The intelligentsia refers to a social class of intellectuals engaged in shaping public discourse through knowledge production, often addressing social, cultural, and political issues. Historically, this term emerged in 19th-century Russia, where intellectuals played a key role in social reform. In the Pacific, the intelligentsia has been shaped by colonial histories, indigenous knowledge systems, and struggles for self-determination. In the Pacific, the intelligentsia is a small but influential group of academics, cultural leaders, and public intellectuals working across multiple knowledge systems. They are not only educators but also cultural custodians who engage with global debates while anchoring their work in Pacific epistemologies.
Pacific intelligentsia emerged prominently in the mid-20th century during the decolonisation period. Universities, such as the University of the South Pacific (USP), became hubs for intellectual engagement, nation-building, and cultural preservation. Pacific academics work at the intersection of indigenous and Western epistemologies, pushing for methodologies that respect oral traditions, indigenous cosmologies, and community knowledge. Academics in Pacific universities play a crucial role in shaping public understanding of critical issues like climate crisis, decolonisation, gender equity and cultural identity.
Pacific academics often work with regional organisations (e.g., the Pacific Islands Forum) to develop policies addressing climate justice, human rights, gender equity and sustainable development. Institutional frameworks in academia are still influenced by Western academic structures, making it difficult for indigenous paradigms to gain equal legitimacy. Like North American and African scholars, Pacific academics challenge the “centre-periphery” dynamic, arguing that knowledge production should reflect local realities and resist intellectual imperialism. There is a growing call for Pacific universities to prioritise research methodologies that amplify indigenous voices and decolonial frameworks. The rise of digital platforms allows Pacific scholars to amplify their work globally while maintaining local roots. Emerging Pacific academics are using social media, podcasts, and online publications to bridge academic discourse and community engagement. The Pacific intelligentsia is more than a knowledge-producing class; it is a movement advocating for intellectual sovereignty, cultural preservation, and social justice.
The history of women in the intelligentsia is a complex narrative of intellectual pursuit, social resistance, and the fight for gender equality. Although women have contributed to intellectual and cultural life for centuries, their participation in formal intellectual movements and institutions has historically been limited by legal, social, and cultural barriers.
In ancient Greece and Rome, women were largely excluded from formal education and intellectual circles. However, figures like Hypatia of Alexandria (c. 355–415 CE), a mathematician and philosopher, emerged as intellectual leaders despite these barriers. In China, Ban Zhao (45–116 CE) was an influential historian and Confucian scholar who authored Lessons for Women, advocating for women’s education within a patriarchal framework. Some women found intellectual outlets through religious communities. In early Christian Europe, Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) was a mystic, composer, and theologian whose writings on medicine, nature, and spirituality gained prominence.
In the Medieval and Renaissance eras, women remained excluded from most formal educational institutions. However, elite or aristocratic women and nuns pursued education privately. In Islamic societies during the medieval period, women like Fatima al-Fihri (800s CE) established educational centres, including the University of Al-Qarawiyyin in Morocco, recognised as the oldest university. Querelle des Femmes (The “Woman Question”): During the Renaissance, intellectual debates emerged regarding women’s intellectual capabilities. Scholars such as Christine de Pizan (The Book of the City of Ladies, 1405) defended women’s right to education and intellectual equality.
In the era of Enlightenment in Europe, gave the rise of the Feminist Thought. In 1678, Elena Lucrezia Cornaro Piscopia became the first woman to receive a university degree in the Western world, earning a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Padua in Italy. lieberman.domains.unf.edu
Early feminist writing began when intellectual women began articulating feminist arguments. With the advent of The Salon Culture in 18th-century Europe, women of the aristocracy hosted salons, fostering intellectual exchange. Women like Madame de Staël and Émilie du Châtelet contributed to the enlightenment philosophy and scientific discourse. Also, Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) argued for women’s education and intellectual parity during this era. lieberman.domains.unf.edu
At the dawn of the 19th century, women began to question the institutional barriers, their limited access to academia . The journey of women into higher education and academic teaching roles has been marked by gradual progress across different regions and eras. Universities remained closed to most women, though some exceptions emerged. Emily Davies and Elizabeth Garrett Anderson fought to open educational institutions like Girton College, Cambridge.
