Islamic adoptional jurisprudence

Islamic views on adoption are generally distinct from practices and customs of adoption in other non-Muslim parts of the world like Western or East Asian societies.

Raising a child who is not one's genetic child is allowed and, in the case of an orphan, even encouraged. But, according to the Islamic view, the child does not become a true child of the "adoptive" parents. For example, the child is named after the biological, not adoptive, father. This doesn't mean adoption isn't allowed. It means that the adopted child doesn't carry the same name as it's adoptive parents. In Islam it is considered a blessing to take care of an orphan, in fact it is considered a duty to some. Thus many Muslims say that it is forbidden by Islamic law to adopt a child (in the common sense of the word), but permissible to take care of another child, which is translated into Arabic as Arabic: kafala‎‎. The adoptive child can become a mahram to his adopted family, if he or she is breast-fed by the adoptive mother before the age of two (see milk kinship). There can also be confusion between a child that has been orphaned and one who has been abandoned but is presumed to have living parents.

A hadith involving Aisha and Abu-Hudhayfah ibn Utbah's adoptive son Salim mawla Abu Hudaifa states:

Muhammad himself had adopted a child, and was fed by an adoptive mother during the first two years of his life. Relevant issues include the marriage between Zayd ibn Harithah's ex-wife and Muhammad, who later married his adopted son's wife.

There is now some discussion about reconsidering some of the rules about Islamic adoptions. A groundbreaking study was done by the Muslim Women's Shura Council in August 2011 titled, "Adoption and the Care of Orphan Children: Islam and the Best Interests of the Child". This report examined Islamic sources and concluded "adoption can be acceptable under Islamic law and its principle objectives, as long as important ethical guidelines are followed." The study represents a form of independent reasoning (ijtihad) and may raise some awareness and contribute toward shaping a future consensus (ijma) on the issue.

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