The emergence of Islam in the seventh century AD still polarises scholars who seek to separate religious truth from the historical reality with which it is associated. However, history and prophecy are not solely defined by positive evidence or apocalyptic truth, but by human subjects, who consider them to convey distinct messages and in turn make these messages meaningful to others. These messages are mutually interdependent, and analysed together provide new insights into history. It is by way of this concept that Olof Heilo presents the decline of the Eastern Roman Empire as a key to understanding the rise of Islam; two historical processes often perceived as distinct from one another. Eastern Rome and the Rise of Islam highlights significant convergences between Early Islam and the Late Ancient world. It suggests that Islam's rise is a feature of a common process during which tensions between imperial ambitions and apocalyptic beliefs in Europe and the Middle East cut straight across today's theological and political definitions. The conquests of Islam, the emergence of the caliphate, and the transformation of the Roman and Christian world are approached from both prophetic anticipations in the Ancient and Late Ancient world, and from the Medieval and Modern receptions of history. In the shadow of their narratives it becomes possible to trace the outline of a shared history of Christianity and Islam. The "Dark Ages" thus emerge not merely as a tale of sound and fury, but as an era of openness, diversity and unexpected possibilities. Approaching the rise of Islam as a historical phenomenon, this book opens new perspectives in the study of early religion and philosophy, as well as providing a valuable resource for students and scholars of Islamic Studies.

Answers the questions: what is the background to issues in external and internal politics? What is the Turks' opinion on European and Turkish identity? On Cyprus? On the role of the generals? Why do human rights problems linger on? What is behind the Kurdish question? Is Turkey religiously split? What are the pros and cons of Turkish association with the EU?

Muslim Democracy explores the relationship between politics and religion in forty-seven Muslim-majority countries, focusing especially on those with democratic experience, such as Indonesia and Turkey, and drawing comparisons with their regional, non-Islamic counterparts. Unlike most studies of political Islam, this is a politically-focused book, more concerned with governing realties than ideology. By changing the terms of the debate from theology to politics, and including the full complement of Islamic countries, Schneier shows that the boundaries between church and state in the Islamic world are more variable and diverse than is commonly assumed. Through case studies and statistical comparisons between Muslim majority countries and their regional counterparts, Muslim Democracy shows that countries with different religions but similar histories are not markedly different in their levels of democratization. What many Islamists and western observers call "Islamic law," moreover, is more a political than a religious construct, with religion more the tool than the engine of politics. "Women who drive in Saudi Arabia," as the author says, "are not warned they will go to hell, but that they will go to jail." With the political salience of religion rising in many countries, this book is essential reading for students of comparative politics, religion, and democratization interested in exploring the shifting boundaries between faith and politics.

No overall survey of the Muslim inscriptions in India has ever been attempted on this scale before. The book reveals the significance of epigraphy as a source for Islamic history and culture, and goes on to trace in fascinating detail the diffusion of Islam in Bengal from early merchants, to the mighty Mughals through to the British Raj; covering royalty to Sufis and Khanquahs.

Cyber hate can take many different forms from online material which can lead to actual offline abuse and violence, cyber violence; cyber stalking, and online harassment with the use of visual images, videos, chat rooms, text and social media which are intended to cause harm. This book examines the case for current guidelines dealing with online anti-Muslim abuse and concludes that we require a new understanding of this online behaviour and the impact it can have on vulnerable communities. It is unique as it focuses on new technology in the form of social media and the Internet and explores the challenges the police and other agencies face when confronting anti-Muslim abuse in cyberspace. It also provides a critique of how people are targeted by online offenders and helps us understand online anti-Muslim behaviour in a much more detailed and comprehensive way by bringing together a range of experts who will examine this phenomenon and critically discuss why they think it has become so much more prevalent than it was before.

First published in 1994. This book is focussed is on the global vision of the various components of the Islamic movement in Egypt from 1967 to 1981. It is, in fact, a case study of the perception of foreign policy issues and the international system by the Islamic movement.

