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Nations with a Muslim majority appear in green, while nations that are approximately 50% Muslim appear yellow.

The Muslim world has two meanings.

In a cultural sense it is a term given to the world-wide community of those who adhere to the religion of Islam. This community, whose members are known as Muslims, number approximately 1.4 - 1.6 billion people. This community does not constitute a distinct race, but are spread across every race; the world's Muslims are connected only by the heritage of adhering to a common religion.

In a geographical and political sense (especially in the historical context) the terms Muslim World and Islamic world refer to geographical and political entities with domination of Islam. In this sense the expression corresponds to the Islamic term .

The diaspora of Muslims worldwide are also known collectively as the ummah.[citation needed] The Islamic faith emphasizes unity and defense of fellow Muslims, so it could be expected for Muslim nations to co-operate. However, nationalist currents have tended to divide rather than unite the Islamic world, particularly in the second half of the 20th century.

History

Main article: Muslim history

Islamic Culture

Art and architecture

Main articles: Islamic art and Islamic architecture
Islamic calligraphy on a plaque in the Great Mosque of Xi'an, China.

The term "Islamic art and architecture" denotes the works of art and architecture produced from the 7th century onwards by people (not necessarily Muslim) who lived within the territory that was inhabited by culturally Islamic populations.[1][2]

Aniconism, Iconoclasm, and Arabesques

Main articles: Aniconism in Islam, Iconoclasm, and Arabesque

No Islamic visual images or depictions of God are meant to exist because such artistic depictions may lead to idolatry. Moreover, Muslims believe that God is incorporeal, making any two- or three- dimensional depictions impossible. Instead, Muslims describe God by the names and attributes that he revealed to his creation. All but one sura of the Qur'an begins with the phrase "In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful". Images of Mohammed are likewise prohibited. Such aniconism and iconoclasm[3] can also be found in Jewish and some Christian theology.

Islamic art frequently adopts the use of geometrical floral or vegetal designs in a repetition known as arabesque. Such designs are highly nonrepresentational, as Islam forbids representational depictions as found in pre-Islamic pagan religions. Despite this, there is a presence of depictional art in some Muslim societies, although this is not widespread. Another reason why Islamic art is usually abstract is to symbolize the transcendence, indivisible and infinite nature of God, an objective achieved by arabesque.[4] Arabic calligraphy is an omnipresent decoration in Islamic art, and is usually expressed in the form of Qur'anic verses. Two of the main scripts involved are the symbolic kufic and naskh scripts, which can be found adorning the walls and domes of mosques, the sides of minbars, and so on.[4]

Distinguishing motifs of Islamic architecture have always been ordered repetition, radiating structures, and rhythmic, metric patterns. In this respect, fractal geometry has been a key utility, especially for mosques and palaces. Other significant features employed as motifs include columns, piers and arches, organized and interwoven with alternating sequences of niches and colonnettes.[5] The role of domes in Islamic architecture has been considerable. Its usage spans centuries, first appearing in 691 with the construction of the Dome of the Rock mosque, and recurring even up until the 17th century with the Taj Mahal. And as late as the 19th century, Islamic domes had been incorporated into Western architecture.[6][7]

Ceramics

From between the eighth and eighteenth centuries, the use of glazed ceramics was prevalent in Islamic art, usually assuming the form of elaborate pottery.[8] Tin-opacified glazing was one of the earliest new technologies developed by the Islamic potters. The first Islamic opaque glazes can be found as blue-painted ware in Basra, dating to around the 8th century. Another significant contribution was the development of stonepaste ceramics, originating from 9th century Iraq.[9] Other centers for innovative ceramic pottery in the Islamic world included Fustat (from 975 to 1075), Damascus (from 1100 to around 1600) and Tabriz (from 1470 to 1550).[10]

Architecture

Interior view of the dome in the Selimiye Mosque, Edirne.

Perhaps the most important expression of Islamic art is architecture, particularly that of the mosque.[11] Through it the effect of varying cultures within Islamic civilization can be illustrated. The North African and Spanish Islamic architecture, for example, has Roman-Byzantine elements, as seen in the Alhambra palace at Granada, or in the Great Mosque of Cordoba. Persian-style mosques are characterized by their tapered brick pillars, large arcades, and arches supported each by several pillars. In South Asia, elements of Hindu architecture were employed, but were later superseded by Persian designs. The most numerous and largest of mosques exist in Turkey, which obtained influence from Byzantine, Persian and Syrian designs, although Turkish architects managed to implement their own style of cupola domes.[11]

Philosophy and literature

Main article: Islamic philosophy

One of the common definitions for "Islamic philosophy" is "the style of philosophy produced within the framework of Islamic culture."[12] Islamic philosophy, in this definition is neither necessarily concerned with religious issues, nor is exclusively produced by Muslims.[12] The Persian scholar Ibn Sina (Avicenna) (980-1037) had more than 450 books attributed to him. His writings were concerned with many subjects, most notably philosophy and medicine. His medical textbook was used as the standard text in European universities for centuries. His work on Aristotle was a key step in the transmission of learning from ancient Greeks to the Islamic world and the West. He often corrected the philosopher, encouraging a lively debate in the spirit of ijtihad. His thinking and that of his follower ibn Rushd (Averroes) was incorporated into Christian philosophy during the Middle Ages, notably by Thomas Aquinas.

