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Islamic World

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World percentage of Muslims by country

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Muslim-majority countries, states, districts, or towns

The terms "Islamic world" and "Muslim world" are often thrown around with a casual disregard for nuance, typically referring to the vast Islamic community, often known as the Ummah. This collective theoretically encompasses all individuals who subscribe to the religious tenets, politics, and legal framework of Islam, or simply reside within societies where Islam is a dominant force. In a more contemporary, geopolitical context, these labels are generally applied to countries where Islam is widespread. However, the precise criteria for inclusion remain stubbornly undefined, leading to a perpetual state of ambiguity. Perhaps it's just easier to say "Muslim-majority countries," which, to no one's surprise, is the preferred alternative for those seeking a modicum of clarity.

The convoluted history of the Muslim world stretches back approximately 1,400 years, a period punctuated by a bewildering array of socio-political evolutions, alongside undeniable leaps in the arts, science, medicine, philosophy, law, economics, and technology that collectively defined the so-called Islamic Golden Age. Muslims historically seek direction from the Quran and uphold the prophetic mission of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Yet, despite this shared foundation, disagreements on countless other matters have inevitably spawned a diverse landscape of religious schools of thought and sects within Islam. The initial Islamic conquests, which saw the Caliphate extend its reach across three continents—Asia, Africa, and Europe—undoubtedly laid the economic groundwork for the flourishing of these institutions, a testament to the inherent emphasis placed on Islamic teachings. Fast forward to the modern era, and a significant portion of the Muslim world found itself under the heavy hand of European colonial domination. The subsequent emergence of independent nation-states in the post-colonial period has resulted in a fascinating, if chaotic, tapestry of political and economic models, all grappling with the enduring tension between secular and religious influences. It seems humanity can't quite make up its mind.

As of 2013, the combined GDP (nominal) of 50 Muslim-majority nations amounted to a respectable US5.7trillion.By2016,thisfigurerepresentedamodest85.7 trillion. By 2016, this figure represented a modest 8% of the world's total economic output. However, by 2020, the [Economy of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation](/Economy_of_the_Organisation_of_Islamic_Cooperation) (OIC), encompassing 57 member states, boasted a combined GDP (PPP) of US24 trillion, a figure roughly equivalent to 18% of the global GDP. Should one include the 5 OIC observer states, this figure rises to an impressive US$30 trillion, or about 22% of the world's GDP. It's worth noting, of course, that some OIC member countries – such as Ivory Coast, Guyana, Gabon, Mozambique, Nigeria, Suriname, Togo, and Uganda – do not, in fact, maintain a Muslim majority within their populations. A minor detail, perhaps, but one that complicates any neat categorization.

In 2020, a staggering 1.8 billion individuals, representing over 25% of the global population, identified as Muslims. Geographically, this demographic is concentrated, with 91% residing in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, 89% in Central Asia, 40% in Southeast Asia, 31% in South Asia, and 30% in Sub-Saharan Africa. Looking at the broader continental picture, 25% of all Asians are Muslim, while only 1.4% of Oceania's population, 6% of Europe's, and a mere 1% of the Americas' population identify as such.

The vast majority of Muslims belong to one of two primary denominations: Sunni Islam (comprising a dominant 87–90%) and Shia Islam (making up the remaining 10–13%). However, the landscape is not entirely binary; other denominations persist in smaller pockets, such as Ibadi Islam, primarily concentrated in Oman. Those Muslims who do not affiliate with, self-identify with, or can't be neatly categorized under one of the established Islamic schools and branches are often referred to as non-denominational Muslims. A significant 13% of Muslims reside in Indonesia, which holds the title of the largest Muslim-majority country. However, South Asia is home to the largest total population of Muslims globally, accounting for 31% of the world's Muslim faithful. The Middle East–North Africa region, where Islam is the unequivocally dominant religion, hosts 20% of the global Muslim population, while 15% are found in Sub-Saharan Africa and West Africa, with a notable concentration in Nigeria. Muslims constitute an overwhelming majority in Central Asia, comprise roughly half of the Caucasus's population, and are widely distributed throughout Southeast Asia. India, remarkably, boasts the largest Muslim population outside of any Muslim-majority country. Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran, and Egypt follow, holding the world’s second, fourth, sixth, and seventh largest Muslim populations, respectively. Substantial Muslim communities are also present in the Americas, Russia, India, China, and Europe. Islam is currently recognized as the fastest-growing major religion globally, a phenomenon partly attributable to its comparatively high birth rate. Curiously, studies suggest that religious switching has a negligible impact on the overall Muslim population, as the number of individuals who embrace Islam and those who leave Islam tend to be roughly balanced. China, despite its often-strained relationship with religious minorities, possesses the third-largest Muslim population outside of Muslim-majority states, while Russia holds the fifth-largest. Within Africa, Nigeria claims the largest Muslim population, and Indonesia, as previously noted, leads Asia in this regard.

Terminology

The term "Islamic world" has a documented history stretching back to at least 1912, when it was used to encapsulate the perceived influence of Pan-Islamist propaganda. The Times, in a rather dramatic assessment, described Pan-Islamism as a movement imbued with power, importance, and a surprising cohesion, ostensibly born in Paris where a cosmopolitan mix of Turks, Arabs, and Persians converged. The correspondent's primary focus, however, was on India, bemoaning that it would "take too long to consider the progress made in various parts of the Muslim world." The article then proceeded to scrutinize the position of the Amir, the ripples caused by the Tripoli Campaign, Anglo-Russian diplomatic maneuvers in Persia, and the ever-present "Afghan Ambitions." A truly global affair, it seems.

In its modern geopolitical iteration, the terms 'Muslim world' and 'Islamic world' are generally applied to countries where Islam is widespread. However, the precise criteria for their application remain frustratingly undefined. Some scholars and commentators, with a commendable commitment to complexity, have rightly criticized the simplistic, almost "binary" nature of labels like 'Muslim/Islamic world' and their derivatives, 'Muslim/Islamic country'. After all, no state is a religiously homogeneous monolith (consider Egypt, where approximately 10% of its citizens are Christians). Furthermore, in sheer absolute numbers, it's not uncommon to find fewer Muslims residing in countries where they constitute a majority than in nations where they form a substantial minority. Moreover, the very notion of a uniform "Muslim world" is, to put it mildly, largely imagined. This concept, which gained traction in popular discourse during the nineteenth century, was initially weaponized by imperialists to underscore perceived civilizational disparities between the "East" and "West." Ironically, in a defiant counter-response to colonization, some Muslims later adopted the term themselves, attempting to forge a unified front against Western imperialism. Given these layers of historical baggage and inherent oversimplification, the term 'Muslim-majority countries' is often seen as a more accurate, if less evocative, descriptor in academic literature.

History

For a chronological guide, see Timeline of the history of Islam. See also: History of the Middle East

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The Tabula Rogeriana, drawn by Al-Idrisi of Sicily in 1154, one of the most advanced ancient world maps. Al-Idrisi also wrote about the diverse Muslim communities found in various lands. Note: the map is here shown upside-down from the original to match current North/Up, South/Down map design

The history of the Islamic faith, both as a spiritual conviction and a burgeoning social institution, begins its intricate tapestry around 610 CE. It was then that the Islamic prophet Muhammad, a native of Mecca, is believed by adherents to have received the first revelation of the Quran, initiating his mission to preach this new message. Facing considerable opposition within Mecca, he and his nascent community of followers undertook a pivotal migration in 622 CE to Yathrib, a settlement later known as Medina. Here, Muhammad was invited to establish a new constitution for the city, effectively assuming its leadership. This momentous migration, forever etched into history as the Hijra, marks the inaugural year of the Islamic calendar. By the time of his passing, Muhammad had solidified his position as the preeminent political and spiritual authority not only in Medina and Mecca but also across the surrounding region and among numerous other tribes of Arabia.