An examination into the intersection of Malcolm X's Muslim spiritual life and his Christian relations Despite his association with the Nation of Islam, Malcolm X had an intimate relation with Christianity and Christians, which influenced his personal life and spirituality as well as his career. Lou Decaro's Malcolm and the Cross thoroughly explores the relation between Malcolm, the Nation of Islam, and Christianity. After revealing the religious roots of the Nation of Islam in relation to Christianity, DeCaro examines Malcolm's development and contributions as an activist, journalist, orator, and revolutionist against the backdrop of his familial religious heritage. In the process, DeCaro achieves nothing less than a radical rethinking of the way we understand Malcolm X, depicting him as a religious revolutionist whose analysis of Christianity is indispensable--particularly in an era when cultic Islam, Christianity, and traditional Islam continue to represent key factors in any discussion about racism in the United States.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim community represents the followers of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908), a charismatic leader whose claims of spiritual authority brought him into conflict with most other Muslim leaders of the time. The controversial movement originated in rural India in the latter part of the 19th century and is best known for challenging current conceptions of Islamic orthodoxy. Despite missionary success and expansion throughout the world, particularly in Western Europe, North America, and parts of Africa, Ahmadis have effectively been banned from Pakistan. Adil Hussain Khan traces the origins of Ahmadi Islam from a small Sufi-style brotherhood to a major transnational organization, which many Muslims believe to be beyond the pale of Islam.

Through empirical analysis and theoretical reflection, this book shows that the aesthetics and politics of the Islamic State is "futurist." ISIS overcomes postmodern pessimism and joins the modern, techno-oriented, and optimistic attitude propagated by Italian Futurism in the early twentieth century. The Islamic State does not only excel through the extensive use of high-tech weapons, social media, commercial bot, and automated text systems. By putting forward the presence of speeding cars and tanks, mobile phones, and computers, ISIS presents jihad life as connected to modern urban culture. Futurism praised violence as a means of leaving behind imitations of the past in order to project itself most efficiently into the future. A profound sense of crisis produces in both Futurism and jihadism a nihilistic attitude toward the present state of society that will be overcome through an exaltation of technology. Futurists were opposed to parliamentary democracy and sympathized with nationalism and colonialism. ISIS jihadism suggests a similarly curious combination of modernism and conservative values. The most obvious modern characteristic of this new image of fundamentalism is the highly aestheticized recruiting material.

This book investigates the many faces of Hamas and examines its ongoing evolution as a resistance organisation in the context of the Israel/Palestine conflict. Specifically, the work interrogates Hamas' interpretation, reinterpretation and application of the twin concepts of muqawama (resistance) and jihad (striving in the name of God). The text frames the movement's capacity to accrue popular legitimacy through its evolving resistance discourses, centred on the notion of jihad, and the practical applications thereof. Moving beyond the dominant security-orientated approaches to Hamas, the book investigates the malleable nature of both resistance and jihad including their social, symbolic, political and ideational applications. The diverse interpretations of these concepts allow Hamas to function as a comprehensive social movement. Where possible, this volume attempts to privilege first-order or experiential knowledge emanating from the movement itself, its political representatives, and the Palestinian population in general. Many of these accounts were collected by the author during fieldwork in the Middle East. Not only does this work present new primary data, but it also investigates a variety of contemporary empirical events related to Palestine and the Middle East. This book offers an alternative way of viewing the movement's popular legitimacy grounded in theoretical, empirical and ethnographic terms. This book will be of much interest to students of Hamas, political violence, critical terrorism studies, Middle Eastern politics, security studies and IR in general.

While Christian approaches to the problem of evil have been much discussed, the issue of theodicy in Islam is relatively neglected. A Muslim Response to Evil explores new insights and viewpoints and discusses possible solutions to theodicy and the problem of evil through the early philosophy and theology ofIslam as well as through a semantic analysis of evil (sharr) in the Qur'AE n. Reflecting on Said Nursi's magnum opus, the Risale-i Nur Collection (Epistles of Light), Tubanur Yesilhark Ozkan puts Nursi's theodicy into discourse with so called 'secular' theodicy or 'anthropodicy', supported by scholars such as Newton, Descartes, Leibniz, Spinoza, Hume, and Kant. Her study offers a fascinating new perspective on the problem of evil for scholars of comparative religion, philosophy of religion, and Islamic thought.