Science and technology

Illustration of medieval Muslim surgical instruments from physician Abu'l Qasim al-Zahrawi's 11th century medical encyclopedia: Kitab al-Tasrif.
Main article: Islamic science

Muslim scientists made significant advances in mathematics and astronomy. They spread the concept of zero, known in ancient Indian mathematics. The mathematician Al-Khwarizmi, from whose name the word algorithm derives, contributed significantly to algebra (which is named after his book, kitab al-jabr).[13] Recent studies show that it is very likely that the Medieval Muslim artists were aware of advanced decagonal quasicrystal geometry (discovered half a millennium later in 1970s and 1980s in West) and used it in intricate decorative tilework in the architecture.[14] The astrolabe developed by the Greeks was used in the Islamic world and subsequently brought to Europe. In technology, the Muslim world adopted papermaking from China many centuries before it was known in the West. The knowledge of gunpowder was also transmitted from China via Islamic countries. Knowledge of chemical processes (alchemy) and distilling (alcohol) spread to Europe from the Muslim world. Advances were made in irrigation and farming, using technology such as the windmill. Crops such as almonds and citrus fruit were brought to Europe through al-Andalus, and sugar cultivation was gradually adopted by the Europeans.

Arab merchants dominated trade in the Indian Ocean until the arrival of the Portuguese in the sixteenth century. Hormuz was an important center for this trade. There was also a dense network of trade routes in the Mediterranean, along which Muslim countries traded with each other and with European powers such as Venice, Genoa and Catalonia. The Silk Road crossing Central Asia passed through Muslim states between China and Europe.

Muslim physicians contributed significantly to the field of medicine, including the subjects of anatomy and physiology: such as in the 15th century Persian work by Mansur ibn Muhammad ibn al-Faqih Ilyas entitled Tashrih al-badan ("Anatomy of the body") which contained comprehensive diagrams of the body's structural, nervous and circulatory systems; or in the work of the Egyptian physician Ibn al-Nafis, who proposed the theory of pulmonary circulation. Abu'l Qasim al-Zahrawi (also known as Abulcasis) contributed to the discipline of medical surgery with his Kitab al-Tasrif ("Book of Concessions"), a medical encyclopedia which was later translated to Latin and used in European and Muslim medical schools for centuries. Other medical advancements came in the fields of pharmacology and pharmacy.[15]

Modern Muslim world

Geographic spread

Many Muslims not only live in, but also have an official status in the following regions:

The countries of Southwest Asia, and many in Northern Africa are considered part of the Middle East.

Also worthy of mention are provinces of Kosovo in the former Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

In Chechnya, Dagestan, Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachay-Cherkessia, Ingushetia, Tatarstan, Bashkiria in Russia, Muslims are in the majority.

Muslims are majority in Xinjiang, Ningxia and Qinghai provinces of People's Republic of China.

Some definitions would also include the sizable Muslim minorities in:

Demographics

Main article: Islam by country
Main article: Demographics of Islam

One fifth of the world population share Islam as an ethical tradition. Muslims are the majority in 52 nations. They speak about 60 languages and come from diverse ethnic backgrounds. There are over 1.5 billion Muslims in total. See Islam by country and Demographics of Islam for more information.

Important organizations

The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) is an inter-governmental organization grouping fifty-seven States. These States decided to pool their resources together, combine their efforts and speak with one voice to safeguard the interest and ensure the progress and well-being of their peoples and those of other Muslims in the world over.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries includes many nations that are also in the Arab League.

A politically motivated oil embargo in 1974 (to support Egypt and Syria in their 1973 war against Israel after US secretly re-equipped Israel with armaments) had drastic economic and political consequences in the United States and Europe. Although such a move would have less impact today, it demonstrates the power of the Muslim World acting in concert, and the key role of religion and ethnicity in the politics of oil regions, with which the Muslim world intersects.

Main denominations of Islam

Main article: Divisions of Islam

The two main denominations of Islam are the Sunni and Shia sects. The difference between them is primarily in terms of how the life of the ummah ("faithful") should be governed, and the role of the imam.

The overwhelming majority of Muslims in the world, approximately 85%, are Sunni.

Shias make up the rest, about 15% of overall Muslim population. Among the countries with Shi'a majority of Muslim population are Iran (90%), Iraq (66%), Azerbaijan (80%), Bahrain (70%), and Lebanon (35%).

