Negotiating Faraid, Hibah, and Custom: Lifetime Property Transfers Among Javanese Muslims in Karang Tengah Village

The coexistence of Islamic inheritance law and Javanese customary practices raises questions about how Muslim communities negotiate religious norms and local conceptions of justice in property distribution. This study examines lifetime property transfers among Javanese Muslims in Karang Tengah Village, Bantul, focusing on the interplay between faraid, hibah, and customary law. Employing qualitative field research with a juridical-empirical approach informed by Islamic legal sociology, data were collected through observation, semi-structured interviews with five purposively selected informants, and documentation, and analyzed using the Miles and Huberman model. The findings reveal that property distribution is determined through family deliberation (dicungke) and formalized through customary land measurement and witnessing procedures (ugeran). Informants describe a shift from the 2:1 distribution pattern (sepikul segendongan) toward equal allocation (dum dil), influenced by changing economic roles, perceptions of fairness, and efforts to prevent family disputes. Additional property (harta gantungan) is reserved for children responsible for parental care. These practices demonstrate how religious norms, customary values, and family responsibilities are negotiated within local property distribution arrangements. From an Islamic legal perspective, property transferred during the parents’ lifetime is classified as hibah rather than inheritance (tirkah). The study concludes that these practices reflect living law, illustrating how customary mechanisms accommodate substantive justice and family harmony while operating alongside Islamic inheritance norms.