Political Islam

Political Islam comprises movements and ideas that seek to shape government and public life through Islamic principles. It includes diverse approaches, from electoral participation to revolutionary change.

Sharia: Islamic moral and legal guidance derived from the Quran, the Sunnah, and centuries of interpretation. Movements disagree over how Islamic guidance should shape state law and public life.
Jamal al-Din al-Afghani: A nineteenth-century Muslim thinker and activist who advocated reform and resistance to European imperial power. His calls for Muslim solidarity and political renewal anticipated themes in later movements.
Islamic democracy: A political approach that combines democratic institutions with Islamic values or sources of legitimacy. It captures efforts to participate in elections while grounding public policy in Islamic commitments.
Islamic fundamentalism: A broad label for movements advocating strict adherence to foundational religious texts and practices. It is often conflated with Political Islam, though religious strictness does not always entail a political program.
Islamic state: A state whose political authority or laws are grounded in an interpretation of Islam. The contested goal of an Islamic state has shaped both Islamist programs and their critics.
Islamism: A modern political ideology that seeks to order government or society according to interpretations of Islam. This closely related term often names the ideological projects grouped under Political Islam.
Rashid Rida: A Syrian-Egyptian Islamic reformer whose writings addressed religious authority, governance, and the caliphate. His arguments about Islamic rule influenced twentieth-century Islamist thought.
Islamic Republic of Iran: A state founded in 1979 whose constitution combines elected institutions with clerical oversight. Its institutions provide a prominent example of Islamic principles embedded in a modern state.
Salafi jihadism: A militant ideology that combines Salafi doctrines with armed jihad against states and other targets. Its violent revolutionary strategy is one current, not a synonym for Political Islam as a whole.
Political secularization: The process by which political institutions become less governed by religious authority or doctrine. Islamist mobilization has repeatedly challenged or reversed secularizing state projects.

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