Classic Age of Islam
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57 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Dā'ī | A Sh'ia propagandist; Ismâ`îlî high religious official |
| Dhikr (also called zikr) | Ṣūfī practices that were designed to help remember God (and his 99 names), usually through the repetition of certain phrases, but also through ceremonies |
| Faqīr (also Fakir): | The Arabic term that denotes a Ṣūfī and the wandering life of poverty to which Ṣūfīs adhere. The Persian term is darvīsh (dervish |
| Hadīth | A report, or collection of reports, of the sayings and actions of Muḥammād. It is the most revered group of Muslim scriptures behind the Qur'ān |
| Hajj | The annual pilgrimage to Mecca. Every Muslim is required to make the journey at least once in his/her lifetime (unless they cannot afford it or are too ill). The pilgrimage takes place in the month of Dhū-l-Hijjah, which is the last month of the Muslim calendar |
| Ilm | Literally means "learned lore." Among Sunnīs, the term denotes knowledge of hadīth reports and fiqh. Among Shī'ā, the term refers to the secret special knowledge of the imām |
| Imām | Has numerous meanings. Often the leader of the five daily prayers (salāt) and among Sunnīs, an imām could be the member of the 'ulamā or the founder of a madhhab, which was a system of fiqh. Among Shī'ā, an imām is the leader of the community who is a proper successor of the caliph 'Ali |
| Ismā'īlīs | Followers of the imām Ismā'īl ibn Ja'far. The Ismā'īlīs are part of a Shī'ā sect called the Ismā'īlīya. The Ismā'īlīs are often called "Seveners" because a branch of this sect recognizes Ismā'īl ibn Ja'far as the last imām. The Ismā'īlīs are now the second largest Shī'ā sect behind the "Twelvers," but between the ninth and thirteenth centuries they were the largest. They reached the most prominence under the Fatimid caliphs and, in addition to the Fatimids, other famous subsects include the Qarāmita (Qarmatians) and the Assassins |
| Kalām | Literally means "discussion." It is a theoretical questioning of cosmology and theology based on the principles of Islam |
| Kāniqāh (also Kanqah): | A building used for Ṣūfī activities where dhikr was observed and where Ṣūfī masters (shaykhs) taught disciples and entertained traveling Ṣūfīs |
| Madrasah (also madrasa) | A school that was normally housed within a mosque. Today it is commonly referred to as a religious school, but historically it was a place of religious and legal training where other scholastic arts were also taught by a master |
| Mosque | Any place of worship where the five daily prayers of Islam (salāt) are performed in a group |
| Mu'tazilites | A group of the early 'ulamā who developed a school of kalām that stressed human responsibility and free will |
| Shī'ā (also Shî'â, Shi'i, Sh'ia, Shi'ites, Shî'î): | Literally means "party." Denotes one who is a partisan of the sixth-century caliph 'Ali and who regards 'Ali and his descendants as the true rulers of the Muslim community. There are many Shī'ā groups, the most numerous of whom are the "Twelvers." The "Twelvers" recognize twelve legitimate successors to Muḥammād (beginning with 'Ali), the last of whom disappeared in 873 CE. Two other popular groups are the Ismā'īlīs and the Zadīya (followers of Zayd ibn 'Ali [d. 740 CE], the grandson of Husayn ibn 'Ali) |
| Ṣūfī | A Muslim mystic who usually follows a particular school of Sūfism (mystical Islam) |
| Sunnī | The majority of Muslims. Unlike the Shī'ā, the Sunnīs uphold the entirety of the historical tradition of the Muslim community and recognize all the caliphs as legitimate successors of the prophet (except for the Fatimids). Sunnīs are sometimes referred to as "Orthodox" Muslims |
| 'Ulamā (also ulama): | The learned legal and religious community of Islam. The term is plural for an 'ālim |
| Ummah | Muslim community |
| Zakāt | Often translated as "alms" or "legal alms." It refers to a tax on wealthy Muslim of a certain percentage of property. The tax either went to the government or to help the poor |
| 'Ālim | A man learned in religious and legal matters. The plural is 'ulamā |
| Atabeg | Turkish title applied to guardians of rulers who were still in their minority (i.e. under the age of 18). Many of these minority rulers were sons sent out as governors under the tutelage of an atabeg. The atabeg then often took over responsibility for governing and seized power for himself |
| Dār al-Islām and Dār al-Harb | Dār al-Islām originally referred to lands directly under Muslim rule, but later also included lands in which Islamic institutions were maintained. The Dār al-Harb refers to lands that were not under Muslim rule |
| Dhimma | The protection granted to a dhimmī |
| Dhimmī | A protected subject of a different religion who lives under Muslim rule |
| Dihqān | A member of the Persian landed nobility under the Umayyads and the 'Abbāsids |
| Dīwān (or dîvân, dewan) | Has a variety of meanings, but usually refers to a governmental bureau or council that oversaw the finances and diplomatic protocols of an Islamic state. The dīwān was usually headed by a vizier. The dīwān, however, could also be the chief of a council or could refer to the collected works of a writer or poet |
| Emir (also amīr) | Usually a general or military commander, but during the disintegration of the 'Abbāsid caliphate it could also refer to an independent ruler of a territory smaller than that ruled by a sultan |
| Fatwa | A religious injunction given by a muftī |
| Fiqh | Jurisprudence, specifically the discipline of explaining the sharī'a |
| Ijmā | Agreement of the Muslim community that makes the grounds for a legal decision |
| Iqtā'(also iqta): | An assignment or grant of land, revenues, or other services to an individual in return for service to the ruler who made the grant. Usually the service was military service and some scholars associate an iqtā' with a fief for that reason. However, unlike a fief, an iqtā' did not require services to be performed by the ruler to the individual granted the iqtā'. Also, unlike fiefs, iqtā's were not hereditary and could be revoked by the ruler at any time. Often, however, political realities meant that the iqtā' was passed on hereditarily |