Following Muhammad's death in 632, his chosen successors, known as the Caliphs, continued to guide the Muslim community, drawing sustenance from his teachings and the divine directives of the Quran. The majority of Muslims reverently consider the initial four successors – Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali – to be 'rightly guided', hence their collective designation as the Rashidun. The swift and expansive conquests orchestrated by the Rashidun Caliphate were instrumental in propelling the spread of Islam far beyond the confines of the Arabian Peninsula. This burgeoning empire stretched from the northwestern reaches of India, swept across Central Asia, enveloped the Near East, consumed North Africa, touched southern Italy, and eventually extended its dominion over the Iberian Peninsula, reaching as far as the Pyrenees. However, the Arab Muslims encountered an insurmountable obstacle in their attempts to fully subjugate the formidable Christian Byzantine Empire in Asia Minor during the protracted Arab–Byzantine wars. The subsequent Umayyad Caliphate made two determined, yet ultimately failed, attempts to besiege Constantinople in 674–678 and 717–718. Meanwhile, the internal cohesion of the Muslim community itself began to fray, tearing itself apart into the rival Sunni and Shia sects following the politically charged killing of caliph Uthman in 656. This tragic event ignited a bitter succession crisis, a schism that, to this day, remains unresolved. The ensuing periods of internal strife, famously known as the First, Second, and Third Fitnas, culminating in the Abbasid Revolution (746–750), irrevocably shattered the political unity of the Muslims, leading to the proliferation of multiple, often competing, states that would define their geopolitical landscape for centuries to come.

The Ghaznavids' rule in the Indian subcontinent eventually gave way to the ascendancy of the Ghurid Empire, under the leadership of Muhammad of Ghor and Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad. Their influence, notably through the campaigns led by Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji, extended into Bengal, a region where South Asian Islamic missionaries achieved unparalleled success in their efforts of dawah and conversion to Islam. This period saw a significant demographic shift in the region. In 1206, Qutb ud-Din Aibak successfully conquered Delhi, marking the inception of the Delhi Sultanate. This successive series of dynasties proved remarkably adept at synthesizing elements of Indian civilization with the broader commercial and cultural networks spanning Africa and Eurasia. Their reign ushered in a period of considerable demographic and economic growth across India, effectively deterred Mongol incursions into the fertile Indo-Gangetic Plain, and even saw the enthronement of one of the few female Muslim rulers, Razia Sultana.

Throughout history, a succession of powerful empires, predominantly Muslim, left an indelible mark on the global stage. These included the Abbasids, Fatimids, Almoravids, the Gao Empire, the Seljukids, and the Songhai Empire (15th-16th centuries), which, as one of the largest contiguous empires of its time, dominated the Sahel, West Africa, southern North Africa, and western Central Africa. This empire was particularly notable for its control over vital centers of Islamic knowledge such as Timbuktu, Djenne, Oualata, and Gao. Further south, the Ajuran Sultanate, Adal Sultanate, and Warsangali in Somalia also rose to prominence. In the Indian subcontinent, the Mughal Empire (encompassing present-day India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, etc.) exerted immense influence. The Safavids held sway in Persia, while the Ottomans dominated Anatolia and beyond. Other significant West African powers included the Massina Empire, the Sokoto Caliphate in northern Nigeria, and the Toucouleur Empire. These empires collectively represented some of the most influential and distinguished powers of their respective eras. The 19th-century wave of colonialism, followed by the 20th-century process of decolonization, ultimately reshaped the global map, giving rise to numerous independent Muslim-majority states. These new nations adopted wildly divergent approaches to the role of Islam within their governance, with attitudes ranging from fervent religious adherence to staunch secularism. This ongoing ideological negotiation revolved around the fundamental question of Islam's compatibility with other powerful concepts such as secularism, nationalism (particularly Arab nationalism and Pan-Arabism, often in opposition to Pan-Islamism), socialism (manifesting in forms like Arab socialism and socialism in Iran), democracy, republicanism (leading to the creation of Islamic republics), liberalism and progressivism, feminism, and capitalism, among others.

Gunpowder empires

The term "Age of the Islamic Gunpowders" is frequently employed by scholars to delineate a specific, transformative period dominated by the Safavid, Ottoman, and Mughal states. These three formidable empires shared a common, and indeed defining, characteristic: their exceptional military prowess, which was largely attributable to their innovative and effective utilization of newly developed firearms. Specifically, the strategic deployment of advanced cannon and versatile small arms allowed them to establish and expand their vast dominions with unprecedented efficiency. This era of powerful, gunpowder-fueled empires primarily spanned from the fourteenth to the late seventeenth centuries, fundamentally altering the geopolitical landscape of their respective regions. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Indian subcontinent, under the rule of the Mughal Empire's sixth emperor, Aurangzeb, saw a period where governance was guided by Sharia law and Islamic economics. This economic framework, combined with effective administration, propelled India to become the world's largest economy, remarkably accounting for an estimated 25% of global GDP during this time.

Great Divergence

The "Great Divergence" stands as a stark historical inflection point, a period that saw European colonial powers systematically and militarily overpower established Oriental powers. This shift began with wealthy polities such as the Bengal Subah within the Mughal Empire and Tipu Sultan's formidable Kingdom of Mysore, extended to the enduring Ottoman Empire, and encompassed numerous smaller states scattered across the pre-modern Greater Middle East. This decisive military superiority heralded the onset of the era known as 'colonialism'. As the astute Ibrahim Muteferrika observed in his Rational basis for the Politics of Nations (1731), the reason for the Christian nations' newfound dominance, despite their historical weakness relative to Muslim nations, was quite simple: "Because they have laws and rules invented by reason." A rather inconvenient truth, if you ask me.

Colonialism

Map of colonial powers throughout the world in the year 1914 (note colonial powers in the pre-modern Muslim world).

Beginning in the 15th century, the relentless expansion of colonialism by European powers had a profoundly disruptive and transformative impact on Muslim-majority societies across Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. This colonial encroachment was frequently propelled by intense conflicts intertwined with the mercantile ambitions of the European powers, unleashing tremendous social upheavals within Muslim-dominated societies. The reactions to this Western intrusion were varied, and predictably, quite human. Some Muslim-majority societies responded with a fervent zealotry, directly contributing to the rise of Pan-Islamism. Others opted to reaffirm more traditionalist and inclusive cultural ideals, seeking strength in established practices. In rare instances, some societies even embraced the modernity that, ironically, was ushered in by the very colonial powers they resisted.

It's a curious footnote of history that the only Muslim-majority regions to largely escape direct European colonization were Saudi Arabia, Iran, Turkey, and Afghanistan. Though, one might argue that Turkey, through the vast reach of the Ottoman Empire which ruled diverse states for over six centuries, was itself one of the world's earliest and most enduring colonial powers. History, as it often does, presents a rather cyclical narrative.

Postcolonial era

The 20th century witnessed the inexorable decline of European colonial domination, giving way to the formation of numerous independent nation-states, many of which harbored significant Muslim populations. These emerging states, in their efforts to forge new identities and systems, drew upon Islamic traditions to varying degrees and in diverse ways, shaping their legal, educational, and economic frameworks. As early as 1912, The Times had already begun to document the emergence of the "Muslim world" as a distinct concept, particularly when describing Pan-Islamism. They characterized it as a movement possessing considerable power, importance, and an unexpected cohesion, apparently having its genesis in Paris, a city where Turks, Arabs, and Persians found common ground. The article, ever the keen observer, delved into the political standing of the Amir, the far-reaching consequences of the Tripoli Campaign, the intricate web of Anglo-Russian actions in Persia, and the persistent "Afghan Ambitions."

A particularly seismic shift within the Muslim world was the dramatic defeat and subsequent dissolution of the Ottoman Empire between 1908 and 1922. A pivotal figure in this epochal transformation was the Ottoman officer and visionary Turkish revolutionary statesman, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. He played an instrumental role in bringing about the empire's end and replacing it with the Republic of Turkey, a modern, secular democracy. This radical overhaul included the abolition of the Ottoman sultanate and, crucially, the formal separation of religion from the state with the abolition of the Caliphate in 1924. The secular values championed by Kemalism in Turkey have, perhaps inevitably, often been interpreted as a direct consequence of Western influence.

Moving into the 21st century, the tragic September 11 attacks in 2001, orchestrated by the Wahhabi Islamist terrorist group Al-Qaeda against the United States, prompted scholars to re-evaluate how Muslim experiences were understood through the lens of secular Enlightenment principles. Muhammad Atta, one of the infamous 11 September hijackers, was reportedly heard quoting from the Quran to quell his fears: "Fight them, and God will chastise them at your hands/And degrade them, and He will help you/Against them, and bring healing to the breasts of a people who believe." This invocation, referencing the ummah (the community of Muslim believers) and drawing upon the potent imagery of early Islamic warriors who guided the faithful out of the darkness of jahiliyyah, underscored a profound ideological chasm.

