Islamic studies
Islamic studies refers to the academic study of Islam,[1] which is analogous to related fields such as Jewish studies and Quranic studies.[2][3] Islamic studies seeks to understand the past and the potential future of the Islamic world.[4] In this multidisciplinary program, scholars from diverse areas (history, culture, literature, art) participate and exchange ideas pertaining to the particular field of study.[5]
This article is about the study of Islam in modern academia. For the traditional study of Islam defined and practiced by Muslim Islamic scholars, see Islamic sciences.
Generations of scholars in Islamic studies, most of whom studied with Orientalist mentors, helped bridge the gap between Orientalism and Religious studies. The subfield that grew out of this effort is called "Islamic studies."[6] The study of Islam is part of a tradition that started in Western academia on a professional scale about two centuries ago, and has been previously linked to social concern.[7] This academic tradition has not only led to an accumulation of knowledge, even if some of it is almost forgotten or badly neglected, but has also witnessed major changes in interests, questions, methods, aesthetics, and ethics of Islam.[7]
Many academic Islamic studies programs include the historical study of Islam, Islamic civilization, history of the Muslim world, historiography, Islamic law, Islamic theology and Islamic philosophy. Specialists in Islamic studies concentrate on the detailed, academic study of texts written in Arabic within the fields of Islamic theology, Islamic law, and the Qur'an and Hadith along with ancillary disciplines such as Tafsir or Qur'an Exegesis. However, they also often apply the methods adapted from several ancillary fields, ranging from Biblical studies and classical philology to modern history, legal history and sociology.
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Overview[edit]
Scholars in the field of Islamic studies are often referred to as "Islamicists" and the discipline traditionally made up the bulk of what used to be called Oriental studies. The transitional generation of Islamicists were betwixt and between an era when Islamic studies were dominated by Orientalism and the post-Orientalist era of post-colonial criticism and critical theory in the social sciences and much of religious studies.[8] In fact, some of the more traditional Western universities still confer degrees in Arabic and Islamic studies under the primary title of "Oriental studies". This is the case, for example, at the University of Oxford, where classical Arabic and Islamic studies have been taught since as early as the 16th century, originally as a sub-division of divinity. This latter context gave early academic Islamic studies its Biblical studies character and was also a consequence of the fact that, throughout early-modern Western Europe, the discipline was developed by churchmen whose primary aim had been to refute the tenets of Islam.[9] Today, academic Islamic studies is usually taught and studied alongside or after an extensive study of the Arabic language, with named undergraduate and graduate degrees in Arabic and Islamic studies existing at universities such as Georgetown University, the University of Exeter, University of Oxford, University of Leeds, SOAS at the University of London, Yale University and several universities in Holland and Germany (notably Leiden University and Tübingen University).
A recent HEFCE report emphasises the increasing, strategic importance for Western governments since 9/11 of Islamic studies in higher education and also provides an international overview of the state of the field.[10] With the events of 11 September 2001, Islam has become the most prominent world religion and occupies center stage in world politics.
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