The two main denominations of Islam are the Sunni and Shia sects. They differ primarily upon of how the life of the ummah ("faithful") should be governed, and the role of the imam. These two main differences stem from the understanding of which hadith are to interpret the Qur'an. The Shia minority believes that the Family of the Prophet's traditions are exclusively to be followed, whereas the Sunni majority believes in traditions from the Companions of the Prophet and other common people to be followed.
The overwhelming majority of Muslims in the world, approximately 85%, are Sunni.
Shias and other (Ibadiyyas-Ismailis) make up the rest, about 15% of overall Muslim population. Among the countries with Shia majority or substantial population are Iran (80%), Azerbaijan (85%), Iraq (60%–65%), Bahrain (60%), Kuwait (40%), Pakistan (25-33%), India 25-31% of Muslim Population and (3-4%) of entire population of India and Lebanon (35-40%).
The Kharijite Muslims, who are less known, have their own stronghold in the country of Oman holding about 75%
of the population. The rest of the population being 15% Shia and the rest Sunni.
Geographical distribution
The main Islamic madhhab's (schools of law) of Muslim countries or distributions
Muslim world 65
Approximate map of the distribution of the four Sunni "madhhab" schools of legal interpretation.
The Muslim population of the world map by percentage of each country, according to the Pew Forum 2009 report on world Muslim populations.
Muslim world 66
Countries with Sharia rule
Map of the world showing the member states of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference
Notes
[1] PBS - Islam Today (http://www.pbs.org/empires/islam/faithtoday.html) (Islam, followed by more than a billion people today, is the world's fastest growing religion and will soon be the world's largest. The 1.2 billion Muslims make up approximately one quarter of the world's population, and the Muslim population of the United States now outnumbers that of Episcopalians.The most populous Muslim countries are Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and India. The number of Muslims in Indonesia alone (175 million) exceeds the combined total in Egypt, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Iran, the traditional heartlands of Islam. There are also substantial Muslim populations in Europe and North America,...)
[2] "Mapping the Global Muslim Population, Executive Summary" (http://pewforum.org/docs/?DocID=450). PewForum.org The report, by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, took three years to compile, with census data from 232 countries and territories. . Retrieved 2009-11-08., A comprehensive demographic study of more than 200 countries finds that there are 1.57 billion Muslims of all ages living in the world today, representing 23% of an estimated 2009 world population of 6.8 billion
[3] "Mapping the Global Muslim Population, Asia Predominates" (http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population(4).
). PewForum.org The report, by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, took three years to compile, with census data from 232 countries and territories. . Retrieved 2010-12-04.
[4] Tom Kington (2008-03-31). "Number of Muslims ahead of Catholics, says Vatican" (http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/31/
religion). The Guardian. . Retrieved 2008-11-17.
[5] "Muslim Population" (http://www.islamicpopulation.com/). IslamicPopulation.com. . Retrieved 2008-11-17.
[6] "Field Listing - Religions" (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html). . Retrieved 2008-11-17.
[7] Milestones of Islamic History (http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1212925100226&
pagename=Zone-English-ArtCulture/ACELayout) [8] Kraemer (1992), p. 1 & 148
[9] Matthew E. Falagas, Effie A. Zarkadoulia, George Samonis (2006). "Arab science in the golden age (750–1258 C.E.) and today", The FASEB Journal 20, p. 1581-1586.
[10] Ahmad Y. al-Hassan, Factors Behind the Decline of Islamic Science After the Sixteenth Century (http://www.history-science-technology.
com/Articles/articles 8.htm) [11] Ettinghausen (2003), p.3
[12] "Islamic Art and Architecture", The Columbia Encyclopedia (2000)
Muslim world 67
[13] "Muslim Iconoclasm" (http://lexicorient.com/e.o/mus_iconoclasm.htm). Encyclopedia of the Orient. . Retrieved 2007-02-23.
[14] Madden (1975), pp.423-430
[15] Tonna, Jo (1990). "The Poetics of Arab-Islamic Architecture", Muqarnas BRILL, 7, pp.182-197 [16] Grabar, Oleg (2006), "Islamic art and beyond". Ashgate. Vol 2, p.87
[17] Mason, Robert (1995)."New Looks at Old Pots: Results of Recent Multidisciplinary Studies of Glazed Ceramics from the Islamic World".
