If a woman claims paternity of a foundling, is the lineage established based on her claim alone?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Foundlings
Primary text
There are differing narrations from Ahmad regarding whether a woman's claim of paternity is accepted. One narration states her claim is accepted, and the lineage attaches to her because she is one of the two parents, establishing lineage by her claim, similar to the father. This is also supported by the story of David and Solomon regarding two women claiming one surviving son after a wolf took the other. On this basis, lineage is attached to her, but not to her husband because it is not permissible to attribute a child to him without his acknowledgement.
Supporting text
The second narration states that if the woman has a husband, the lineage is not established by her claim because it leads to attributing the lineage to her husband without his consent or acknowledgment, or implies his wife committed fornication or quasi-fornication, which harms him. The third narration suggests that if she has known kin and established lineage, she is not believed without proof, as her kin would be aware of her birth and harmed by the attribution stemming from birth outside a valid marriage. A separate view, held by Al-Thawri, Al-Shafi'i, Abu Thur, and the Ashab al-Ra'y, states that lineage is never established by a woman's claim alone because she has the means to provide proof of birth, similar to the case where a husband suspends divorce contingent on her giving birth.