In the southern German city of Stuttgart lives a pious Muslim population that has merged with the local population to create a meaningful shared existence. In this ethnographic account, the author introduces and examines the lives of ordinary residents, neighborhoods, and mosque communities to analyze moments and spaces where Muslims and non-Muslims engage with each other and accommodate their respective needs. These accounts show that even in the face of resentment and discrimination, this pious population has indeed become an integral part of the urban community.

How do converts to a religion come to feel an attachment to it? The New Muslims of Post-Conquest Iran answers this important question for Iran by focusing on the role of memory and its revision and erasure in the ninth to eleventh centuries. During this period, the descendants of the Persian imperial, religious, and historiographical traditions not only wrote themselves into starkly different early Arabic and Islamic accounts of the past but also systematically suppressed much knowledge about pre-Islamic history. The result was both a new Persian ethnic identity and the pairing of Islam with other loyalties and affiliations, including family, locale, and sect. This pioneering study examines revisions to memory in a wide range of cases, from Iran's imperial and administrative heritage to the Prophet Muhammad's stalwart Persian companion, Salman al-Farisi, and to memory of Iranian scholars, soldiers, and rulers in the mid-seventh century. Through these renegotiations, Iranians developed a sense of Islam as an authentically Iranian religion, as they simultaneously shaped the broader historiographic tradition in Arabic and Persian."

The portrayal of Islamic movements as a tide of religious fanaticism threatening the West, and major participants in the coming "clash of civilizations", has provoked a multifaceted debate of great significance to the future of international relations. This text argues that political Islam's desire to restore a culture distorted by colonization does not necessarily compromise its progress to more democracy and greater tolerance. From Rabat to Gaza, through Algiers and Cairo, the author carried out his enquiry through interviews with prominent Islamists, and he allows them to speak for themselves in the book. Among the issues addressed are the relationship between Islam and modernity, Islamism and women, and questions of violence.

In recent years, scholarly attention has shifted away from debates on ethnicity to focus on issues of migration and citizenship. Inspired, in part, by earlier studies on European guestworker migration, these debates are fed by the new "transnational mobility," by the immigration of Muslims, by the increasing importance of human rights law, and by the critical attention now paid to women migrants. With respect to citizenship, many discussions address the diverse citizenship regimes. The present volume, together with its predecessor (Bodemann and Yurdakul 2006), addresses these often contentious issues. A common denominator which unites the various contributions is the question of migrant agency, in other words, the ways in which Western societies are not only transforming migrants, but are themselves being transformed by new migrations.

Surviving repression tells the story of the Muslim Brotherhood following the 2013 coup d'etat in Egypt. The Brotherhood gained legal recognition and quickly rose to power after the 2011 Arab uprisings, but its subsequent removal from office marked the beginning of the harshest repression of its troubled history. Forced into exile, the Brotherhood and its members are now faced with a monumental task as they rebuild this fragmented organisation. Drawing on extensive fieldwork and interviews with current and former members of the Brotherhood, the book explores this new era in the movement's history, emphasising first-hand experiences, perspectives and emotions to better understand how individual responses to repression are affecting the movement as a whole. Surviving repression offers a unique insight into the main strategic, ideological and organizational debates dividing the Brotherhood. -- .

Two Gulf wars and the continuing Arab-Israeli conflict have highlighted the salience of military factors in the Middle East. This book argues, however, that many of the most serious 'security' challenges to Arab states and societies are rooted not in external military threats but in the imperatives of socio-economic development. Contributors examine the regional security environment; the social and political impact of regional militarization; and underdevelopment as a source of regional insecurity.

The fall of President Soeharto in May 1998 and the introduction of multi-party democracy by President BJ Habibie have unleashed religious parties (both Islamic and Christian) in Indonesian politics. This study shows that the Islamist agenda of the Islamist parties is overshadowed by their political pragmatism. This book is a must-read account on the rise and failure of the Islamist struggle in Indonesia's emerging democracy. Platzdasch's work is without a doubt a significant and timely contribution to a better understanding of Islamic politics in contemporary Indonesia. - Professor Azyumardi Azra, Professor of History & Director, Graduate School, Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Jakarta, Indonesia.