Muqarnas V 12 p.1
[18] Mason, Robert (1995)."New Looks at Old Pots: Results of Recent Multidisciplinary Studies of Glazed Ceramics from the Islamic World".
Muqarnas V 12 p.5
[19] Mason, Robert (1995)."New Looks at Old Pots: Results of Recent Multidisciplinary Studies of Glazed Ceramics from the Islamic World".
Muqarnas V 12 p.7
[20] "Islam", The New Encyclopedia Britannica (2005)
[21] Elizabeth Allo Isichei, ''A history of African societies to 1870'', page 175. Cambridge University Press, 1997 (http://books.google.com/
books?id=LgnhYDozENgC&pg=PA175&dq=mosque+kairouan+roman+columns&hl=fr&ei=-axbTKGaNs2aOIqI4aYP&sa=X&
oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CFMQ6AEwBzge#v=onepage&q=mosque kairouan roman columns&f=false) [22] Marzolph (2007). "Arabian Nights". Encyclopaedia of Islam. I. Leiden: Brill.
[23] Grant & Clute, p 51
[24] L. Sprague de Camp, Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers: The Makers of Heroic Fantasy, p 10 ISBN 0-87054-076-9 [25] Grant & Clute, , p 52
[26] NIZAMI: LAYLA AND MAJNUN - English Version by Paul Smith (http://www.shirazbooks.com/ebook1.html)
[27] Dr. Abu Shadi Al-Roubi (1982), "Ibn Al-Nafis as a philosopher", Symposium on Ibn al-Nafis, Second International Conference on Islamic Medicine: Islamic Medical Organization, Kuwait (cf. Ibn al-Nafis As a Philosopher (http://www.islamset.com/isc/nafis/drroubi.html), Encyclopedia of Islamic World).
[28] Nahyan A. G. Fancy (2006), " Pulmonary Transit and Bodily Resurrection: The Interaction of Medicine, Philosophy and Religion in the Works of Ibn al-Nafīs (d. 1288) (http://etd.nd.edu/ETD-db/theses/available/etd-11292006-152615)", p. 95-101, Electronic Theses and Dissertations, University of Notre Dame.
[29] Dr. Abu Shadi Al-Roubi (1982), "Ibn Al-Nafis as a philosopher", Symposium on Ibn al Nafis, Second International Conference on Islamic Medicine: Islamic Medical Organization, Kuwait (cf. Ibnul-Nafees As a Philosopher (http://www.islamset.com/isc/nafis/drroubi.html), Encyclopedia of Islamic World).
[30] Nawal Muhammad Hassan (1980), Hayy bin Yaqzan and Robinson Crusoe: A study of an early Arabic impact on English literature, Al-Rashid House for Publication.
[31] Cyril Glasse (2001), New Encyclopaedia of Islam, p. 202, Rowman Altamira, ISBN 0-7591-0190-6.
[32] Amber Haque (2004), "Psychology from Islamic Perspective: Contributions of Early Muslim Scholars and Challenges to Contemporary Muslim Psychologists", Journal of Religion and Health 43 (4): 357-377 [369].
[33] Martin Wainwright, Desert island scripts (http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,12084,918454,00.html), The Guardian, 22 March 2003.
[34] G. J. Toomer (1996), Eastern Wisedome and Learning: The Study of Arabic in Seventeenth-Century England, p. 222, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-820291-1.
[35] Latinized Names of Muslim Scholars (http://www.muslimheritage.com/topics/default.cfm?ArticleID=808), FSTC.
[36] I. Heullant-Donat and M.-A. Polo de Beaulieu, "Histoire d'une traduction," in Le Livre de l'échelle de Mahomet, Latin edition and French translation by Gisèle Besson and Michèle Brossard-Dandré, Collection Lettres Gothiques, Le Livre de Poche, 1991, p. 22 with note 37.
[37] Professor Nabil Matar (April 2004), Shakespeare and the Elizabethan Stage Moor, Sam Wanamaker Fellowship Lecture, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre (cf. Mayor of London (2006), Muslims in London (http://www.london.gov.uk/gla/publications/equalities/
muslims-in-london.pdf), pp. 14-15, Greater London Authority)
[38] "Islamic Philosophy" (http://www.rep.routledge.com/article/H057), Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy (1998) [39] Majid Fakhry (2001). Averroes: His Life, Works and Influence. Oneworld Publications. ISBN 1-85168-269-4.
