ummah
Quick Summary
The term ummah refers to the global community of Muslims, bound together by a shared faith and sense of belonging. From Islam's inception, Muhammad fostered a strong sense of brotherhood among his followers, which was further solidified by their shared experiences and adherence to the Qur'an. This community-state emerged when Muhammad migrated to Medina in 622 CE, establishing Islam as a religion that integrates both spiritual and temporal aspects of life, regulating individual relationships with God and social interactions.1
The early success of Islam, marked by rapid expansion across vast territories, was partly due to its egalitarian nature within the community of believers and its structured approach to followers of other religions. The concept of the ummah became even more significant during the 19th and 20th centuries with the rise of Western colonialism, as the shared faith helped various Muslim peoples in their struggles for political freedom.1
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MuhammadBiography according to the Islamic tradition…tribes into a community (ummah) recognizing Muhammad as the “Messenger of God.” However, relations with the Jews of Medina steadily worsen. Eighteen months after the emigration, a revelation bids the Muslims to pray in the direction of the Meccan Kaʿbah, rather than to continue facing toward Jerusalem as is…
Read More…tribes into a community (ummah) recognizing Muhammad as the “Messenger of God.” However, relations with the Jews of Medina steadily worsen. Eighteen months after the emigration, a revelation bids the Muslims to pray in the direction of the Meccan Kaʿbah, rather than to continue facing toward Jerusalem as is…
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Islamic worldThe forging of Muhammad’s communityThey became Muhammad’s ummah (“community”) because they had recognized and supported God’s emissary (rasūl Allāh). The ummah’s members differed from one another not by wealth or genealogical superiority but by the degree of their faith and piety, and membership in the community was itself an expression of faith.…
Read MoreThey became Muhammad’s ummah (“community”) because they had recognized and supported God’s emissary (rasūl Allāh). The ummah’s members differed from one another not by wealth or genealogical superiority but by the degree of their faith and piety, and membership in the community was itself an expression of faith.…
Read More- Islamic worldThe third fitnah
…of non-Arabs to join the ummah was growing, but the Marwānids had not found a solution that was either ideologically acceptable or fiscally sound. Because protected non-Muslim groups paid special taxes, fiscal stability seemed to depend on continuing to discourage conversion. One Marwānid, ʿUmar II (ruled 717–720), experimented unsuccessfully with…
Read More…of non-Arabs to join the ummah was growing, but the Marwānids had not found a solution that was either ideologically acceptable or fiscally sound. Because protected non-Muslim groups paid special taxes, fiscal stability seemed to depend on continuing to discourage conversion. One Marwānid, ʿUmar II (ruled 717–720), experimented unsuccessfully with…
Read More - Constitution of Medina
…the first Muslim community (ummah). The agreements also regulated the relations of the Muslims with the Jews of Medina.
Read More…the first Muslim community (ummah). The agreements also regulated the relations of the Muslims with the Jews of Medina.
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imam…of the Muslim community (ummah). The title is found in the Qurʾān several times to refer to leaders and to Abraham. The origin and basis of the office of imam was conceived differently by various sections of the Muslim community, this difference providing part of the political and religious…
Read More…of the Muslim community (ummah). The title is found in the Qurʾān several times to refer to leaders and to Abraham. The origin and basis of the office of imam was conceived differently by various sections of the Muslim community, this difference providing part of the political and religious…
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IslamThe legacy of Muhammad…of the Islamic community (ummah), instead of weakening, became stronger. The faith of Islam helped various Muslim peoples in their struggle to gain political freedom in the mid-20th century, and the unity of Islam contributed to later political solidarity.
Read More…of the Islamic community (ummah), instead of weakening, became stronger. The faith of Islam helped various Muslim peoples in their struggle to gain political freedom in the mid-20th century, and the unity of Islam contributed to later political solidarity.
Read More- Islamic worldThe rise of British colonialism to the end of the Ottoman Empire
…very old conceptions of the ummah (Muslim community) as the ultimate solidarity group for Muslims. Three of the most prominent Islamic reconstructionists were Jamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī, his Egyptian disciple Muḥammad ʿAbduh, and the Indian poet Sir Muḥammad Iqbāl. All warned against the blind pursuit of Westernization, arguing that blame for…
Read More…very old conceptions of the ummah (Muslim community) as the ultimate solidarity group for Muslims. Three of the most prominent Islamic reconstructionists were Jamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī, his Egyptian disciple Muḥammad ʿAbduh, and the Indian poet Sir Muḥammad Iqbāl. All warned against the blind pursuit of Westernization, arguing that blame for…
Read More - Islamic worldIslamist movements from the 1960s
Thus, a new ummah under the sole sovereignty of Allāh and his revealed word needed to be constituted, because secular nation-states—exemplified by Nasserist Egypt—had led only to barbarity. Quṭb’s ideology was also influenced by Abū al-Aʿlā al-Mawdūdī (1903–79), founder in British India in 1941 of the Islamic Assembly,…
Read MoreThus, a new ummah under the sole sovereignty of Allāh and his revealed word needed to be constituted, because secular nation-states—exemplified by Nasserist Egypt—had led only to barbarity. Quṭb’s ideology was also influenced by Abū al-Aʿlā al-Mawdūdī (1903–79), founder in British India in 1941 of the Islamic Assembly,…
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ShiʿiEarly developmentSome members of the ummah (Muslim community) held that God had intended for that spiritual link, and the political and military authority associated with it, to continue via Muhammad’s family. Thus, they held, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib—the Prophet’s cousin and son-in-law—should have been the Prophet’s immediate successor and, thereafter,…
Read MoreSome members of the ummah (Muslim community) held that God had intended for that spiritual link, and the political and military authority associated with it, to continue via Muhammad’s family. Thus, they held, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib—the Prophet’s cousin and son-in-law—should have been the Prophet’s immediate successor and, thereafter,…
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