The early Arab conquests pose a considerable challenge to modern-day historians. The earliest historical written tradition emerges only after the second half of the eighth century- over one hundred years removed from the events it contends to describe, and was undoubtedly influenced by the motives and interpretations of its authors. Indeed, when speaking or writing about the past, fact was not the only, nor even the prime, concern of Muslims of old. The Arabic Historic Tradition and the Early Islamic Conquests presents a thorough examination of Arabic narratives on the early Islamic conquests. It uncovers the influence of contemporary ideology, examining recurring fictive motifs and evaluating the reasons behind their use. Folklore and tribal traditions are evident throughout the narratives, which aimed to promote individual, tribal and regional fame through describing military prowess in the battles for the spread of Islam. Common tropes are encountered across the materials, which all serve a central theme; the moral superiority of the Muslims, which destined them to victory in God's plan. Offering a key to the state of mind and agenda of early Muslim writers, this critical reading of Arabic texts would be of great interest to students and scholars of early Arabic History and Literature, as well as a general resource for Middle Eastern History.

Inter- and intra-clan conflicts in Northern Israel pit hundreds against each other in revenge cycles that take years to resolve and impact the entire community. The Sulha is a Shari'a-based traditional conflict resolution process that works independently of formal legal systems and is widely practiced to manage such conflicts in the north of Israel, as well as throughout the Muslim and Arab worlds. The Sulha process works by effecting a gradual attitudinal transformation, from a desire for revenge to a willingness to forgive, through restoration of the victim's clan sense of honour. Muslim/Arab Mediation and Conflict Resolution examines the process of Sulha, as practiced by the Arab population of northern Israel, where it plays a central role in the maintenance of peace among Muslims, Christians, and Druze alike. It presents detailed analysis of every stage of this at times protracted process. It uses interviews with victims, perpetrators, Sulha practitioners, community leaders and lawyers, along with statistical analysis to examine how Sulha affects people's lives, how various sectors of society impact the practice, and how it coexists with Israel's formal legal system. Furthermore, it examines how Sulha compares to Western dispute resolution processes. This book offers the first comprehensive exploration of the entire Sulha process, and is a valuable resource for students and scholars of Middle East studies, Islamic studies and conflict resolution.

This is the first study in English of the political history of Muslim Spain and Portugal, based on Arab sources. It provides comprehensive coverage of events across the whole of the region from 711 to the fall of Granada in 1492. Up till now the history of this region has been badly neglected in comparison with studies of other states in medieval Europe. When considered at all, it has been largely written from Christian sources and seen in terms of the Christian Reconquest. Hugh Kennedy raises the profile of this important area, bringing the subject alive with vivid translations from Arab sources. This will be fascinating reading for historians of medieval Europe and for historians of the middle east drawing out the similarities and contrasts with other areas of the Muslim world.

Islamic theocracy is now firmly established in fundamentalist Iran, and waves of fundamentalism are sweeping the entire Islamic world, and its diaspora. This book examines the claim of those Islamists who contend that, as a belief system and a way of life, Islam carries with it a theory of politics and the state which should be applied unquestioningly. Ayubi traces both the intellectual sources and the socio-economic bases of Political Islam, arguing that it is a modern phenomenon, dating back only to the inter-war period. He describes its major proponents as urban, educated and relatively young people, whose energies were mobilised, but whose expectations were not fulfilled by the post-independence `populist' regimes in the Arab World. Islamic movements in six countries are studied in detail. Ayubi's distinctively broad definition of politics encompasses innovative material on sex and the family, and on the emerging alternative economic and social networks of Islamic banks, schools, and hospitals in the countries discussed. Ayubi stresses the traditional concern in Islam for the collective enforcement of morals, but argues that there is no case for the commonly held misconception that politics begins from theological principles in the Arab world: the historical connection between Islam and politics can be explained as an attempt by the rulers to legitimise their actions. He suggests that radical Islamists are reversing this position by subjecting politics to their specific religious views, so their movement is in some senses an anti-state one. He concludes by discussing possible intellectual responses to fundamentalism, drawing on the thinking of contemporary Muslim liberals.

