as the creator of the successful series.

Her contribution was also one of authorship: a Muslim woman was not simply appearing on screen — she was shaping the story being told.

Salma Lakhani made vice-regal history

Born in Uganda, Salma Lakhani grew up in an Ismaili Muslim family before the 1972 expulsion of the country’s Asian population dramatically changed her life. Her family lost its home and possessions, and Lakhani experienced a period of statelessness.

After settling in Edmonton, she spent decades working in education, volunteering and community service.

On August 26, 2020, she became Alberta’s 19th lieutenant governor and the first Muslim lieutenant governor in Canadian history. She was also the first person of South Asian heritage and the first African-born person to hold that office in Canada.

Why October became Canadian Islamic History Month

Canadian Islamic History Month has a specific parliamentary origin.

On October 25, 2007, Ottawa–Vanier MP Mauril Bélanger introduced a House of Commons motion calling for October to be designated Canadian Islamic History Month.

The motion cited Muslim contributions to Canadian society, the cultural diversity of Muslim communities, the value of Canadians learning about one another to strengthen social cohesion and public efforts already underway to improve understanding of Islamic history.

The House gave Bélanger unanimous consent to introduce the motion and then adopted it unanimously. October has since become an annual opportunity to recognize and reflect on Muslim history, culture and contributions in Canada.

In 2026, the federal government says nearly two million Muslims from more than 50 countries call Canada home.

For Muslim women, however, the month also offers another lens on Canadian history — one that reveals women who did more than find a place in Canada. They helped shape the country that Canada became.