For figures like Sayyid Qutb, a towering ideologue of modern Islamism, Islam itself represented "a complete divorce from jahiliyyah." He famously lamented that American churches functioned as social hubs, "very hard [to] distinguish from places of fun and amusement," viewing Western society as the epitome of modern jahiliyyah. Qutb envisioned a "Muslim world" and its "social order" as a beacon, which, when presented to the West as the authentic outcome of Islamic teachings, would impress "by the beauty and charm of true Islamic ideology." He vociferously argued that the values of the Enlightenment and its scientific precursor, the Scientific Revolution, fundamentally "denies or suspends God's sovereignty on earth." Consequently, he advocated for strengthening "Islamic character" as an essential step "to abolish the negative influences of jahili life." A clear call to ideological arms, if ever there was one.

Islam by country

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As the Muslim world inevitably collided with secular ideals, societies responded with a predictable spectrum of reactions. Some Muslim-majority countries have, against some expectations, firmly embraced secularism. Azerbaijan, for instance, holds the distinction of becoming the first secular republic in the Muslim world, albeit briefly, between 1918 and 1920, before its absorption into the Soviet Union. Turkey has, famously, been governed as a secular state since the sweeping reforms initiated by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Conversely, the 1979 Iranian Revolution dramatically overturned a monarchical, semi-secular regime, replacing it with an Islamic republic under the uncompromising leadership of the Ayatollah, Ruhollah Khomeini. A stark reminder that history rarely moves in a straight line.

Many countries, while not fully embracing an Islamic state model, have nevertheless declared Islam as their official state religion. In these nations, the legal framework often retains a largely secular character, with Sharia law typically confined to matters of personal status, such as inheritance and marriage. The implementation of Islamic law, or sharia in Arabic, itself manifests in a variety of forms, guided by different schools of jurisprudence. The Amman Message, a significant declaration endorsed in 2005 by prominent Islamic scholars worldwide, formally recognized four Sunni schools (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali), two Shia schools (Ja'fari, Zaidi), the Ibadi school, and the Zahiri school. This acknowledgment highlights the inherent diversity within Islamic legal thought, a complexity often overlooked by outsiders.

Government and religion (50)

Islamic states (8)

Eight Islamic states have, with varying degrees of success and interpretation, adopted Islam as the fundamental ideological bedrock of their state and constitutional framework. A clear commitment, one might say.

State religion (17)

The following seventeen Muslim-majority states have formally designated Islam as their state religion. While they generally guarantee some measure of religious freedom for their citizens, they conspicuously refrain from declaring a complete separation of state and religion. A delicate balance, or perhaps just a convenient ambiguity.

Secular states (25)

Twenty-five secular states within what is broadly defined as the Muslim world have, with varying degrees of conviction and implementation, declared a formal separation between civil/government affairs and religious institutions. A bold, if often contentious, choice.

Muslim-minority states (8)

According to the Pew Research Center's 2015 findings, there were 50 countries officially designated as Muslim-majority nations, as enumerated in the preceding section on Government and religion. Beyond these, however, a curious demographic phenomenon exists: several countries where Muslims constitute a minority population nonetheless harbor Muslim communities that are, in fact, numerically larger than the entire populations of many Muslim-majority nations. A fascinating testament to the sheer scale of global populations, and the often misleading nature of percentages.

  • India: 200 million Muslims (14.6%)
  • Ethiopia: 34.7 million Muslims (31.3%)
  • China: 25–40 million Muslims (2–3%)
  • Tanzania: 19.4 million Muslims (35.2%)
  • Russia: 14–20 million Muslims (10–14%)
  • Ivory Coast: 12 million Muslims (42%)
  • DR Congo: 10 million Muslims (15%)
  • Philippines: 8–9 million Muslims (9–10%)

Politics

Benazir Bhutto, the former prime minister of Pakistan became the first woman elected to lead a Muslim-majority country.

Throughout much of the 20th century, the prominence of Islamic identity and the sway of Islam over political discourse arguably waxed and waned. However, in the early 21st century, these aspects have seen a notable resurgence. The ever-increasing interest of the Western world in Islamic regions, the proliferation of international conflicts, and the relentless march of globalization have collectively reshaped the influence of Islam on the global stage in contemporary history. It seems the world can't quite decide if it wants to leave religion behind or drag it back into the spotlight.

Islamism

These paragraphs are an excerpt from Islamism.

Islamism encompasses a broad spectrum of religious and political ideological movements, all fundamentally united by the conviction that Islam ought to exert a profound influence over political systems. Its proponents are steadfast in their belief that Islam is inherently political, and moreover, that Islam, as a comprehensive political system, offers a superior alternative to communism, liberal democracy, capitalism, and other competing ideologies in its capacity to foster a just and flourishing society. The advocates of Islamism, often referred to as "al-Islamiyyun," are typically affiliated with established Islamic institutions or engage in robust social mobilization movements. Their core tenets emphasize the rigorous implementation of Sharia law, the pursuit of pan-Islamic political unity, and the ultimate creation of dedicated Islamic states.

In its original conceptualization, Islamism articulated an ideology aimed at revitalizing Islam to reclaim its historical assertiveness and glory. This involved a process of purifying the faith of perceived foreign elements and reasserting its integral role in "social and political as well as personal life." Crucially, it called for "reordering government and society in accordance with laws prescribed by Islam" (i.e., Sharia). According to at least one observer, author Robin Wright, Islamist movements have "arguably altered the Middle East more than any trend since the modern states gained independence," effectively redefining "politics and even borders." Another solitary author, Graham E. Fuller, has posited a broader understanding of Islamism as a form of identity politics, encompassing "support for [Muslim] identity, authenticity, broader regionalism, revivalism, [and] revitalization of the community." A rather expansive definition, one might say.

Central and undeniably prominent figures in 20th-century Islamism include Rashid Rida, Hassan al-Banna (the founder of the influential Muslim Brotherhood), Sayyid Qutb, Abul A'la Maududi, Ruhollah Khomeini (the architect of the Islamic Republic of Iran), and Hassan Al-Turabi. The Syrian Sunni cleric Muhammad Rashid Riḍā, a fervent opponent of Westernization, Zionism, and nationalism, passionately advocated for Sunni internationalism through the revolutionary restoration of a pan-Islamic Caliphate to politically unite the fragmented Muslim world. Riḍā was a staunch proponent of Islamic vanguardism, a conviction that the Muslim community required guidance from a clerical elite (ulema) who would steer efforts in religious education and Islamic revival. Riḍā's distinctive Salafi-Arabist synthesis and Islamist ideals profoundly influenced his disciples, notably Hasan al-Banna, an Egyptian schoolteacher who went on to establish the Muslim Brotherhood movement, and Hajji Amin al-Husayni, the ardently anti-Zionist Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. Both Al-Banna and Maududi championed a "reformist" strategy, advocating for the re-Islamization of society through dedicated grassroots social and political activism. Other Islamists, such as Al-Turabi, favored a more "revolutionary" approach, seeking to Islamize society through the direct exercise of state power. Meanwhile, Sayyid Qutb envisioned a synthesis of grassroots Islamization with armed revolution. The term "Islamism" itself has been applied to a wide array of entities, encompassing non-state reform movements, political parties, militias, and even revolutionary groups.

Islamists themselves, quite understandably, tend to prefer terms like "Islamic movement" or "Islamic activism" over "Islamism," often bristling at the implication that Islamism is anything other than a natural, renewed, and revived expression of Islam itself. In public and academic discourse, the term "Islamism" has, perhaps inevitably, acquired connotations of violence, extremism, and human rights violations, largely due to its portrayal in Western mass media. This, in turn, has unfortunately contributed to the phenomenon of Islamophobia and the perpetuation of simplistic stereotypes.

