dhimmah
Quick Summary
The term "dhimmah" refers to a historical Islamic concept of protected non-Muslims, known as dhimmis. These individuals, often Christians and Jews, were granted protection of life and property and the right to practice their religion in exchange for paying a tax called the jizyah. The jizyah was not a head tax but a tax levied on non-Muslim populations by their Muslim rulers.123
Historically, the jizyah was imposed on non-Muslim Arab tribes in lieu of military service. Exemptions were granted for military service, and certain groups like the poor, elderly, women, and the mentally ill were generally exempt from paying taxes. The status of dhimmi was also extended to Zoroastrians, Hindus, and Buddhists. While initially a system of tolerance, after the 8th century, the jizyah sometimes became a marker of inferior socio-legal status. The jizyah is not collected in modern Muslim nation-states, as citizenship is no longer defined by religion.2
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Islamic worldThe ummah’s allies and enemies…to pay for protection (dhimmah). Muhammad thus set a precedent for another major characteristic of Islamicate civilization, that of qualified religious pluralism under Muslim authority.
Read More…to pay for protection (dhimmah). Muhammad thus set a precedent for another major characteristic of Islamicate civilization, that of qualified religious pluralism under Muslim authority.
Read More- Islamic worldThe emergent Islamic civilization
…al-kitāb), they deserved protection (dhimmah) in return for a payment. The Arabs also formed a single religious community whose right to rule over the non-Arab protected communities the Marwānids sought to maintain.
Read More…al-kitāb), they deserved protection (dhimmah) in return for a payment. The Arabs also formed a single religious community whose right to rule over the non-Arab protected communities the Marwānids sought to maintain.
Read More - Islamic worldThe emergent Islamic civilization
With the dhimmī system (the system of protecting non-Muslims for payment), Muslim rulers formalized and probably intensified pre-Islamic tendencies toward religious communalization. Furthermore, the greater formality of the new system could protect the subject communities from each other as well as from the dominant minority. So “converting”…
Read MoreWith the dhimmī system (the system of protecting non-Muslims for payment), Muslim rulers formalized and probably intensified pre-Islamic tendencies toward religious communalization. Furthermore, the greater formality of the new system could protect the subject communities from each other as well as from the dominant minority. So “converting”…
Read More