The concept of jihad holds a prominent place in Islamic thought and history. Beyond its spiritual meanings, the term has historically been associated with the sweeping Arab-Believers conquests of the 7-8th century BCE. But given advances in our understanding of the historicity and chronology of the Qur'an and early Islamic texts, is it correct to identify jihad and Islam with violent conquest? In this book, Marco Demichelis explores the history of the concept of jihad in the early proto-Islamic centuries (7-8th). Deploying an interdisciplinary approach which combines the hermeneutical study of the famous 'Verses of the Sword' within the Qur'an itself, with historical writing by Islamic chroniclers as well as non-Islamic sources, numismatics, epigraphical and architectural evidence, the book questions the relationship between the religious concept of jihad and the conquests. The book argues that Christian Byzantine Foederati forices who previously fought against the Persians may have had a formative effect on the later emergence of more bellicose rhetoric. In so doing, it calls into question assumptions about warlike attitudes inherent within Islamic doctrine, and reveals a more nuanced and complicated history of religious violence in the pre, proto and early Islamic period.

Explore Islamic finance at a deeper level Intermediate Islamic Finance: Theory and Practice fills the gap for students and professionals who are already familiar with the fundamentals of Islamic finance, but would like to gain an enhanced understanding of Islamic finance theories and practices. This comprehensive text provides you with coverage of global developments and describes the role of Islamic finance within the global finance community to guide you in your understanding of this important aspect of the international financial landscape. The book references advance concepts and specific problems in the practice of Islamic finance, provides suggested further readings for each chapter, offers details of advanced analysis, and presents key data in visual form via graphs, figures, and tables. Profound changes have taken place in the financial landscape over the past few decades, including major innovations in financial instruments and substantial changes in regulation. With global financial markets becoming increasingly important players in the industry, it is critical that today's financial professionals understand the essence and implications of key Islamic finance theories and practices. * Build upon your fundamental understanding of Islamic finance * Explore some areas of convergence and conflict between Islamic finance and conventional finance * Strengthen the harmony between Islamic and conventional finance theories and their applications * Prepare for a well-rounded career in finance by better understanding how Islamic finance principles apply Intermediate Islamic Finance: Theory and Practice is an essential text for graduate and post-graduate finance students, economists, researchers, bankers, financial regulators, policymakers, and members of the business community who want to develop a deeper understanding of Islamic finance theories and practices.

This book considers positions refugees take relative to the state, humanitarian actors and faith-based organisations in the humanitarian field. Attention is drawn to refugee agency as they negotiate circumstances of considerable constraint demonstrating relational dimensions of religious practice and experience.

Since the Second World War, the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt faced periods of extensive state repression, between 1948-1951 and 1954-1970 and again after 2013. These mihan or "ordeals", as members call them, were characterised by a shift from overt political activity to clandestine organising, and despite their importance have remained little studied. This book uses extensive archival research to uncover what took place when the organisation was forced unground and how and why it survived. It combines social theory with a vast array of primary source material such as autobiographical accounts produced by members, Egyptian court documents accounts by members of the Egyptian military or intelligence officers, and reports by British and American diplomats and intelligence officers. The result is a new bottom-up perspective on the Brotherhood's structure that goes beyond the role of leaders such as Sayyid Qutb to reveal it as both an overt political organisation and a secretive one able to withstand extended and harsh periods of persecution.

Sabiha Sertel was born into revolution in 1895, as an independent Turkey rose out of the dying Ottoman Empire. The nation's first professional female journalist, her unrelenting push for democracy and social reforms ultimately cost Sertel her country and freedom. Shortly before her death in 1968, Sertel completed her autobiography Roman Gibi (Like a Novel), which was written during her forced exile in the Soviet Union. Translated here into English for the first time, and complete with a new introduction and comprehensive annotations, it offers a rare perspective on Turkey's history as it moved to embrace democracy, then violently recoiled. The book reveals the voice of a passionate feminist and committed socialist who clashes with the young republic's leadership. A unique first-hand account, the text foreshadows Turkey's increasingly authoritarian state. Sertel offers her perspective on the fierce divisions over the republic's constitution and covers issues including freedom of the press, women's civil rights and the pre-WWII discussions with European leaders about Hitler's rising power. More information about the book, photographs, reviews and events can be found at a special website dedicated to the book: www.struggleformodernturkey.com