Prominent Islamist groups and political parties across the globe include the formidable Muslim Brotherhood, Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party, the Palestinian organization Hamas, the Algerian Movement of Society for Peace, the Malaysian National Trust Party, Jamaat-e-Islami in both Bangladesh and Pakistan, and Bosnia's Party of Democratic Action. Following the turbulent period of the Arab Spring, many post-Islamist currents became deeply enmeshed in democratic political processes, attempting to navigate the complexities of pluralistic governance. Concurrently, other factions spawned "the most aggressive and ambitious Islamist militia" to date, namely the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). It's crucial to note, however, that ISIL's extreme ideology and brutal tactics have been overwhelmingly rejected as blasphemous by the vast majority of Islamists themselves.

Demographics

Currently, over 24.1% of the world's population identifies as Muslim, amounting to an estimated total of approximately 1.9 billion individuals. These Muslims are not a monolith; they constitute majorities in 49 countries, converse in hundreds of distinct languages, and hail from an incredibly diverse array of ethnic backgrounds. The sprawling metropolis of Karachi in Pakistan, for instance, holds the distinction of having the largest Muslim population of any city in the world. A truly global community, constantly shifting and growing.

Geography

Indonesia is currently the most populous Muslim-majority country.

Given the inherent ambiguities surrounding the terms 'Muslim world' and 'Islamic world' – primarily because no country is entirely homogeneously Muslim, and the threshold for a Muslim minority to be deemed 'significant' remains stubbornly undefined – there is, predictably, no universal consensus on how to precisely delineate the Muslim world geographically. The only widely accepted rule of thumb, offering a semblance of order, dictates that countries must possess a Muslim population exceeding 50% for inclusion. A rather arbitrary line in the sand, but one that persists.

In 2010, a significant 73% of the global Muslim population resided in countries where Muslims constituted the majority, while the remaining 27% lived as minorities. India's Muslim population, standing at 11% of the world's total Muslim faithful, represents the largest Muslim-minority population globally. Jones (2005) proposed defining a "large minority" as falling between 30% and 50% of a country's population. In 2000, this definition encompassed nine countries: Eritrea, Ethiopia, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, North Macedonia, and Tanzania. By 2024, however, Nigeria has notably transitioned into a Muslim-majority country, demonstrating the dynamic nature of these demographics.

Religion

Islam

The two principal denominations within Islam, the Sunni and Shia sects, diverge primarily on the fundamental question of how the life of the ummah (the collective community of the faithful) ought to be governed, and, crucially, the precise role and authority of the Imam. Sunnis steadfastly believe that the legitimate political successor to Muhammad, in accordance with the Sunnah, should be chosen through a process of Shura (consultation), much as occurred at the Saqifah where Abu Bakr, Muhammad's father-in-law, was selected. For Sunnis, Abu Bakr was Muhammad's political, but emphatically not his religious, successor. Shias, in stark contrast, maintain that Muhammad explicitly designated his son-in-law, Ali ibn Abi Talib, as his true successor, inheriting both political and religious authority. This foundational disagreement has, rather predictably, shaped centuries of Islamic history, theology, and political landscape.

The overwhelming majority of Muslims worldwide, approximately 87 to 90%, identify as Sunni. Shias and various other groups constitute the remainder, accounting for about 10–13% of the total global Muslim population. Countries with particularly high concentrations of Shia populations include: Iran (89%), Azerbaijan (65%), Iraq (60%), Bahrain (60%), Yemen (35%), Turkey (10%), Lebanon (27%), Syria (13%), Afghanistan (10%), Pakistan (10%), and India (10%).

Non-denominational Muslims actually form a majority of the Muslim population in seven countries (and a significant plurality in three others): Albania (65%), Kyrgyzstan (64%), Kosovo (58%), Indonesia (56%), Mali (55%), Bosnia and Herzegovina (54%), Uzbekistan (54%), Azerbaijan (45%), Russia (45%), and Nigeria (42%). These non-denominational communities are predominantly found in Central Asia. Kazakhstan, notably, boasts the largest number of non-denominational Muslims, who comprise approximately 74% of its entire population. Southeastern Europe also hosts a considerable number of non-denominational Muslims, suggesting a regional trend towards less rigid sectarian identification.

The lesser-known Kharijite Muslims maintain their own distinct stronghold in the country of Oman, where they account for a significant 75% of the population. A testament to the enduring diversity within the faith.

Islamic schools and branches

Islamic schools of law across the Muslim world

The nascent centuries of Islam, in a rather predictable human fashion, gave rise to three major sects: Sunnis, Shi'as, and Kharijites. Each of these foundational divisions, in turn, developed its own distinct jurisprudence schools (known as madhhab), reflecting divergent methodologies and interpretations of fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence). It seems unity is a fleeting concept, even in matters of faith.

The major Sunni madhhabs that emerged and persisted are the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali schools. These represent the dominant legal traditions within Sunni Islam, each with its own scholars, texts, and interpretative frameworks.

The major Shi'a branches, meanwhile, are broadly categorized into Twelver (Imami), Ismaili (Sevener), and Zaidi (Fiver) Shiism. Isma'ilism itself later underwent further fragmentation, splitting into the Nizari Ismaili and Musta’li Ismaili branches. The Musta’li line then further divided into Hafizi and Taiyabi Ismailis. This lineage also notably gave rise to the Qarmatian movement and the enigmatic Druze faith, though the Druze, it must be noted, generally do not self-identify as Muslims. Twelver Shiism, for its part, developed the Ja'fari jurisprudence, which itself has branches such as Akhbarism and Usulism, and has influenced other movements like the Alawites, Shaykism, and Alevism.

Similarly, the Kharijites, a group known for their early, strict interpretations, were initially divided into five major branches: Sufris, Azariqa, Najdat, Adjarites, and Ibadis.

Among this bewildering array of branches and sub-branches, only a select few have managed to endure the relentless march of time and theological debate. These include the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali Sunni schools; the Imamiyyah-Ja'fari-Usuli, Nizārī Ismā'īlī, Alevi, Zaydi, Ibadi, Zahiri, Alawite, Druze, and Taiyabi communities. Furthermore, the modern era has seen the independent emergence of entirely new schools of thought and movements, such as Quranist Muslims and Ahmadi Muslims, demonstrating that the evolution of religious interpretation is a perpetual process.

  • A Sufi dervish drums up the Friday afternoon crowd in Omdurman, Sudan

  • Druze dignitaries celebrating the Nabi Shu'ayb festival at the tomb of the prophet in Hittin

  • Ibadis living in the M'zab valley in Algerian Sahara

  • Zaydi Imams ruled in Yemen until 1962

  • Most of the inhabitants of the Hunza Valley in Pakistan are Ismaili Muslims

  • Children read Qur'an in Indonesia.

  • People pray together in the mosque in Russia.

  • People move close to the Muslim food corner in China.

  • People praying in the Prophet's Mosque (Medina, Saudi Arabia)

Other religions

It's often forgotten that many Muslim-majority countries are also home to sizeable non-Muslim minorities. These communities include, but are certainly not limited to, Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Baháʼís, Druzes, Yazidis, Mandaeans, Yarsanis, and Zoroastrians. A testament to the complex, often messy, historical tapestry of human coexistence.

Church and Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey.

The Muslim world, perhaps surprisingly to some, harbors some of the globe's most ancient Christian communities. It is also the geographical cradle for several of the most historically significant cities in the Christian world—including three of its five great patriarchates: Alexandria, Antioch, and Constantinople. Scholars and intellectuals widely concur that Christians have made significant contributions to Arab and Islamic civilization since the very inception of Islam. Their impact on the culture of the Middle East and North Africa and other regions has been, by all accounts, substantial. The Pew Research Center estimated in 2010 that over 64 million Christians resided in countries with Muslim majorities (excluding Nigeria). The Pew Forum's study further indicated that Indonesia (with 21.1 million) possesses the largest Christian population within the Muslim world, followed by Egypt, Chad, and Kazakhstan. Conversely, figures from Adly A. Youssef and Martyn Thomas in 2004 suggested a total of around 30 million Christians living in Muslim-majority countries, with Indonesia again leading in numbers, followed by Egypt. Nigeria, notably, presents a unique demographic split, being almost evenly divided between Muslims and Christians, with both communities numbering over 80 million individuals.