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 10% Sunni and the rest Shi'a.

Islam in law and ethics

In some nations, Muslim ethnic groups enjoy considerable autonomy.

In some places, Muslim implement a form of Islamic law, called shariah in Arabic. The Islamic law exists in many variations, but the main forms are the five (four Sunni and one Shia) schools of jurisprudence (fiqh):

All five are centuries old and many Muslim feel a new fiqh must be created for modern society. Islam has a method for doing this, al-urf and ijtihad are the words to describe this method, but they have not been used in a long time, and few people are trusted enough to use them to make new laws.

Muslim women often dress extremely modestly, sometimes by choice. Thus, in some countries an interpretation of the Islamic law requires women to cover either just legs, shoulders and head or the whole body apart from the face. In strictest forms, the face as well must be covered leaving just a mesh to see through. These rules for dressing are one of the things the cause tension between the Western World and the of Muslim, concerning particularly Muslim living in western countries, since many in the Western World consider these restrictions both sexist and oppressive. Many Muslims deny this charge.

Islamic economics bans interest or Usury but in most Muslim countries Western banking is allowed.

Civil and political freedoms remain to be a source of controversy

Islam in modern politics

Many people in Islamic countries also see Islam manifested politically as Islamism. Political Islam is powerful in all Muslim-majority countries. Islamic parties in Turkey, Pakistan and Algeria have taken power. Many in these movements call themselves Islamists, which also sometimes describes more militant Islamic groups. The relationships between these groups and theirIn democratic countries there is usually at least one Islamic party views of democracy are complex.

Some of these groups are accused of practicing terrorism. Countries considered hub of terrorism are Bangladesh, Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Somalia. According to US President George W. Bush, they all have a single common agenda:

"The militants believe that controlling one country will rally the Muslim masses, enabling them to overthrow all moderate governments in the region, and establish a radical Islamic empire that spans from Spain to Indonesia," Bush asserted in an October 2005 speech [1].

There are a few democracies with a majority Muslim population. Turkey and Albania are two examples. The Quran calls for democracy, but most Islamic nations are non-democratic.

Conflicts with Israel

Israel is very unpopular in the Muslim world, due to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Some Muslims see this as a struggle against Zionism. In Morocco the Islamic party invited Jews to join the party.[citation needed] Prior to the Iranian Revolution, Iran and Israel maintained a strong political friendship (see Iran-Israel relations), however today the Iranian government is very anti-Israeli. Egypt and Jordan have established diplomatic relations and signed peace treaties with Israel, an act opposed[citation needed] by the Palestinian Authority and many Egyptians themselves.

Nuclear capabilities

The United States government responded to Pakistan's testing of nuclear weapons in 1998 with sanctions. Following the Gulf War, the United Nations put in place decade-long sanctions against the Government of Iraq with the stated purpose of preventing the government from developing weapons of mass destruction. The 2003 Invasion of Iraq was partly based on the idea that Iraq had developed, or was in the process of developing, weapons of mass destruction. See also: Nuclear program of Iran

Recent history

1979 was a critical year in the Muslim world's relationship with the rest of the world. In that year, Egypt made peace with Israel, the government of Iran was overthrown in the Iranian Revolution, and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan began.

Some of the events pivotal in the Muslim world's relationship with the outside world in the post-Soviet era were:

The U.S.-led War on Terrorism has been criticized as a War on Islam by Hizb ut-Tahrir and other Islamist organizations.

Political currents

In Pakistan, a prominent U.S. ally, Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal - an Islamic political party - won local elections in two out of four of the country's provinces and became in mid-2003 the third largest party in the national parliament, their strongest showing up to that point. They had support from from urban areas for the first time. See also: Politics of Pakistan

In Kuwait elections in July 2003 returned Islamic traditionalists and supporters of the royal family, while liberals suffered a severe defeat. See also: Elections in Kuwait

In Indonesia, the growth of various groups allied to those considered responsible for the Bali Bombing most of which have previously been invisible, has been marked.[citation needed]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Ettinghausen (2003), p.3
  2. ^ "Islamic Art and Architecture", The Columbia Encyclopedia (2000)
  3. ^ "Muslim Iconoclasm". Encyclopedia of the Orient. Retrieved 2007-02-23.
  4. ^ a b Madden (1975), pp.423-430
  5. ^ Tonna (1990), pp.182-197
  6. ^ Grabar, O. (2006) p.87
  7. ^ Ettinghausen (2003), p.87
  8. ^ Mason (1995) p.1
  9. ^ Mason (1995) p.5
  10. ^ Mason (1995) p.7
  11. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference B-I was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ a b "Islamic Philosophy", Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy (1998)
  13. ^ Ron Eglash(1999), p.61
  14. ^ Peter J. Lu, Harvard's Office of News and Public Affairs
  15. ^ Turner, H. (1997) pp. 136—138
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