[40] Irwin, Jones (Autumn 2002). "Averroes' Reason: A Medieval Tale of Christianity and Islam". The Philosopher LXXXX (2).
[41] Russell (1994), pp. 224-262,
[42] Dominique Urvoy, "The Rationality of Everyday Life: The Andalusian Tradition? (Aropos of Hayy's First Experiences)", in Lawrence I.
Conrad (1996), The World of Ibn Tufayl: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Ḥayy Ibn Yaqẓān, pp. 38-46, Brill Publishers, ISBN 90-04-09300-1.
[43] Muhammad ibn Abd al-Malik Ibn Tufail and Léon Gauthier (1981), Risalat Hayy ibn Yaqzan, p. 5, Editions de la Méditerranée.
[44] Russell (1994), pp. 224-239 [45] Russell (1994) p. 227 [46] Russell (1994), p. 247
[47] Kamal, Muhammad (2006). Mulla Sadra's Transcendent Philosophy. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.. pp. 9 & 39. ISBN 0754652718.
OCLC 224496901 238761259 61169850.
[48] Dr. S. W. Akhtar (1997). "The Islamic Concept of Knowledge", Al-Tawhid: A Quarterly Journal of Islamic Thought & Culture 12 (3).
[49] Bradley Steffens (2006), Ibn al-Haytham: First Scientist, Morgan Reynolds Publishing, ISBN 1-59935-024-6.
Muslim world 68
[50] Gorini, Rosanna (October 2003). "Al-Haytham the man of experience. First steps in the science of vision" (http://www.ishim.net/ishimj/
4/10.pdf) (pdf). Journal of the International Society for the History of Islamic Medicine 2 (4): 53–55. . Retrieved 2008-09-25. "According to the majority of the historians al-Haytham was the pioneer of the modern scientific method. With his book he changed the meaning of the term optics and established experiments as the norm of proof in the field. His investigations are based not on abstract theories, but on experimental evidences and his experiments were systematic and repeatable.".
[51] Robert Briffault (1928), The Making of Humanity, p. 190-202, G. Allen & Unwin Ltd:
What we call science arose as a result of new methods of experiment, observation, and measurement, which were introduced into Europe by the Arabs. [...] Science is the most momentous contribution of Arab civilization to the modern world, but its fruits were slow in ripening. [...] The debt of our science to that of the Arabs does not consist in startling discoveries or revolutionary theories; science owes a great deal more to Arab culture, it owes its existence....The ancient world was, as we saw, pre-scientific.
[...] The Greeks systematized, generalized and theorized, but the patient ways of investigations, the accumulation of positive knowledge, the minute methods of science, detailed and prolonged observation and experimental inquiry were altogether alien to the Greek temperament.
[52] Ron Eglash(1999), p.61
[53] Peter J. Lu, Harvard's Office of News and Public Affairs (http://www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2007/03.01/99-tiles.html) [54] Turner, H. (1997) pp. 136—138
[55] A. Martin-Araguz, C. Bustamante-Martinez, Ajo V. Fernandez-Armayor, J. M. Moreno-Martinez (2002). "Neuroscience in al-Andalus and its influence on medieval scholastic medicine", Revista de neurología 34 (9), p. 877-892.
[56] Omar Khaleefa (Summer 1999). "Who Is the Founder of Psychophysics and Experimental Psychology?", American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences 16 (2).
[57] Zafarul-Islam Khan, At The Threshhold Of A New Millennium – II (http://milligazette.com/Archives/15-1-2000/Art5.htm), The Milli Gazette.
[58] Akbar S. Ahmed (1984). "Al-Beruni: The First Anthropologist", RAIN 60, p. 9-10.
[59] Seyyed Hossein Nasr, "Islamic Conception Of Intellectual Life", in Philip P. Wiener (ed.), Dictionary of the History of Ideas, Vol. 2, p. 65, Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 1973-1974.
[60] Cas Lek Cesk (1980). "The father of medicine, Avicenna, in our science and culture: Abu Ali ibn Sina (980-1037)", Becka J. 119 (1), p.
17-23.
[61] H. Mowlana (2001). "Information in the Arab World", Cooperation South Journal 1.
[62] Mohamad Abdalla (Summer 2007). "Ibn Khaldun on the Fate of Islamic Science after the 11th Century", Islam & Science 5 (1), p. 61-70.
[63] Salahuddin Ahmed (1999). A Dictionary of Muslim Names. C. Hurst & Co. Publishers. ISBN 1-85065-356-9.