This book provides comprehensive analysis in the areas Islamic financial institutions and society. It starts off with the integration of the Islamic socio-economic and socio-political systems with the Islamic financial sector; with a view to help in removing some of the stereotype views that people have on the Islamic society and religion. In doing this, it provides the readers with an understanding of the Islamic society, characteristics of an Islamic society, and Islamic economics thoughts and theories. It goes further to make the readers to understand the sources, evolution, and guiding principles and practices of the Islamic finance and commercial jurisprudence. Although the book acknowledges the innovative no-interest financing framework; but in the absence of zero cost of lending, it develops an Islamic interest rate theoretical framework structure based on the profit-margin concept of the Islamic financial system. It goes on further to cover the structures, roles, functions, and monetary policies of the Islamic central banks in the absence of interest rate as well as proposes that organizational structures for the Islamic central banking system should include an Islamic finance division to oversee and monitor the Islamic financial institutions squarely. Flow charts are used to explain the structure, operations, models, products, instruments, and services of the Islamic commercial banks, financial institutions, insurance, and capital markets. This helps the readers to understand the dichotomies between the Islamic and conventional financial systems. It provides detailed systematic, logical steps, and processes involved in the Islamic financial transactions with the use of flow chart graphs which will help the readers in grasping the essentials of the Islamic financial sector; which will help the readers to understand the step-by-step processes and facilitate the conceptual clarities involved in the product deliveries and processes of the Islamic financial institutions. The book's concluding chapters were devoted to the performance, achievements, governance, challenges, and future expectations of the Islamic banking, finance, and capital markets. The book concludes with some suggestions on how to make the Islamic finance and its products more acceptable to the entire world; especially to the non-Muslim community of the world.

The author examines from different perspectives (theological and philosophical as well as socio-political and historical) the significance of the concept of the individual in the ways of thinking of Iranians. This book establishes that the mystical dimension of Islamic thought, the divine nature of Islamic law and, the mode of relationship between ruler and the ruled, in combination, counteracted growth of concern for the individual self in Iranian thought.

This text is the product of dialogue between a group of leading British Muslim and Christian scholars concerned about the alleged danger to the West of Islamic fundamentalism. It analyzes the ethical and legal principles, rooted in both traditions, underlying any use of armed force in the modern world. After chapters on the history, theology and laws of war as seen from both sides, the book applies its conclusions to firstly, the 1990-91 Gulf War and secondly, the Bosnian conflict. It concludes that Huntington's "Clash of Civilizations" thesis is a myth.

Islamophobia is the name given to the virulent anti-Islamic prejudice that has been hyped by the news media and seized upon by cynical politicians. Five essays by six specialists on Islam in America provide important insights into Islamophobia as a conflict over American identity during a time of crisis. The authors clarify the way that differences of religion, race, and gender have been used to portray Muslims as threatening "out-groups," just as other minorities (Catholics, Jews, blacks) have been attacked in the past. The result is a valuable and thought-provoking analysis of the tactics for denying full citizenship to a minority religious group.

Scholars, thinkers, and activists around the world are paying increasing attention to a legal reform method that promises to revolutionize the way people think about Islamic law. Known as "The Objectives of the Shari'a" (maqasid al-shari'a), the theory offers a way to derive and apply new Islamic laws using an ancient methodology. The theory identifies core objectives that underlie Islamic law, and then looks at inherited Islamic laws to see whether they meet those objectives. According to the maqasid theory, historical Islamic laws that meet their objectives should be retained, and those that do not-no matter how entrenched in practice or embedded in texts-should be discarded or reformed. Recently, several scholars have questioned the maqasid theory, arguing that it is designed not to reform laws, but to support existing power structures. They warn that adopting the maqasid wholesale would set the reform project back, ensuring that inherited Islamic laws are never fully reformed to agree with contemporary values like gender-egalitarianism and universal human rights. The Objectives of Islamic Law: The Promises and Challenges of the Maqasid al-Shari'a captures the ongoing debate between proponents and skeptics of the maqasid theory. It raises some of the most important issues in Islamic legal debates today, and lays out visions for the future of Islamic law.

Muslim women of all ages, economic status, educational backgrounds, sexual orientations, and from different parts of historically Muslim countries suffer the kinds of atrocities that violate common understandings of human rights and are normally denounced as criminal or pathological, yet these actions are sustained because they uphold some religious doctrine or some custom blessed by local traditions. Ironically, while instances of abuse meted out to women and even female children are routine, scholarship about Muslim women in the post 9/11 era has rarely focused attention on them, preferring to speak of women's agency and resistance. Too few scholars are willing to tell the complicated, and at times harrowing, stories of Muslim women's lives. Women and Islam: Myths, Apologies, and the Limits of Feminist Critique radically rethinks the celebratory discourse constructed around Muslim women's resistance. It shows instead the limits of such resistance and the restricted agency given women within Islamic societies. The book does not center on a single historical period. Rather, it is organized as a response to five questions that have been central to upholding the 'resistance discourse': What is the impact of the myth of al-Andalus on a feminist critique? What is the feminist utility of Edward Said's theory of Orientalism? Is Islam compatible with a feminist agenda? To what extent can Islamic institutions, such as the veil, be liberating for women? Will the current Arab uprisings yield significant change for Muslim women? Through examination of these core questions, Bouachrine calls for a shift in the paradigm of discourse about feminism in the Muslim world. Cover images provided by Tachfine Bouachrine.

