Dr. Merve Özaykal

Dr. Merve Özaykal is an Associate Professor of Islamic Law at Istanbul University’s Faculty of Theology. She specializes in Islamic jurisprudence with a particular focus on Islamic bioethics (bio-fiqh), legal theory (uṣūl al-fiqh), and contemporary legal issues, especially at the intersection of medicine and Islamic law.

Dr. Özaykal completed her undergraduate and master’s studies in Islamic Law at Ankara University, followed by a second master’s degree in the history of medicine and ethics at Istanbul University. She earned her PhD in Islamic Law from Sakarya University with a dissertation examining bodily autonomy and organ transplantation in Islamic law.

Her academic training also includes international research experience as a visiting scholar at the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown University, where she further developed her expertise in bioethics. She has additionally pursued advanced studies in Egypt, Syria, and Jordan, engaging with both classical and contemporary Islamic scholarly traditions.

Dr. Özaykal’s research explores critical questions in medical ethics, human dignity, and the application of Islamic legal principles to modern biomedical challenges, including organ transplantation, gender and medical anomalies, and minority fiqh contexts. Her work has been published in leading academic journals, and she serves on editorial boards and as a reviewer for several scholarly publications in Islamic studies.
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In addition to her teaching and research, she is actively involved in academic initiatives in Türkiye, including coordination roles in educational and research programs, and contributes to ongoing scholarly discussions on the ethical and legal dimensions of emerging medical technologies within the Islamic tradition.