[64] Akbar Ahmed (2002). "Ibn Khaldun’s Understanding of Civilizations and the Dilemmas of Islam and the West Today", Middle East Journal 56 (1), p. 25.
[65] Adam Robert Lucas (2005), "Industrial Milling in the Ancient and Medieval Worlds: A Survey of the Evidence for an Industrial Revolution in Medieval Europe", Technology and Culture 46 (1), p. 1-30 [10].
[66] Ahmad Y. al-Hassan, Potassium Nitrate in Arabic and Latin Sources (http://www.history-science-technology.com/Articles/articles 2.
htm), History of Science and Technology in Islam.
[67] Ahmad Y. al-Hassan, Gunpowder Composition for Rockets and Cannon in Arabic Military Treatises In Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries (http://www.history-science-technology.com/Articles/articles 3.htm), History of Science and Technology in Islam.
[68] Ahmad Y. al-Hassan (1976). Taqi al-Din and Arabic Mechanical Engineering, p. 34-35. Institute for the History of Arabic Science, University of Aleppo.
[69] Maya Shatzmiller, p. 36.
[70] Adam Robert Lucas (2005), "Industrial Milling in the Ancient and Medieval Worlds: A Survey of the Evidence for an Industrial Revolution in Medieval Europe", Technology and Culture 46 (1), p. 1-30.
[71] Ahmad Y. al-Hassan, Transfer Of Islamic Technology To The West, Part 1: Avenues Of Technology Transfer (http://www.
history-science-technology.com/Articles/articles 7.htm)
[72] Subhi Y. Labib (1969), "Capitalism in Medieval Islam", The Journal of Economic History 29 (1), p. 79-96.
[73] Miller, Tracy, ed. (October 2009) (PDF), Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Muslim Population (http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf), Pew Research Center, , retrieved 2009-12-16
[74] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Muslim_population
[75] Centraal Bureau van de Statistiek (CBS) - Netherlands/ Muslimpopulation (http://www.cbs.nl/en-GB/menu/themas/bevolking/
publicaties/artikelen/archief/2004/2004-1543-wm.htm)
[76] "93 years pass since establishment of first democratic republic in the east – Azerbaijan Democratic Republic" (http://en.apa.az/news.
php?id=148210). Azerbaijan Press Agency. . Retrieved May 28, 2011.
[77] Kazemzadeh, Firuz (1951). The Struggle for Transcaucasia: 1917-1921. The New York Philosophical Library. pp. 124, 222, 229, 269–270.
ISBN 0-8305-0076-6.
Muslim world 69
[78] Swietochowski, Tadeusz (2004). Russian Azerbaijan, 1905-1920: The Shaping of a National Identity in a Muslim Community (http://books.
google.com/books?id=cozSOSsv7ZsC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Russian+Azerbaijan,+1905-1920:+The+Shaping+of+a+National+
Identity+in+a+Muslim+Community&hl=nl&ei=9HThTYCmLsHpOaOWnMIG&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&
ved=0CCkQ6AEwAA#v=snippet&q=129&f=false). Cambridge University Press. pp. 129. ISBN 0521522455.
[79] See:
• Esposito (2004), p.84
• Lapidus (2002), pp.502–507,845
• Lewis (2003), p.100
[80] Article 1 Islamic republic, Article 2 Religions (http://www.servat.unibe.ch/icl/af00000_.html)
[81] Article 1 Sovereignty, Constitutional Monarchy (http://mahmood.tv/bahrain-politics-2/bahrain-constitution/
the-constitution-of-the-kingdom-of-bahrain-2002/#article1)
[82] Article 2 The Islamic republic (http://www.iranonline.com/iran/iran-info/Government/constitution-1.html) [83] Article 1 State Integrity, Equal Protection (1) (http://servat.unibe.ch/icl/mr00000_.html)
[84] Article 2 Religion (http://servat.unibe.ch/icl/mu00000_.html)
[85] Article 1 (1) Introductory (http://www.pakistani.org/pakistan/constitution/part1.html) [86] Article (1), (2), (3) The foundations of the state (http://www.al-bab.com/yemen/gov/con94.htm) [87] Article 2 Chapter I Algeria (http://www.algeria-un.org/default.asp?doc=-c1p1)
[88] Article 2A The state religion (http://www.pmo.gov.bd/constitution/index.htm)
[89] Article 2The state (http://www.egypt.gov.eg/english/laws/Constitution/chp_one/part_one.asp)
[90] Article 2, 1st Basic principles (http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:rZKJQ6wiTLAJ:news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/
24_08_05_constit.pdf+Constitution+of+Iraq&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=uk)
[91] Article 2 The state and the system government (http://www.kuwait-info.com/sidepages/cont.asp) [92] Article 2 State religion, language (http://servat.unibe.ch/icl/ly00000_.html)
[93] Article 3 (1) (http://www.trybunal.gov.pl/constit/constitu/constit/malaysia/malays-e.htm)
[94] State religion (7.) State, sovereignty and citizens (http://www.presidencymaldives.gov.mv/pages/default.