| Ijtihād | Often translated as "thought" or "individual thought," ijtihād was an individual inquiry by a qualified scholar (mujtahid) into a specific point of sharī'a law. Sunnīs typically restrict ijtihād to points of doctrine that have not been elaborated upon by legal schools or other scholars, while Shī'ā are more permissive about ijtihād practice amongst scholars |
| Jizya | Usually translated as a "poll-tax." The tax was levied on all dhimmīs in a Muslim-ruled society |
| Muftī | An expert in the sharī'a who gives decisions on law and conscience |
| Muḥtasib (also called hisbah) | Under the early Umayyads, the muḥtasib was an officer in charge of public morals. Over time, however, the muḥtasib became most closely associated with regulating fair practices in a marketplace |
| Mūwallad | A person who associates with Arabs, but is not Arab by birth. It could refer to a person of mixed descent and often did, but not necessarily. It could also denote those who converted to Islam and became clients (mawālī) of Arab tribes |
| Qādī | A judge who administers sharī'a |
| Qiyās | The principle of deriving judicial decisions by way of analogy to decisions or concepts put forth in the hadīth or the Qur'ān |
| Schools of Islamic Law: | There are four schools of Islamic Law (sharī'a), which are all based on a system of fiqh called a madhhab. The four schools are Hanbalī, Hanafī, Mālikī, and Shāfi'ī |
| Sharī'a (sometimes sharia) | The legal apparatus that governs a Muslim's life or simply "Islamic law." The sharī'a is determined by jurisprudence (fiqh) and the sources of legal authority (usūl al-fiqh). Sunnīs claim that these sources are the Qur'ān, hadīth, ijmā'(consensus of the community), qiyās (analogical reasoning). Shī'ā substitute 'aql ("reason" or "reasoning") for qiyās and interpret ijmā' as the consensus of the imāms |
| Sultān | Originally an individual who only held military power. However, the 'Abbāsids began conferring the term in the late tenth century to rulers who had established themselves as independent sovereigns nominally recognizing the power of the 'Abbāsid caliph. Over time, the term simply came to denote a Muslim sovereign |
| Sunnah (also Sunna): | Received custom associated with Muḥammād. The main source of sunnah is hadīth |
| Vizier (sometimes wazir, wizir, or vizir): | Usually the chief minister of an Islamic state who oversaw the dīwān |
| Ansār | Literally, "helpers." The term refers to those individuals who served Muḥammād at Medina. The ansārs of Medina were distinguished from Muḥammād's followers from Mecca, commonly called the Muhājirūn |
| Caliph | The term means "successor." The caliph was the successor to Muḥammād and the leader of the Muslim community (ummah). The caliphs were both supreme military and judicial leaders and the chief religious officers of the Muslim community. The position continued until the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in 1918 |
| A.H.: | Latin abbreviation for Anno Hijra, or in English "in the year of the Hijra," which was the flight of Muḥammād and his followers from Mecca to Medina. The event occurred in the year 622 CE. The Hijra officially begins the Muslim era and is the starting point of the Islamic calendar. Hence, the year 700 A.D. (modern CE) is roughly 78 A.H. in the Muslim calendar (I say "roughly" because the Islamic calendar is lunar) |
| Ghāzī (or ghâzî or gazi) | An Islamic warrior who carries out jihad against those who threaten the Muslim community. Often, the term referred to frontier raiders and was used in the later medieval period almost exclusively to refer to Turkish raiders |
| Khagan (also Qagan) | Often, the practical difference between a khagan and a khan is not significant when encountered in English-language texts. However, khagan is generally a term of higher rank than a khan. A khagan is a Turko-Mongol term than denotes the ruler of a nomadic empire |
| Khan (also Qan): | A Turko-Mongolic title that denotes the ruler of a state. It is most often applied to the leaders of nomadic confederations or states that encompass numerous tribes |
| Ribāt | Originally a frontier fortress, but eventually developed similar functions to a kāniqāhs or a hostel for travelers |
| Basileus | Greek term denoting a type of monarch. The Byzantine emperors used the title and eventually it came to denote an emperor |
| Great Schism | An event that occurred in 1054, in which the Christian Church effectively split into two factions, the Roman Church (headed by the pope; not frequently labeled "Catholic" in this period; "Catholic" comes from the Latin catholicus, meaning "universal") and the Greek Orthodox Church |
| Greek Orthodox | : A body of several churches that recognize the Greek rite of Christianity. The Orthodox Church derived its name after the Great Schism of 1054. Unlike the Roman Church, the Orthodox Church does not have a single head, as all of its patriarchs (equivalents of bishops) are autocephalous (i.e. autonomous) |
| Patriarch | In Eastern Orthodox Christianity, the term refers to the leader of local religious houses under his jurisdiction. It is similar to a bishop in the Latin rite. However, patriarchs in the Eastern rite are autocephalous, meaning that they are technically independent of outside control, though in reality the patriarch of Constantinople is considered the head of the Orthodox community. A patriarch heads a patriarchate |
| Bishop | A Latin Christian ecclesiastical figure who supervises the religious houses of a particular territory, which is called a diocese. A bishop who oversees several bishops is called an archbishop |
| Coptic Christianity | A Christian community that is almost exclusively located in Egypt. Followers of Coptic Christianity are referred to as "Copts" |
| Latin Christian | A follower of the Latin Christian rite of the Christian religion. The center of Latin Christianity was the Roman Church, which was led by the pope (who was the bishop of Rome) and administered by bishops who oversaw dioceses and archbishops who supervised the bishops |
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