Ahmed Haerdinov
Ahmed Haerdinov (Tatar name form Ähmät Hajreddin) was an Estonian Tatar (Mišär Tatar) from Narva, a soomepoiss and later in Sweden one of the founders of Turk-Islam Föreningen — Sweden's first Muslim organisation.
Narva
Ahmed Haerdinov belonged to the Narva Tatar community, which before the Second World War was, alongside Tallinn, the Estonian Tatars' second centre. The religious life of Narva's Muslims was led by imam Mustafa Haerdinov — a namesake; Ahmed was not the imam's son, and his relatives are unknown. The name is of Arabic origin: Ähmät = Ahmad, Hajreddin ← Arabic Khayr ad-Dīn.
A Finnish Boy (1943–1944)
At the end of 1943 several Estonian Tatar families reached Finland by motorboat and registered as political refugees. Three Estonian Tatars were admitted to the Finnish forces: Ibrahim Zarip, Ahmed Haerdinov and Rafik Moksanov. Zarip served in the navy; the sources do not specify Haerdinov's branch of service.
Sweden and Turk-Islam Föreningen (1944–1949)
After his service Haerdinov moved on to Sweden — like many Estonian Tatars who had fled to Finland, since the Finnish-Soviet peace treaty carried a clause on returning “Soviet citizens”. On 22 October 1949 Turk-Islam Föreningen i Sverige — Sweden's first Muslim organisation — was founded in Stockholm. Haerdinov was appointed to the provisional board (a deputy member) together with Räfat Salah, Ibrahim Zarip, Ali Zakerov and Veliulla Fetkullin — four of the five members were Estonian Tatars.
See also
Sources: Simon Sorgenfrei, “Establishing Islam in Sweden” (Studia Orientalia Electronica 8(2), 2020); Wikipedia “Finnish Tatars”; T. Abiline and R. Ringvee, “Estonia” — Muslim Tatar Minorities in the Baltic Sea Region (Brill, 2016); For Estonia.