In 2018, the Jewish Agency calculated that approximately 27,000 Jews continued to reside in Arab and Muslim countries. Jewish communities have maintained a presence across the Middle East and North Africa since the very dawn of Islam. Today, however, the number of Jews living in Muslim countries has been reduced to a small fraction of their former sizes. The largest remaining communities of Jews in Muslim countries are currently found in the non-Arab nations of Iran (9,500) and Turkey (14,500); both, despite their relative size, are considerably smaller than their historical peaks. Among Arab countries, the largest Jewish community now exists in Palestine with approximately 250,000 Jews, followed by Morocco with about 2,000, and Tunisia with around 1,000. The global population of Druze is estimated to be between 800,000 and one million, with the vast majority concentrated in the Levant region, primarily in Syria and Lebanon.

The 2010 Pew Forum study also highlighted significant Hindu minorities in Bangladesh (13.5 million), Indonesia (4 million), Pakistan (3.3 million), and Malaysia (1.7 million). Malaysia (5 million) also boasts the largest Buddhist population within the Muslim world. Zoroastrians, for their part, represent the oldest continuously existing religious community in Iran. A truly diverse landscape, defying simplistic narratives.

  • Nigeria has the largest Christian population in the Muslim world

  • Palestine has the largest Jewish population in the Muslim world

  • Bangladesh has the largest Hindu population in the Muslim world

  • Malaysia has the largest Bhuddhist population in the Muslim world

Literacy and education

The state of literacy within the Muslim world, as one might expect from such a vast and diverse region, varies wildly. Azerbaijan, for instance, consistently ranks among the top nations globally in its Index of Literacy. Several other member states, including Iran, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan, boast impressive literacy rates exceeding 97%. Conversely, literacy rates plummet to their lowest in regions like Mali, Afghanistan, Chad, and other parts of Africa, highlighting stark disparities. Interestingly, several Muslim-majority countries, such as Turkey, Iran, and Egypt, also demonstrate a high rate of citable scientific publications, indicating a robust, if uneven, commitment to academic output.

In 2015, the International Islamic News Agency reported a rather sobering statistic: nearly 37% of the population of the Muslim world was unable to read or write. This figure was based on reports compiled by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. In Egypt, the most populous Muslim-majority Arab country, a curious trend emerges where the youth female literacy rate actually surpasses that of males. While lower literacy rates are more prevalent in South Asian countries like Afghanistan and Pakistan, these figures are, thankfully, rapidly improving. In the Eastern Middle East, Iran maintains a high level of youth literacy at 98%. However, Iraq's youth literacy rate has seen a sharp and unfortunate decline, plummeting from 85% to 57% during the American-led war and subsequent occupation. Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim-majority country, stands out with an impressive 99% youth literacy rate.

A 2011 Pew Research Center study revealed that, at the time, approximately 36% of all Muslims had received no formal schooling whatsoever, with only a scant 8% possessing graduate and post-graduate degrees. The highest average years of schooling among Muslim-majority countries were found in Uzbekistan (11.5 years), Kuwait (11.0 years), and Kazakhstan (10.7 years). Overall, the average years of schooling in countries where Muslims constitute the majority stood at 6.0 years, noticeably lagging behind the global average of 7.7 years. For the youngest age group surveyed (25–34), young Muslims exhibited the lowest average levels of education among any major religious group, with an average of 6.7 years of schooling, again falling behind the global average of 8.6 years. The study also highlighted a significant degree of gender inequality in educational attainment within Muslim communities, with Muslim women averaging 4.9 years of schooling compared to 6.4 years for Muslim men. A stark reminder that progress is rarely uniformly distributed.

Refugees

Muslim Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.

According to the UNHCR, by the close of 2010, Muslim-majority countries collectively hosted a staggering 18 million refugees. A rather stark testament to ongoing global instability.

Since then, Muslim-majority nations have continued to absorb refugees displaced by recent conflicts, most notably the devastating uprising in Syria. By July 2013, the UN reported that the number of Syrian refugees had tragically surpassed 1.8 million, a figure that has only grown since. In Asia, a particularly acute crisis saw an estimated 625,000 refugees from Rakhine, Myanmar, predominantly Muslim Rohingya, cross the border into Bangladesh since August 2017. The human cost, it seems, remains consistently high.

Culture

Throughout the relentless march of history, Muslim cultures have, perhaps predictably, exhibited an astonishing diversity across ethnic, linguistic, and regional lines. According to M. M. Knight, this inherent diversity extends deeply into beliefs, interpretations, and practices, encompassing a vast array of communities and interests. Knight observes that the perception of the Muslim world among non-Muslims is often shaped by introductory literature about Islam, which tends to present a sanitized, scriptural view. This often includes prescriptive texts and abstract historical narratives, filtered through the authors' own perspectives. While many Muslims might concur with such portrayals, Knight argues that they rarely, if ever, accurately reflect Islam as it is genuinely lived "on the ground," within the complex, messy realities of "real human bodies." It seems the gap between ideal and reality is a universal constant.

Classical culture

The term "Islamic Golden Age" has, perhaps somewhat romantically, been ascribed to a particular period in history. During this era, science, economic development, and cultural works flourished across much of the Muslim-dominated world. This age is traditionally understood to have commenced during the reign of the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid (786–809), marked by the inauguration of the legendary House of Wisdom in Baghdad. Here, scholars from diverse corners of the known world converged, driven by an insatiable thirst for knowledge, seeking to translate and meticulously gather all available wisdom into Arabic. The Golden Age is generally considered to have concluded with the calamitous collapse of the Abbasid caliphate, triggered by the relentless Mongol invasions and the devastating Siege of Baghdad in 1258. The Abbasids, it is said, were profoundly influenced by Quranic injunctions and Hadiths that stressed the paramount value of knowledge, such as the famous dictum: "the ink of a scholar is more holy than the blood of a martyr." During this vibrant period, the major Islamic capital cities—Baghdad, Cairo, and Córdoba—transformed into preeminent intellectual centers for science, philosophy, medicine, and education. The Muslim world of this era was not a homogenous entity but rather a dynamic confluence of cultures. It skillfully absorbed, synthesized, and significantly advanced the accumulated knowledge from the ancient Greek, Roman, Persian, Chinese, Vedic, Egyptian, and Phoenician civilizations, creating a truly global intellectual melting pot.

Ceramics

A Seljuq, shatranj (chess) set, glazed fritware, 12th century.

Between the 8th and 18th centuries, the application of ceramic glaze became a pervasive and distinctive feature in Islamic art, typically manifesting in the form of exquisitely elaborate pottery. Tin-opacified glazing stands out as one of the earliest and most significant technological innovations pioneered by Islamic potters. The earliest examples of these opaque Islamic glazes, often adorned with intricate blue-painted designs, can be traced back to Basra around the 8th century. Another notable contribution was the development of fritware, a composite ceramic body, which originated in 9th-century Iraq. Other pivotal centers of innovative ceramic pottery in the Old World included Fustat (flourishing from 975 to 1075), Damascus (active from 1100 to approximately 1600), and Tabriz (from 1470 to 1550). These hubs of artistic and technological advancement left an enduring legacy on global ceramic traditions.

Literature

The most widely recognized work of fiction to emerge from the Islamic world is undoubtedly One Thousand and One Nights, a sprawling compilation of captivating folk tales drawn from Sanskrit, Persian, and later Arabian fables. The very concept of this collection was influenced by a pre-Islamic Persian prototype, Hezār Afsān (Thousand Fables), which itself incorporated distinct Indian elements. This epic reached its definitive form by the 14th century, though the precise number and type of tales varied considerably across different manuscripts. Its influence in the West has been immense ever since its initial translation in the 18th century, notably by Antoine Galland. This translation sparked a wave of imitations, particularly in France. Various characters from this enduring epic have themselves transcended their origins to become indelible cultural icons within Western culture, including the likes of Aladdin, Sinbad the Sailor, and Ali Baba.

An exquisite example of Arabic poetry and Persian poetry focusing on the theme of romance is the timeless narrative of Layla and Majnun, a story that dates back to the Umayyad era in the 7th century. It is a profoundly tragic tale of undying, almost obsessive, love. Ferdowsi's monumental Shahnameh, the national epic of Greater Iran, offers a mythical and heroic retelling of Persian history, weaving together legends and historical events. Amir Arsalan was another immensely popular mythical Persian story, captivating audiences with its heroic exploits.