Analyses the political and socio economic processes that led to the rise and fall of the UAR, as well as the ramifications of this episode on the Arab world. This book tells the story of this important, yet neglected, episode in Arab history. It is based on the archiveal material located in the US, Britain, Canada, Israel, and sources in Arabic.

This volume examines international statebuilding in terms of language and meanings, rather than focusing narrowly on current policy practices. After two decades of evolution towards more 'integrated,' 'multi-faceted' or, simply stated, more intrusive statebuilding and peacebuilding operations, a critical literature has slowly emerged on the economic, social and political impacts of these interventions. Scholars have started to analyse the 'unintended consequences' of peacebuilding missions, analysing all aspects of interventions. Central to the book is the understanding that language is both the most important tool for building anything of social significance, and the primary repository of meanings in any social setting. Hence, this volume exemplifies how the multiple realities of state, state fragility and statebuilding are being conceptualised in mainstream literature, by highlighting the repercussions this conceptualisation has on 'good practices' for statebuilding. Drawing together leading scholars in the field, this project provides a meeting point between constructivism in international relations and the critical perspective on liberal peacebuilding, shedding new light on the commonly accepted meanings and concepts underlying the international (or world) order, as well as the semantics of contemporary statebuilding practices. This book will be of much interest to students of statebuilding and intervention, war and conflict studies, security studies and international relations.

Muslim NGOs are continuously expanding their field of activities to various areas, including education, medical services, environment, aging societies, gender issues, and inter-religious dialogue. They are visible in an urban slum in Pakistan, rural development in Indonesia, and even in Fukushima in Japan to distribute hot meals among the affected people. Muslim NGOs have become a global phenomenon. Though there have been many studies on "political Islam", only a few approaches to broaden our understanding of Muslim NGOs have appeared. NGOs in the Muslim World brings together contributors familiar with the local language who have each been engaged with fieldwork for many years. Based on empirical anthropological and sociological studies in Japan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, and Jordan, they explore key issues concerning the role and work of Muslim NGOs, from the inspirations Muslims take from holy texts to the religious expectations of volunteers devoting their time to charitable causes. The book discusses the relationship of Muslim organizations with Islamic institutions, as well as their interpretations of the contemporary issues faced by NGOs within a specifically Islamic framework. As a result, NGOs in the Muslim World provides fresh insight into Muslims' faith-based initiatives concerning contemporary issues. This book will be of interest to students and scholars from diverse disciplines including anthropology, sociology, political science and history, as well as Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies.

The large and rapidly increasing Muslim population of the USSR put an immense strain on the Soviet political system, dominated as it is by Russians. The problems were not confined to internal tensions between ethnic groups but extend also to relations with neighbouring Muslim states, as the invasion of Afghanistan graphically illustrated. This volume, first published in 1984, addresses this field of unique importance. Topics covered encompass the living standards of the Soviet Muslim population, the religious revival, relations with the Arab world, the Soviet experience of guerrilla warfare in Afghanistan and many more. In short it provides coverage of the sociological, political, cultural, economic, ideological and international dimensions of Soviet-Muslim relations.

Few ideas have excited such passions over the years as Pan-Islam, and few have been the subject of so many contradictory interpretations. Based on a shared religious sentiment, the politics of Muslim unity and solidarity have had to contend with the impact of both secularism and nationalism. Professor Landau's study, first published in 1990 as The Politics of Pan-Islam, is the first comprehensive examination of the politics of Pan-Islam, its ideologies and movements, over the last 120 years. Starting with the plans and activities of Abdulhamid II and his agents, he covers the fortunes of Pan-Islam up to and including the marked increase in Pan-Islamic sentiment and organization in the 1970s and 1980s. The study is based on a scholarly analysis of archival and other sources in many languages. It covers an area from Morocco in the west to India and Pakistan in the east and from Russia and Turkey to the Arabian Peninsula. It will provide a unique reference point for anyone wishing to understand the impact of Pan-Islam on international politics today.

