The Silent Revolutionaries: Women Missionaries and Social Transformation in Colonial Punjab (1849–1947)

  • Unique Paper ID: 200879
  • Volume: 12
  • Issue: 12
  • PageNo: 2165-2169
  • Abstract:
  • This research paper examines the socio-historical impact of Christian women missionaries in the Punjab province during British rule. The American Presbyterian Mission, the Zenana Bible and Medical Mission, and the CEZMS all had evangelical as their main goals, but their practical contributions to "Zenana" visitation, specialized female healthcare, and standardized education marked the beginning of a fundamental change in Punjabi gender dynamics. By analyzing primary annual reports, mission records, and gazetteers, this paper explore that female missionaries served as unintended catalysts for the professionalization of women. Their presence necessitated a competitive response from indigenous reform movements like the Arya Samaj and Singh Sabha, thereby accelerating the modernization of female identity in Northern India. The attempt has been made here to examine that colonial paternalism and Christian women missionary legacy in Punjab are intricately intertwined.

Copyright & License

Copyright © 2026 Authors retain the copyright of this article. This article is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

BibTeX

@article{200879,
        author = {Maninder Kaur},
        title = {The Silent Revolutionaries: Women Missionaries and Social Transformation in Colonial Punjab (1849–1947)},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {12},
        number = {12},
        pages = {2165-2169},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=200879},
        abstract = {This research paper examines the socio-historical impact of Christian women missionaries in the Punjab province during British rule. The American Presbyterian Mission, the Zenana Bible and Medical Mission, and the CEZMS all had evangelical as their main goals, but their practical contributions to "Zenana" visitation, specialized female healthcare, and standardized education marked the beginning of a fundamental change in Punjabi gender dynamics. By analyzing primary annual reports, mission records, and gazetteers, this paper explore that female missionaries served as unintended catalysts for the professionalization of women. Their presence necessitated a competitive response from indigenous reform movements like the Arya Samaj and Singh Sabha, thereby accelerating the modernization of female identity in Northern India. The attempt has been made here to examine that colonial paternalism and Christian women missionary legacy in Punjab are intricately intertwined.},
        keywords = {Zenana missionaries, Church Missionary Society, American Presbyterian Mission, Female education and Healthcare.},
        month = {May},
        }

Cite This Article

Kaur, M. (2026). The Silent Revolutionaries: Women Missionaries and Social Transformation in Colonial Punjab (1849–1947). International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology (IJIRT). https://doi.org/doi.org/10.64643/IJIRTV12I12-200879-459

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