Focus and Scope

Sakina: Journal of Family Studies provides a scholarly platform for critical and interdisciplinary engagement with issues at the intersection of family law, religion, gender, and culture, with a particular emphasis on Indonesia and Southeast Asia. The journal invites rigorous academic inquiries that explore the dynamic role of family law—especially Islamic Family Law—as it interacts with local traditions, state regulations, global legal frameworks, and transnational currents of thought. Research within this journal will focus on how Islamic family law is applied and developed in Indonesian legal and social contexts, considering the challenges and evolving practices in contemporary society.

We welcome contributions that examine, but are not limited to:

  • Marriage and Divorce Law: Studies on legal norms, court practices, and evolving challenges in regulating marital relations within the Indonesian context, especially the application of Islamic law in both formal and informal settings.
  • Inheritance, Grants, Wills, and Waqf: Analytical and comparative perspectives on succession and property distribution in Islamic and Indonesian contexts, exploring how Indonesian legal pluralism influences these areas.
  • Child Protection and Adoption Law: Critical examinations of guardianship, adoption, and children's rights within pluralistic societies, with a focus on how Indonesian Islamic family law balances local traditions and statutory law.
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution: Research on mediation, reconciliation, and arbitration in family law disputes, particularly in Indonesia, where local and Islamic legal systems often converge.
  • Domestic Violence and Victim Protection: Legal and policy perspectives on safeguarding vulnerable family members, with an emphasis on Indonesian efforts to integrate Islamic legal principles with modern protective laws and access to justice.
  • Gender and Equality in Family Law: Analyses of how Islamic law and Indonesian family law frameworks engage with contemporary gender discourses and human rights, especially in the context of marriage, divorce, and inheritance.
  • Comparative and Transnational Family Law: Contextual and critical perspectives on how family law interacts with globalization, migration, and postcolonial legacies, focusing on Indonesia’s role in the wider Muslim world.

This journal encourages submissions employing diverse methodologies—from normative and comparative legal studies to field-based ethnography, sociology of law, and interdisciplinary approaches—while upholding scholarly rigor and a commitment to advancing discourse on family law and society in the Indonesian and Southeast Asian context.

Journal History

Sakina: Journal of Family Studies is an Open Access, double-blind peer-reviewed journal dedicated to family law research, with a particular focus on Islamic Family Law in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. The journal covers a wide range of issues such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, child protection, and gender equality, integrating Islamic legal traditions with local and global legal frameworks.

First published in 2017, with Vol. 1 No. 1, Sakina has grown to become a recognized platform for scholarly work in family law. As of Vol. 9 No. 2, the journal has adopted a policy of only accepting articles in English to broaden its international reach. Sakina is published quarterly in March, June, September, and December and is managed by the Islamic Family Law Study Program at the Sharia Faculty of Universitas Islam Negeri Maulana Malik Ibrahim Malang.

The journal’s unique contribution lies in its exploration of family law within Indonesia’s pluralistic legal environment, while engaging with universal issues of Islamic family law and global legal developments. Sakina’s editorial board and authorship reflect a diverse international composition, with scholars from Indonesia, Malaysia, the United States, Türkiye, Australia, South Africa, Egypt, and more. This diversity fosters comparative engagement and enriches the journal’s scholarly relevance, ensuring its global impact in the field of family law.