php?ZQE5XDheYQBlEGIOYxc1BTQFZVA=)
[95] Article 6 Basic principles (http://www.al-bab.com/maroc/gov/con96.htm) [96] Susan M. Hassig, Zawiah Abdul Latif, Somalia, (Marshall Cavendish: 2007), p.77.
[97] Sidebar, "Country Profile; Religion section" (http://www.somalilandgov.com/) [98] Article 1 (State) General Provisions (http://www.servat.unibe.ch/icl/ts00000_.html)
[99] Democratic regime in an Islamic and Arab society (http://www.worldstatesmen.org/uae_const.doc) [100] Article 7/Article 18 (http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/UNTC/UNPAN003700.htm) [101] Article 31 (http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:IIR9yrUaMFwJ:www.chr.up.ac.za/hr_docs/constitutions/docs/
Burkina%20FasoC%20(englishsummary)(rev).doc+Burkina+Faso+constitution&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=uk) [102] Article 1 (http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:4pEtb9MYlp0J:www.chr.up.ac.za/hr_docs/constitutions/docs/
ChadC%20(english%20summary)(rev).doc+Constitution+of+Chad&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=2&gl=uk)
[103] CIAWorld Factbook- Djibouti (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/dj.html#People) [104] Article 1 (1) (http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:DFzfUsPbHcgJ:www.chr.up.ac.za/hr_docs/constitutions/docs/
The%20GambiaC(english%20summary)(rev).doc+Constitution+of+Gambia&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=uk) [105] Article 1 (1) (http://www.kazakhstanembassy.org.uk/cgi-bin/index/225)
[106] Characteristics of the Republic: Article 2, Provisions Relating to Political Parties: Article 68, Oath taking: Article 81, Oath: Article 103, Department of Religious Affairs: 136, Preservation of Reform Laws: 174
[107] Article 1 (1) (http://www.coe.int/t/e/legal_affairs/legal_co-operation/foreigners_and_citizens/nationality/documents/
national_legislation/kyrgyzstan constitution of the kyrghyz republic.asp#P46_1713) [108] Article 25 (http://confinder.richmond.edu/admin/docs/Mali.pdf)
[109] Article 1 (http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:lTPlpP_soN8J:www.chr.up.ac.za/hr_docs/constitutions/docs/
SenegalC%20(english%20summary)(rev).doc+Constitution+of+Senegal&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=uk) [110] Article 1 (http://unpan1.un.org/intradoc/groups/public/documents/untc/unpan003670.htm)
[111] Section 1: Foundations of the constitutional order, Article 1 (http://www.uta.edu/cpsees/TURKCON.htm)
Muslim world 70
References
• Ankerl, Guy (2000) [2000]. Global communication without universal civilization. INU societal research. Vol.1:
Coexisting contemporary civilizations : Arabo-Muslim, Bharati, Chinese, and Western. Geneva: INU Press.
ISBN 2-88155-004-5. OCLC 223231547 237431578 47105537 50042854.
• Graham, Mark, How Islam Created the Modern World (2006)
• Tausch, Arno (2009). What 1.3 Billion Muslims Really Think: An Answer to a Recent Gallup Study, Based on the
"World Values Survey". Foreword Mansoor Moaddel, Eastern Michigan University (1st ed.). Nova Science Publishers, New York. ISBN 978-1-60692-731-1.
• Russell, G. A. (1994). The 'Arabick' Interest of the Natural Philosophers in Seventeenth-Century England. Brill Publishers. ISBN 90-04-09459-8.
• Kraemer, Joel L. (1992). Humanism in the Renaissance of Islam. Brill Publishers. ISBN 90-04-07259-4.
