Islam in Southeast Asia

Islam reached Southeast Asia through Indian Ocean trade from the thirteenth century, spreading via Muslim merchants, Sufi teachers, and converting rulers. Today the region holds the world's largest Muslim population, with Indonesia home to more Muslims than any Arab country.

Nyai Ahmad Dahlan (born Siti Walidah, 1872-1946) was an Indonesian Islamic reformer who founded Aisyiyah, the women's wing of Muhammadiyah, pioneering girls' education and literacy programs across early twentieth-century Java and earning recognition as a National Hero of Indonesia.