The birth of intellectual Feminism was now evident. First-wave feminists like Harriet Taylor Mill – writing in collaboration with John Stuart Mill – argued for women’s intellectual and political rights. In the global South, women such as Pandita Ramabai in India and Joséfa Toledo de Aguerri in Nicaragua worked to advance education for women. lieberman.domains.unf.edu
In 1867, the University of Zurich in Switzerland formally opened its doors to women, allowing them to attend lectures and pursue degrees. In 1869, the University of Edinburgh admitted the Edinburgh Seven, the first group of matriculated undergraduate female students at any British university. Although they faced significant challenges and were ultimately unable to graduate, their efforts paved the way for future legislation ensuring women’s access to university education. In 1870, the University of California ruled that women should be admitted on an equal basis with men, marking a significant step toward coeducation in the US.
At the onset of the first women intellectuals teaching in a university, Sofya Kovalevskaya became the first woman appointed as a full professor in Northern Europe when she secured a position at Stockholm University in Sweden in 1884. She was a renowned mathematician, and her appointment marked a significant milestone for women in academia. In 1908, Edith Morley was appointed Professor of English Language at University College Reading, becoming the first woman to hold a full professorship at a British university institute. The Russian-born Anna Tumarkin became the first female professor in Europe with the right to examine doctoral and post-doctoral students when she was appointed at the University of Bern in Switzerland in 1909.
These pioneering women intelligentsia paved the way for greater inclusion and representation of women in higher education, both as students and educators, contributing significantly to the advancement of academic and intellectual life worldwide.
The 20th Century women intellectuals have come to be known as the modern Intelligentsia. By the early 20th century, universities began admitting women in greater numbers. Scholars such as Virginia Woolf – who famously called for “a room of one’s own” – highlighted the intersection of gender and intellectual life.
A modernist writer and essayist, Virginia Woolf explored the relationship between gender, education, and intellectual freedom. Her work critiques the exclusion of women from intellectual and literary spaces. In “A Room of One’s Own” (1929), Woolf famously argued that intellectual freedom requires financial independence and private space. She highlighted how women throughout history were denied access to education and thus excluded from literary and academic discourse. Her fictionalised story of Judith Shakespeare demonstrates how equally talented women were silenced due to lack of opportunity.
“A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction.” Woolf critiqued the elitism of universities like Oxford and Cambridge, where men’s intellectual lives thrived while women were marginalised. She called for intellectual equity, suggesting that both sexes should participate fully in the intellectual and cultural conversation. Woolf reframed the intellectual experience by showing that economic and social barriers are as critical as innate talent.
She influenced feminist literary criticism, inspiring future scholars to question how gender shapes intellectual life.
Global South contributions from women intellectuals in colonised regions contributed to anticolonial movements and postcolonial thought. For example, Bessie Head in Botswana and Nawal El Saadawi in Egypt used literature and scholarship to challenge both colonialism and patriarchy.
In the contemporary period where women today have embraced intersectionality and global perspectives, intersectional Intelligentsia today includes contemporary women scholars, particularly from marginalised backgrounds, who examine the intersections of race, gender, and class.
Virginia Woolf and Bell Hooks are towering intellectual figures who challenged patriarchal structures and advocated for women’s education and intellectual freedom. Their works address how systemic barriers prevent women from accessing knowledge while arguing for the transformative power of education. Hooks transformed academic discourse by centring marginalised voices and challenging the dominance of white, male intellectual frameworks. She expanded the feminist intellectual canon, making education a political and cultural battleground.
Figures like Bell Hooks, Gayatri Spivak, Professor Unaisi Nabobo-Baba, Professor Konai Helu-Thaman in Oceania (focusing on Pacific intellectual traditions) have contributed to the decolonisation of knowledge. Women intellectuals from the Pacific, Africa, and North America have worked to reclaim indigenous epistemologies. For example, Dr. Teresia Teaiwa’s scholarship on Pacific militarism and gender demonstrates the power of feminist critique within regional contexts. “Militarism doesn’t just occupy land – it occupies minds.”