Figures such as Ibn Tufayl (Abubacer) and Ibn al-Nafis are rightly recognized as pioneers of the philosophical novel. Ibn Tufail penned the first Arabic novel, Hayy ibn Yaqdhan (also known as Philosophus Autodidactus), ostensibly as a response to Al-Ghazali's influential work, The Incoherence of the Philosophers. Subsequently, Ibn al-Nafis followed suit with his own novel, Theologus Autodidactus, which served as a response to Ibn Tufail's Philosophus Autodidactus. Both of these groundbreaking narratives featured protagonists (Hayy in Philosophus Autodidactus and Kamil in Theologus Autodidactus) who were autodidactic feral children, living in profound seclusion on a desert island. These works are consequently regarded as the earliest known examples of the "desert island story" subgenre. However, while Hayy largely remains in isolation on his desert island throughout Philosophus Autodidactus, the narrative of Kamil in Theologus Autodidactus expands far beyond its initial island setting, evolving into what is considered the earliest known coming-of-age plot and, remarkably, the first example of a science fiction novel.

Theologus Autodidactus, written by the brilliant Arabian polymath Ibn al-Nafis (1213–1288), boldly grappled with various science fiction elements. These included speculative concepts such as spontaneous generation, futurology, the dramatic end of the world and doomsday, the profound mystery of resurrection, and the enigmatic nature of the afterlife. Rather than resorting to supernatural or mythological explanations for these phenomena, Ibn al-Nafis made a pioneering attempt to elucidate these plot elements using the scientific knowledge available in his era, drawing upon contemporary understandings of biology, astronomy, cosmology, and geology. In essence, Ibn al-Nafis's fiction sought to explain Islamic religious teachings through the lens of science and Islamic philosophy. Translations of Ibn Tufail's Philosophus Autodidactus eventually appeared in Latin (1671), English (1708), German, and Dutch. These European-language translations are believed to have later provided inspiration for Daniel Defoe's iconic Robinson Crusoe and Robert Boyle's The Aspiring Naturalist. The ripple effects of thought, it seems, can travel across centuries and continents.

Philosophy

Ibn Rushd (Averroes), Muslim polymath from Al-Andalus.

One of the more pragmatic definitions for "Islamic philosophy" frames it as "the style of philosophy produced within the framework of Islamic culture." Under this broad definition, Islamic philosophy is neither exclusively preoccupied with religious issues nor is it solely the product of Muslim thinkers. A rather convenient way to encompass its vast scope. The illustrious Persian scholar Ibn Sina (Avicenna) (980–1037) is credited with an astonishing output of over 450 books, covering a dizzying array of subjects, most notably philosophy and medicine. His seminal medical textbook, The Canon of Medicine, achieved such authority that it remained a standard text in European universities for centuries. He also authored The Book of Healing, an influential scientific and philosophical encyclopedia that cemented his legacy.

Another towering figure from the Islamic Golden Age, Avicenna, also established his own distinct Avicennism school of philosophy, which exerted considerable influence across both Islamic and Christian lands. A testament to the universal appeal of rigorous thought.

Yet another profoundly influential philosopher, whose work resonated deeply with the trajectory of modern philosophy, was Ibn Tufail. His philosophical novel, Hayy ibn Yaqdhan, translated into Latin as Philosophus Autodidactus in 1671, presciently explored themes that would later become central to Western thought. These included: empiricism, the concept of tabula rasa (the blank slate), the enduring debate of nature versus nurture, the fundamental condition of possibility, materialism, and even the intricate cognitive puzzle known as Molyneux's problem. European scholars and writers who were directly influenced by this groundbreaking novel include intellectual giants such as John Locke, Gottfried Leibniz, Melchisédech Thévenot, John Wallis, Christiaan Huygens, George Keith, Robert Barclay, the religious group known as the Quakers, and Samuel Hartlib.

Islamic philosophers continued to push the boundaries of philosophical inquiry well into the 17th century, a period that saw Mulla Sadra found his distinctive school of Transcendent theosophy and, in doing so, develop foundational concepts that would later be recognized as integral to existentialism.

Other notably influential Muslim philosophers include Ibn al-Haytham (Alhazen), a genuine pioneer of phenomenology and the burgeoning philosophy of science, as well as a sharp critic of Aristotelian natural philosophy and Aristotle's concept of place (topos). Then there was Al-Biruni, another formidable critic of Aristotelian natural philosophy, whose intellectual reach was vast. Ibn al-Nafis, as noted earlier, pioneered the philosophical novel. Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi founded the luminous school of Illuminationist philosophy. Fakhr al-Din al-Razi distinguished himself as a critic of Aristotelian logic and a trailblazer in the development of inductive logic. Finally, Ibn Khaldun stands as a towering figure, recognized as a pioneer in the nascent field of the philosophy of history. A rich and complex intellectual lineage, indeed.

Sciences

Sciences

Ibn al-Haytham, a figure of truly monumental importance, is widely revered as the "father of optics," particularly for his groundbreaking empirical proof of the intromission theory of light. As Jim Al-Khalili rather aptly stated in 2009, Ibn al-Haytham is "often referred to as the 'world's first true scientist'." A rather significant title, if you ask me. Then there's al-Khwarzimi, whose ingenious contributions include the invention of the log base systems that form the bedrock of modern mathematics, alongside his pivotal theorems in trigonometry and the concept of limits. Recent, rather fascinating studies suggest a tantalizing possibility: that medieval Muslim artists possessed an advanced, intuitive understanding of decagonal quasicrystal geometry. This complex geometric concept was only formally "discovered" by the West half a millennium later, in the 1970s and 1980s, and they apparently applied it with stunning precision in the intricate decorative tilework adorning their architecture.

Muslim physicians made invaluable and enduring contributions to the field of medicine, significantly advancing understanding in subjects such as anatomy and physiology. A prime example is the 15th-century Persian work by Mansur ibn Muhammad ibn al-Faqih Ilyas, titled Tashrih al-badan (Anatomy of the body). This comprehensive text featured detailed diagrams of the body's structural, nervous, and circulatory systems. Equally significant was the work of the Egyptian physician Ibn al-Nafis, who, with remarkable foresight, proposed an early theory of pulmonary circulation. Avicenna's monumental The Canon of Medicine maintained its status as an authoritative medical textbook in Europe for an astonishing duration, well into the 18th century. Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi (known in the West as Abulcasis) profoundly influenced the discipline of medical surgery with his Kitab al-Tasrif ("Book of Concessions"), a comprehensive medical encyclopedia that, upon its translation into Latin, became an indispensable resource in European and Muslim medical schools for centuries. Further medical advancements were also achieved in the burgeoning fields of pharmacology and pharmacy.

Among the most celebrated scientists from the medieval Islamic world are figures such as Jābir ibn Hayyān, al-Farabi, Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi, Ibn al-Haytham, Al-Biruni, Avicenna, Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, and Ibn Khaldun. A rather impressive roster, wouldn't you agree?

Technology

The Spinning wheel is believed to have been invented in the medieval era (of what is now the Greater Middle East), it is considered to be an important device that contributed greatly to the advancement of the Industrial Revolution. (scene from Al-Maqamat, painted by al-Wasiti 1237)

In the realm of technology, the Muslim world proved itself adept at adopting and disseminating innovations. They notably embraced papermaking from China, a technology that would revolutionize communication and knowledge transfer. The formidable power of gunpowder was also transmitted from China, traversing predominantly Islamic countries before reaching Europe.

Significant strides were made in irrigation and farming techniques, often incorporating novel technologies such as the windmill. Crops like almonds and citrus fruits were introduced to Europe via al-Andalus, while the cultivation of sugar was gradually adopted by Europeans. Arab merchants, with their extensive networks, dominated trade in the Indian Ocean until the arrival of the Portuguese in the 16th century, with Hormuz serving as a crucial hub for this vibrant commerce. A dense network of trade routes also crisscrossed the Mediterranean, facilitating trade between Muslim-majority countries and European powers such as Venice, Genoa, and Catalonia (forming what might be called an Indo-Mediterranean exchange). The legendary Silk Road, winding through Central Asia, also passed through Islamic states, connecting China and Europe. The emergence of major economic empires, endowed with formidable technological resources, followed the conquests of Timur (Tamerlane) and the subsequent resurgence of the Timurid Renaissance. These included the Mali Empire and, particularly, the Bengal Sultanate, which became a dominant global trading nation, famously described by Europeans as "the richest country to trade with."

