Acknowledgements
Both life and scholarly work are formed out of various relations. I could not have written this book without the support of a great number of people to whom I owe my deepest thanks. First of all, I am indebted to the women who generously invited me to participate in various Islamic educational activities and who took the time to share with me their thoughts on and experiences of their religious engagement.
This book is based on my PhD dissertation and research carried out during my enrolment as a PhD student. I am grateful to Velux Fonden (grant no. 00012825) for giving me the opportunity to carry out this research as part of the project, Rearticulating Islam, led by Simon Stjernholm. I owe my deepest gratitude to Simon, who was my principal supervisor during my time as a PhD student. Thanks for your dedication, stimulating inputs, and considerable understanding. Likewise, I am very grateful to my co-supervisor, Åsa Trulsson, for support and guidance; thanks for reading and listening so carefully. Thanks to the Department of Cross-Cultural and Regional Studies at University of Copenhagen where I was situated during my work, and to colleagues at the department for stimulating conversations and encouragement. Especially, I would like to thank Kasper Netterstrøm, Marianne Hedegaard, Maximillian Lasa, and Pernille Jensen, for discussions, support and friendship. A most heartfelt thanks to Zenia Yonus for your endless encouragements, support, and companionship.
Thanks to colleagues at Linnaeus University Centre for Concurrences in Colonial and Postcolonial Studies and at the Department of the Study of Religion at Aarhus University for hosting me during my studies and for useful support. Thanks also to those who engaged with earlier manuscripts of this book, in particular Andreas Bandak, Birgitte Johansen, Catharina Raudvere, Christian Suhr, David Kloos, Garbi Schmidt, Jane Caple, and Mark Sedgwick. Your inputs were a great help. I am also deeply grateful to the anonymous reviewers engaged by Brill for constructive feedback and suggestions, and to the editors at Brill for expert assistance throughout the process.
Lastly, I want thank Signe for your love and support and my children, Isa and Niels, for lightening up life.
Copenhagen, November 2025