A reinterpretation of the history of Sokoto that provides a new assessment of its leaders and their visions for the Muslim state. Sokoto was the largest and longest lasting of West Africa's nineteenth-century Muslim empires. Its intellectual and political elite left behind a vast written record, including over 300 Arabic texts authored by the jihad's leaders: Usman dan Fodio, his brother Abdullahi and his son, Muhammad Bello (known collectively as the Fodiawa). Sokoto's early years are one of the most documented periods of pre-colonial African history, yet current narratives pay little attention to the formative role these texts played in the creation of Sokoto, and the complex scholarly world from which they originated. Far from being unified around a single concept of Muslim statecraft, this book demonstrates how divided the Fodiawa were about what Sokoto could and should be, and the various discursive strategies they used to enrol local societies into their vision. Based on a close analysis of the sources (some appearing in English translation for the first time) and an effort to date their intellectual production, the book restores agency to Sokoto's leaders as individuals with different goals, characters and methods. More generally, it shows how revolutionary religious movements gain legitimacy, and how the kind of legitimacy they claim changes as they move from rebels to rulers.

Sonic Encounters recounts the author's experience gathering field recordings of the Islamic Call to Prayer. It touches on key questions and problems faced along the way, as well as discussing technologies and methods for recording, what it means to develop art from ethnographic research, and the ethics and considerations of working with Islamic communities around the globe. The book uses a sound studies framework to explore artistic research methods and practices in ethnography as they relate to religious recitation.

In this book we study The Tabligh Jama'at, an Islamic revivalist movement which, through participation in its preaching tours, provides satisfaction to individuals experiencing the crisis of modernity. Preaching tours enable Muslims to become workers for Allah and involved in the renewal of Allah's world. We explore the ideological underpinning of preaching and working for Allah through the application of Frame Theory. Through an analytic framework comprising framing tasks and framing processes we unpack how the ideas of Islamic revivalism found in key Tabligh Jama'at written and oral texts - the Faza'il-e-A'maal and bayans - are packaged and communicated in such a way as to attract individuals to participate in preaching tours. The book concludes that working for Allah provides Muslims with meaning, social solidarity, and satisfaction which modernity has failed to provide them. This book will appeal to academics, researchers, journalists, policy-makers, and research students interested in or working on Islamic revivalist movements.

In a world of increasingly mixed identities, what does it mean to belong? As western democracies increasingly curtail their support for multiculturalism, how can migrants establish belonging as citizens? A Muslim Diaspora in Australia explores how a particular migrant group has faced the challenges of belonging. The author illustrates how Bosnian migrants in Australia have sought to find places for themselves as migrants, as refugees, and as Muslims, in Australia and Australian society. Challenging the methodological nationalism that tends to dominate discussions of migrant identities, the author exposes the ways in which dignity emerges as a dominant concern for people as they relate to varied local, national and translational contexts. Very little is known about how migrants themselves read and react to the multiple challenges of belonging and this pioneering work offers a timely and much needed critical insight into what it means to belong.

Nineteenth-century Istanbul was an intellectual hub of rich discussions about Islam, in which leading reformists had a significant role. Turkey today appears to be an intellectual vacuum to anyone searching for ongoing critical engagement with Islam. The main purpose of this book is to adjust this view of Turkey by showcasing the modern Turkish theologians who challenge mainstream Sunni interpretations of Islam. Labelling these theologians as 'rationalist' rather than 'reformist', the author reveals that their theology is inherently anti-establishment and thus a religiously-oriented challenge to the hegemony of the state-sanctioned Islam: for the rationalists, Turkey's problems have their origins in the Sunni interpretation of Islam. Contemporary Rationalist Islam in Turkey analyses nine prominent scholars of Islam who provide a religious opposition to the Sunni revival in Turkey: Huseyin Atay, Yasar Nuri OEzturk, M. Hayri Kirbasoglu, Ilhami Guler, R. Ihsan Eliacik, OEmer OEzsoy, Mustafa OEzturk, Israfil Balci, and Mehmet Azimli. These scholars' writings are almost exclusively published in Turkish, so this book makes their ideas available in English for the first time. It also examines the scope, methodology and argumentation of the scholars' theology, categorizing their theological interpretations from 'historicist' to 'universalist' and from 'empiricist' to 'rationalist'. In identifying a new 'rationalist' school of Turkish theology and outlining its different manifestations, the book breaks new ground. It fills a significant gap in the literature on Islamic studies and reveals an understudied dimension of Turkey and Turkish Islam beyond the well-known ideas of the AKP and the Gulenists.