Muslim engineers within the Islamic world pioneered a remarkable number of innovative industrial applications for hydropower, alongside early industrial uses of tidal power and wind power. The industrial application of watermills in the Islamic world can be traced back to the 7th century, with both horizontal-wheeled and vertical-wheeled water mills becoming widespread by at least the 9th century. A diverse array of industrial mills were employed across the Islamic world, including early fulling mills, gristmills, paper mills, hullers, sawmills, ship mills, stamp mills, steel mills, sugar mills, tide mills, and windmills. By the 11th century, these industrial mills were operational in virtually every province throughout the Islamic world, from al-Andalus and North Africa to the Middle East and Central Asia. Muslim engineers also ingeniously invented crankshafts and water turbines, skillfully incorporated gears into their mills and water-raising machines, and were pioneers in utilizing dams as a source of water power to augment the efficiency of watermills and water-raising devices. Such technological advances facilitated the mechanization of industrial tasks that had previously relied on arduous manual labour in ancient times, transforming production in the medieval Islamic world. The subsequent transfer of these technologies to medieval Europe played a significant, if often underappreciated, role in paving the way for the Industrial Revolution, particularly through the proto-industrialized Mughal Bengal and Tipu Sultan's Kingdom, and later, through the conquests of the East India Company.

Arts

The term "Islamic art and architecture" serves as a broad umbrella, encompassing the diverse works of art and architectural marvels produced from the 7th century onwards by peoples residing within territories historically inhabited by culturally Islamic populations. A rather expansive and, dare I say, useful categorization.

Architecture

These paragraphs are an excerpt from Islamic architecture.

Islamic architecture encompasses the distinct architectural styles of buildings intrinsically linked with Islam. It gracefully integrates both secular and religious styles, tracing its evolution from the nascent history of Islam right up to the present day. The Islamic world historically spans an immense geographic expanse, stretching from the western reaches of Africa and Europe to the eastern frontiers of Asia. While certain fundamental commonalities are shared across Islamic architectural styles throughout these diverse regions, over time, individual areas inevitably cultivated their own unique styles. These stylistic divergences were shaped by local materials and construction techniques, the prevailing influence of local dynasties and their patrons, the emergence of distinct regional centers of artistic production, and, on occasion, even by differing religious affiliations.

Early Islamic architecture, perhaps predictably, drew heavily upon the established traditions of Roman, Byzantine, Iranian, and Mesopotamian architecture. It also incorporated elements from all the other lands that fell under the sway of the early Muslim conquests in the seventh and eighth centuries. A true melting pot of aesthetics, one might say. Later, however, it began to forge its own distinct characteristics, both in the innovative forms of its buildings and in the intricate decoration of surfaces. These decorative elements famously included elegant Islamic calligraphy, flowing arabesques, and complex geometric motifs. New and iconic architectural elements also emerged, such as soaring minarets, the honeycomb-like structures of muqarnas, and the visually striking multifoil arches. Common and critically important building types within Islamic architecture encompass mosques, madrasas (religious schools), tombs, grand palaces, hammams (public baths), Sufi hospices (such as khanqahs or zawiyas), refreshing fountains and sabils, practical commercial buildings (like caravanserais and bustling bazaars), and formidable military fortifications.

Building with islamic architecture

Aniconism

In Islam, there is a fundamental belief that no visual images or depictions of God should exist. This prohibition stems from the concern that such artistic representations could, rather inconveniently, lead to idolatry. Instead, Muslims describe God through the numerous names and attributes that, according to Islamic tradition, He Himself revealed to His creation. Indeed, all but one sura of the Quran commence with the profound phrase, "In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful." Similarly, depictions of Muhammad are likewise prohibited. This pervasive aniconism and, at times, iconoclasm, is not unique to Islam; it can also be found, in varying degrees, within Jewish and certain Christian theological traditions. It seems the human struggle with the sacred and the visual is a recurring theme.

Arabesque

Islamic art frequently, and rather elegantly, incorporates the use of geometrical floral or vegetal designs arranged in a repeating pattern, famously known as the arabesque. Such designs are, by their very nature, highly nonrepresentational. This stylistic choice is deeply rooted in the Islamic prohibition against representational depictions, a stance intended to distinguish it from the practices of pre-Islamic pagan religions. Despite this overarching principle, it's worth noting that depictional art does exist in some Muslim societies, most notably in the exquisite miniature style that gained renown in Persia and later under the Ottoman Empire. These miniatures often featured paintings of people and animals, and even vivid depictions of Quranic stories and traditional Islamic narratives, proving that human creativity finds its way. Another profound reason behind the abstract nature of Islamic art is its symbolic function: to represent the transcendence, indivisible unity, and infinite nature of God—an objective rather beautifully achieved by the intricate arabesque. Islamic calligraphy, an omnipresent and highly revered decoration in Islamic art, typically expresses itself in the form of Quranic verses. Two of the primary scripts employed are the symbolic Kufic and the flowing Naskh scripts, which can be found adorning the majestic walls and domes of mosques, the sides of minbars, and countless other surfaces.

Distinguishing motifs in Islamic architecture have consistently revolved around ordered repetition, radiating structures, and rhythmic, metric patterns. In this regard, fractal geometry has proven to be a key underlying utility, particularly in the design of mosques and palaces. Other recurring features employed as motifs include robust columns, sturdy piers, and graceful arches, all meticulously organized and interwoven with alternating sequences of niches and colonnettes. The role of domes in Islamic architecture has been, quite simply, considerable. Their usage spans centuries, first making a notable appearance in 691 with the construction of the iconic Dome of the Rock mosque, and recurring with breathtaking grandeur even up until the 17th century with the ethereal Taj Mahal. Indeed, as late as the 19th century, the aesthetic influence of Islamic domes had been so profound that they were consciously incorporated into European architecture.

  • Example of an Arabesque

  • Example of an Arabesque

  • Example of an Arabesque

Girih

These paragraphs are an excerpt from Girih.

Girih (from the Persian: گره, "knot," also sometimes rendered as gereh) refers to the intricate decorative Islamic geometric patterns found in architecture and various handicraft objects. These patterns are characterized by angled lines that meticulously form an interlaced strapwork design, a testament to exceptional craftsmanship and mathematical understanding.

The origins of Girih decoration are believed to have been inspired by Syrian Roman knotwork patterns, which date back to the second century. However, the sophisticated mathematical underpinnings of Girih patterns, meticulously structured around multiple lines of symmetry, represent profound innovations in mathematics that originated within the Islamic world after the ninth century. The earliest known examples of Girih date from approximately 1000 CE, and this intricate artform flourished with remarkable vitality until the 15th century. Girih patterns could be generated through a variety of methods, including the traditional straightedge and compass construction, the construction of a grid composed of polygons, and the innovative use of a specialized set of Girih tiles, each pre-marked with lines that, when assembled, would form the desired pattern. These patterns could be further elaborated by employing two distinct levels of design, as beautifully exemplified at the 1453 Darb-e Imam shrine. Square repeating units of established patterns could be readily copied and utilized as templates, and it is plausible that historical pattern books were specifically intended for this purpose, facilitating the widespread dissemination of these designs.

The 15th-century Topkapı Scroll offers explicit visual evidence, showcasing Girih patterns alongside the precise tilings employed to construct them. While a specific set of tiles, comprising a dart and a kite shape, is known to generate aperiodic Penrose tilings, there is, intriguingly, no conclusive evidence that such a set was actually utilized in medieval times. Girih patterns have graced an eclectic range of materials, including delicate stone screens, as seen at Fatehpur Sikri; intricate plasterwork, adorning mosques and madrasas such as the Hunat Hatun Complex in Kayseri; robust metalwork, exemplified at the Mosque-Madrassa of Sultan Hassan in Cairo; and exquisite wood craftsmanship, notably present at the Mosque–Cathedral of Córdoba.

Islamic calligraphy

These paragraphs are an excerpt from Islamic calligraphy.