Muslim Democracy explores the relationship between politics and religion in forty-seven Muslim-majority countries, focusing especially on those with democratic experience, such as Indonesia and Turkey, and drawing comparisons with their regional, non-Islamic counterparts. Unlike most studies of political Islam, this is a politically-focused book, more concerned with governing realties than ideology. By changing the terms of the debate from theology to politics, and including the full complement of Islamic countries, Schneier shows that the boundaries between church and state in the Islamic world are more variable and diverse than is commonly assumed. Through case studies and statistical comparisons between Muslim majority countries and their regional counterparts, Muslim Democracy shows that countries with different religions but similar histories are not markedly different in their levels of democratization. What many Islamists and western observers call "Islamic law," moreover, is more a political than a religious construct, with religion more the tool than the engine of politics. "Women who drive in Saudi Arabia," as the author says, "are not warned they will go to hell, but that they will go to jail." With the political salience of religion rising in many countries, this book is essential reading for students of comparative politics, religion, and democratization interested in exploring the shifting boundaries between faith and politics.

A longitudinal, intersectional study of migrant women, this book examines the lives of first generation Bangladeshi migrants to the UK, considering the dynamic relationship between people and place. Shedding new light on a migrant population about which little is known, the author explores the experiences of women who left rural homes to live in London, speaking no English, with no experience of local customs and having to adjust to what would now be dramatically shrunken family sizes, within which they would act as bearers of culture and tradition. Based on research spanning a decade Family, Citizenship and Islam draws on qualitative interviews with over 100 women and examines questions of identity, belonging, citizenship and Britishness, religion, ageing, care, and the family. With attention to the fluidity of the experiences of the first generation of migration women, the book offers an alternative to much ethnographic research, which often offers only a 'snapshot' of a particular minority or migrant group as fixed and preserved in time. As such, Family, Citizenship and Islam will appeal to scholars of sociology, geography and anthropology with interests in migration and diaspora, citizenship, gender, religion, family and the lifecourse, and the ways in which these different aspects of a person's life come together to shape lived experience.

This book investigates the nature of identity formation among economically backward adolescent Muslim girls in northern India by focusing on the interstitial spaces of the 'home' and 'school'. It examines issues of religion, patriarchy and education, to interrogate the relationship between pedagogy and religion in South Asia. Using a multi-disciplinary approach and multiple research methods, the volume makes significant contribution to the study of socialisation and modern education among minorities and other marginalised groups in India. It will be of interest to scholars of education, culture and gender studies, sociology, psychology, Islamic studies, and to policy-makers and non-government organisations involved in education.

Intergroup friendships and marriages are regarded as the most important indicators of immigrants' social integration, as they represent the most intimate ties that can exist between minority and majority group members. Drawing on unique, large-scale, cross-national survey data, encompassing natives as well as Turkish, Moroccan, Pakistani and ex-Yugoslav migrants across several Western European countries, this book offers extensive analyses of intermarriage, as well as attitudes towards intermarriage and intergroup dating in general. Conceptualising the willingness or otherwise to marry outside one's ethnic or religious group in terms of social distance, Social Integration and Intermarriage in Europe provides new evidence that different conceptions of family life, gender relations and religiosity are crucial for understanding why individuals can be reluctant to engage in intergroup relationships. With attention to the question of the role played by state policies in explaining immigrant social integration, the book explores differences across Western Europe and the ways in which each state regulates immigration and the accommodation of Islam. A detailed and rigorous study of attitudes to intermarriage, social integration and the role of the state, Social Integration and Intermarriage in Europe will appeal to policy makers and scholars of within the social sciences, with interests in migration, interethnic relations and social integration.

This book explores one of the most serious strategic threats confronting the United States and Europe today: the advance of Islamism. Since September 11, Western governments have legitimized and empowered 'nonviolent Islamists' as representatives of Islam for all Muslims in the West, an approach that has worried Muslim moderates. "Citizen Islam" addresses the implications of this approach. This book opens with an overview of the theology and history of Islam, to show that violence and intolerance are not fundamental aspects for the religion. It then explains the growth of Islamism in Europe and in the United States before suggesting that both are finally beginning to recognize the threat posed by nonviolent Islamists. Lastly, it outlines steps that Western and Muslims leaders can take to strengthen moderate Islam and counter the threat of Islamism. Written by Zeyno Baran, a Turkish-born Muslim, "Citizen Islam" sheds a sharp light on Muslim communities in the West. It concludes that there is much that Western governments can still do to reverse the spread of Islamism. But they must act quickly.