Tok Kenali

Tok Kenali (born 1868, Kampung Kenali, Kelantan, Straits Settlements [now in Malaysia]—died November 19, 1933, Kota Bharu, Straits Settlements) was a Malay theologian and teacher who became the archetype of the rural Malay religious teacher (alim), with a reputation that spread far beyond his native Kelantan to Sumatra, Java, and Cambodia.

Muhammad Yusof, born into a poor peasant family, was taught the fundamentals of the Islamic religion at home, in his village, and in the nearby capital, Kota Bharu. He went to Mecca at age 18 and studied there for 22 years. He returned to Kelantan in 1908 and began to teach from his house, attracting students who set up their own small huts (pondok) in the traditional manner, which allowed them to live nearby while studying with him. Though he was invited by the sultan to teach in the state mosque in Kota Bharu, and did so from 1915 to 1920, it was at the Pondok Tok Kenali that his influence was chiefly felt; it became one of the largest schools in the state, with more than 300 students by the mid-1920s. Tok Kenali played a considerable role in developing Arabic-language instruction as well as religious teaching in Malaysia, and many of his students came to occupy important positions in Islamic affairs in the country. In addition, he played an important part in shaping the state Majlis Agama Islam (“Islamic Religious Council”), set up in 1915 to oversee all aspects of Islam in Kelantan. It later became the model for similar councils in the remaining Malay states.