Islamic calligraphy represents the refined artistic practice of penmanship and calligraphy, specifically applied to languages that utilize the Arabic alphabet or the various alphabets derived from it. It is a highly stylized and meticulously structured form of handwriting that adheres to a complex set of artistic conventions, frequently employed for Islamic religious texts, architecture, and decorative purposes. It encompasses a rich diversity of calligraphic traditions, including Arabic, Persian, Ottoman, and Urdu calligraphy. In Arabic, it is known as khatt Arabi (خط عربي), a term that literally translates to "line," "design," or "construction."

The trajectory of Islamic calligraphy's development is inextricably linked to the Qur'an. Chapters and verses from the Qur'an serve as a common, indeed almost universal, textual foundation upon which Islamic calligraphy is based. While artistic depictions of people and animals are not explicitly forbidden within the Qur'an itself, Islamic traditions have, for centuries, generally limited figural representation in religious contexts, primarily to avert the potential for idolatry. Some scholars propose that the distinctive Kufic script was developed in the late 7th century in Kufa, Iraq, from which it derives its name. This early, angular style subsequently evolved into several more elaborate forms, including floral, foliated, plaited or interlaced, bordered, and square Kufic. In the ancient world, however, artists sometimes ingeniously circumvented aniconic prohibitions by crafting intricate calligraphic compositions that, when viewed from a distance, formed recognizable shapes and figures using minuscule script. Calligraphy was held in exceptionally high esteem as an art form, regarded as both an aesthetic and a profound moral pursuit. An ancient Arabic proverb eloquently illustrates this point by emphatically stating that "purity of writing is purity of the soul."

Beyond its religious applications, Islamic calligraphy is extensively utilized in secular art, architectural design, and various decorative contexts. Its pervasive prominence within Islamic art is not solely a consequence of religious constraints on figurative imagery. Rather, it profoundly reflects the central and revered role of writing and the written word within the broader Islamic culture. Islamic calligraphy primarily evolved from two major foundational styles: Kufic and Naskh, which then branched into numerous regional and stylistic variations. In the modern era, both Arabic and Persian calligraphy have exerted a notable influence on modern art, particularly in the post-colonial Middle East, and have also inspired the dynamic fusion style famously known as calligraffiti.

Calendar

Two distinct calendars, in a testament to varied cultural and practical needs, are in use across the Muslim world. One is the lunar calendar, which enjoys widespread adoption among Muslims globally and is commonly known in the West as the "Islamic calendar". The other is a solar calendar, officially employed in Iran. Both systems measure time within the framework of the Hijri era: the lunar calendar meticulously counts lunar years (comprising twelve lunar months), while the solar calendar, as its name suggests, counts solar years. A rather pragmatic way to organize the passage of time, each suited to its own purpose.

Islamic lunar calendar

These paragraphs are an excerpt from Islamic calendar.

The Hijri calendar (Arabic: ٱلتَّقْوِيم ٱلْهِجْرِيّ, romanized:  al-taqwīm al-hijrī), also known in English as the Islamic calendar, is a lunar calendar system. It consists of 12 lunar months, resulting in a year that typically comprises 354 or 355 days. This calendar is of paramount importance for determining the correct dates of Islamic holidays and rituals, such as the annual fasting during the month of Ramadan and the designated season for the great pilgrimage to Mecca. In almost all countries where Islam is the predominant religion, the civil calendar in daily use is the Gregorian calendar, often with Syriac month-names employed in the Levant and Mesopotamia (including Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine). However, the religious calendar remains the Hijri one, maintaining its spiritual and cultural significance.

This calendar enumerates the Hijri era, the epoch of which was formally established as the Islamic New Year in 622 CE. During that pivotal year, Muhammad and his devoted followers undertook their momentous migration from Mecca to Medina, an event profoundly commemorated as the Hijrah. In the Western world, dates within this era are commonly denoted by the abbreviation AH (from Latin: Anno Hegirae, lit.  'In the year of the Hijrah'). In Muslim countries, it is also frequently abbreviated as H, derived from its Arabic form (سَنَة هِجْرِيَّة). Years preceding the Hijra are designated as BH ("Before the Hijra") in English.

As of 26 June 2025 CE, the current Islamic year is 1447 AH. In the Gregorian calendar reckoning, 1447 AH is set to run from 26 June 2025 to approximately 15 June 2026, though the exact dates can, rather inconveniently, depend on the specific variant of the Islamic calendar being followed.

Solar Hijri calendar

These paragraphs are an excerpt from Solar Hijri calendar.

The Solar Hijri calendar is, rather uniquely, the official calendar of Iran. It functions as a solar calendar, meticulously structured around the Earth's orbital journey around the Sun. Each year in this system commences precisely on the day of the March equinox and comprises either 365 or 366 days. It is sometimes also referred to as the Shamsi calendar, Khorshidi calendar, or simply the Persian calendar, and represents the most recent iteration of the various Iranian calendars. Its abbreviation is typically SH, HS, AP, or, on occasion, AHSh, distinguishing it from the lunar Hijri calendar (more commonly known in the West as the 'Islamic calendar'), which is usually abbreviated as AH.

The epoch (the very first day) of the Solar Hijri calendar was established as the spring equinox, specifically March 19, 622 CE. This calendar is designated as a "Hijri calendar" because that particular year marks the time when Muhammad is believed to have embarked on his pivotal journey from Mecca to Medina, an event universally referred to as the Hijrah.

Because this calendar relies on precise astronomical observations and complex calculations to determine the vernal equinox, it theoretically possesses no inherent error in its alignment with the true vernal equinox year. According to Iranian studies, it predates the lunar Hijri calendar used by the majority of Muslims (which, as we know, is referred to in the West as the Islamic calendar); though both calendars count their years starting from the year of the Hijrah. A key distinction is that the solar Hijri calendar utilizes solar years and is calculated based on the "year of the Hijrah," whereas the lunar Hijri calendar is founded upon lunar months and dates from the presumed actual "day of the Hijrah." The slight difference in starting point, it seems, is enough to create two distinct systems.

Each of the twelve months within the solar Hijri calendar corresponds with a particular zodiac sign. Historically, in Iran before 1925, and in Afghanistan before 2023, the names of these zodiacal signs were directly used for the months. Elsewhere, the month names often align with those found in the Zoroastrian calendar. The first six months consist of 31 days, the subsequent five months have 30 days, and the final month contains 29 days in common years, extending to 30 days in leap years.

The ancient Iranian New Year's Day, universally known as Nowruz, unfailingly coincides with the March equinox. Nowruz is a widely celebrated festival, observed by communities across a vast geographical expanse, stretching from the Balkans to Central Asia. Currently, the Solar Hijri calendar holds official status only in Iran. Notably, since 1 Muharam 1444 AH (30 July 2022 CE), this calendar is no longer used by the government of Afghanistan, which has switched back to the Lunar Hijri calendar. Change, it seems, is the only constant.

Women

According to Riada Asimovic Akyol, the experiences of Muslim women are, quite naturally, incredibly diverse, shaped by a complex interplay of geographical location and personal circumstances, such as family upbringing, social class, and educational opportunities. Akyol points out that, rather inconveniently, the nuanced distinctions between culture and religion are frequently overlooked by community and state leaders in many Muslim-majority countries. The core issue in the Muslim world concerning gender dynamics, she argues, lies in the fact that religious texts, largely constructed within profoundly patriarchal environments and often rooted in biological essentialism, continue to hold immense value within Islam. Consequently, views that emphasize men's inherent superiority and advocate for unequal gender roles remain widespread among many conservative Muslims, both men and women. Orthodox Muslims often sincerely believe that the rights and responsibilities assigned to women in Islam are distinct from those of men, and are, moreover, sacrosanct, being divinely ordained. Asma Barlas contends that patriarchal behavior among Muslims is fundamentally based on an ideology that conflates sexual and biological differences with rigid gender dualisms and inherent inequality. In response, modernist discourse from liberal progressive movements, such as Islamic feminism, has been actively engaged in re-examining the hermeneutics of feminism in Islam, striving to interpret religious texts in ways that uphold respect for Muslim women's lives and their fundamental rights. Riada Asimovic Akyol further asserts that achieving genuine equality for Muslim women necessitates a rigorous process of self-criticism within these communities. Change, it seems, must often come from within.

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