Fiji has witnessed the emergence of several distinguished female academic leaders who have significantly contributed to the nation’s educational landscape.
In 2023, Professor Unaisi Nabobo-Baba made history by becoming the first local female vice-chancellor of the Fiji National University (FNU). With nearly four decades of experience in international education and development, she has demonstrated exemplary leadership in Fiji and the broader Pacific region. Prior to her appointment, Professor Nabobo-Baba served as the acting vice-chancellor and has been recognised as one of Fiji’s most eminent education scholars, notably as the first indigenous Fijian woman professor in any university. Fiji National University+1Fijivillage+1
Fiji-Indian women intellectuals have significantly contributed to various academic and social fields, notably through the work of Dr Shireen Lateef and Dr Padma Narsey Lal. Dr Shireen Lateef was a pioneering Fijian women’s rights activist and academic. In 1990, she published “Rule by the Danda: Domestic Violence Among Indo-Fijians,” one of the earliest studies addressing domestic violence in Fiji, which became a seminal work in feminist research within the country. Academia+2Wikipedia+2AWID+2
Dr Padma Narsey Lal is a distinguished Fijian ecological economist renowned for integrating ecology and environmental economics to address sustainable development challenges in Pacific Island nations. She earned a master’s degree in science, focusing on ecology and biochemistry, from the University of the South Pacific (USP), becoming the first female Gujarati to attend the institution. +1Pacific Community+1
Patricia Imrana Jalal is a distinguished Fijian lawyer and gender advocate. She has served as a Human Rights Commissioner on the Fiji Human Rights Commission and as a Fiji Law Reform Commissioner. Jalal was a founding member of the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement and has been associated with international networks such as Women Living Under Muslim Law and the Asia Pacific Forum for Women, Law and Development. In January 2023, Jalal was awarded the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Medal of Honour by the World Jurists Association for her work on strengthening the rule of law.
Nazhat Shameem Khan is a Fijian diplomat and former judge. She served as the Permanent Representative of Fiji to the United Nations from 2014 to 2022 and was the president of the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2021. Shameem was the first woman to serve as a judge of the High Court of Fiji, a position she held from 1999 to 2009. She has been involved in various legal reforms and has a particular interest in how the justice system affects women and children. In December 2021, she was elected as a deputy prosecutor for the International Criminal Court. +1Pacific Community+1
Both Jalal and Shameem have played pivotal roles in advocating for human rights, gender equality, and legal reforms in Fiji, contributing significantly to the country’s legal intelligentsia.
Women’s advocacy and activism in Fiji has been seen through Fiji Women’s Rights Movement founded in 1986. Advocates for legislative reform, women’s leadership, and gender equity. FWRM was instrumental in the Family Law Act (2003), which improved women’s legal standing in family-related matters. The Women’s Crisis Centre founded in 1984 and led by the charismatic Shamima Ali, it focuses on addressing gender-based violence and providing support services for survivors. These advocates have pioneered research on the prevalence of domestic violence and its socio-cultural roots and until today are using digital platforms in their advocacy.
Despite these achievements, the women intelligentsia in Fiji continue to face under representation in academia, educational leadership and senior management positions in the private sector. Studies have highlighted barriers such as gender stigmatisation, entrenched patriarchal and traditional norms, and cultural factors limit women’s access to leadership roles. Women intelligentsia have to accelerate action by creating new narratives, write more ethnographic accounts of their experiences and use inclusive platforms to raise their voices together.
REGINA NAIDU is a lecturer in the Department of Literature and Language , SCLL , College of Humanities, Education and Law .She is presently a Ph. D scholar and Post Structural Feminist researcher and intellectual. Areas of research interest include gender and language discourses, critical /radical pedagogy, Critical Auto-Ethnography, Vernacular Education and Diasporic Philosophies. These views do not reflect that of her employer or The Fiji Times.