• Grant, John; Clute, John. "Arabian fantasy". The Encyclopedia of Fantasy. ISBN 0-312-19869-8.
External links
• The Islamic World to 1600 (http://www.ucalgary.ca/applied_history/tutor/islam/) an online tutorial at the University of Calgary, Canada.
• Qantara.de-Dossier: Democracy and Civil Society in Muslim countries (http://www.qantara.de/webcom/
show_article.php/_c-593/i.html/)
• Is There a Muslim World? (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=104927939&ft=1&
f=1004), on NPR
• (English) Asabiyya: Re-Interpreting Value Change in Globalized Societies (http://ideas.repec.org/p/iza/
izadps/dp4459.html)
• (English) Why Europe has to offer a better deal towards its Muslim communities. A quantitative analysis of open international data (http://ideas.repec.org/b/erv/ebooks/b001.html)
Sharia 71
Sharia
Sharīʿah (Arabic: ﺔﻌﻳﺮﺷ šarīʿah, IPA: [ʃaˈriːʕa], "way" or "path") is the code of conduct or religious law of Islam.
Most Muslims believe Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Qur'an, and the example set by the Islamic Prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of Sharia to questions not directly addressed in the primary sources by including secondary sources. These secondary sources usually include the consensus of the religious scholars embodied in ijma, and analogy from the Qur'an and Sunnah through qiyas. Shia jurists prefer to apply reasoning ('aql) rather than analogy in order to address difficult questions.
Muslims believe Sharia is God's law, but they differ as to what exactly it entails.[1] Modernists, traditionalists and fundamentalists all hold different views of Sharia, as do adherents to different schools of Islamic thought and scholarship. Different countries and cultures have varying interpretations of Sharia as well.
Sharia deals with many topics addressed by secular law, including crime, politics and economics, as well as personal matters such as sexuality, hygiene, diet, prayer, and fasting. Where it enjoys official status, Sharia is applied by Islamic judges, or qadis. The imam has varying responsibilities depending on the interpretation of Sharia; while the term is commonly used to refer to the leader of communal prayers, the imam may also be a scholar, religious leader, or political leader.
The reintroduction of Sharia is a longstanding goal for Islamist movements in Muslim countries. Some Muslim minorities in Asia (e.g. in India) have maintained institutional recognition of Sharia to adjudicate their personal and community affairs. In western countries, where Muslim immigration is more recent, Muslim minorities have introduced Sharia family law, for use in their own disputes, with varying degrees of success (e.g. Britain's Muslim Arbitration Tribunal). Attempts to impose Sharia have been accompanied by controversy,[2][3][4] violence,[5][6][7]
[8][9][10] and even warfare (cf. Second Sudanese Civil War).[11][12][13][14]
Etymology
Countries with Sharia.
In The Spirit of Islamic Law, Professor Bernard G. Weiss states "In archaic Arabic, the term sharì'a means 'path to the water hole.' When we consider the importance of a well-trodden path to a source of water for man and beast in the arid desert environment, we can readily appreciate why this term in Muslim usage should have become a metaphor for a whole way of life ordained by God."[15]
In Understanding Islamic Law: From Classical to Contemporary, Professor Irshad Abdal-Haqq states "Shar'iah, or more properly Al-Shari'ah, literally means the pathway, path to be followed, or clear way to be followed, and has come to mean the path upon which the believer has to tread. In original usage Shar'iah meant the road to the watering place or path leading to the water, i.e., the way to the source of life. The technical application of the term as a reference to the law of Islam is traced directly to the Qur'an, wherein the adherents of Islam, the believers, are admonished by Allah (God) to follow the clear and right way, the path of Shari'ah: Then we put thee on the (right) Way of religion so follow thou that (Way), and follow not the desires of those who know not[Qur'an 45:18]."[16]
According to Abdul Mannan Omar in his Dictionary of the Holy Quran, the word at 45:18 (see Abdal-Haqq above) derives from the "Quranic root" shara'a. Derivations include: Shara'a (as prf. 3rd. p.m. sing.), meaning "He ordained", appearing once in the Qur'an at verse 45:13; Shara'u (prf. 3rd. p.m. plu.) "They decreed (a law)" appearing
Sharia 72
once at 42:21; Shir'atun (n.) "Spiritual law", used at 5:48; finally, Shariatun (act. 2nd. pic. f. sing.) "System of divine law, Way of belief and practice" is used at 45:18.[17]