Law and Power in the Islamic World

by Sami Zubaida

Overview

Islamic law (the Shari'a) and its application is a central issue in contemporary Islamic politics and culture. Starting from modern concerns, this book examines the origins and evolution of the Shari'a and the corpus of texts, concepts and practices in which it has been enshrined. Sami Zubaida here considers key historical episodes of political accommodations and contests between scholars and sultans. Drawing on modern examples, mainly from Egypt and Iran, Zubaida explores how the Shari'a has evolved and mutated to accommodate the workings of a modern state. Law and Power in the Islamic World is an original and significant contribution to the debates surrounding Islam and ideas of modernity. As such its appeal and importance range across a wide spectrum of readers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781850439349
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/22/2005
Series:	Library of Modern Middle East Studies
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.54(d)

About the Author

Sami Zubaida is Professor of Politics and Sociology at Birkbeck College, University of London and a specialist in the religion, culture and politics of the Middle East. He is the author of Islam, the People and the State and co-editor of A Taste of Thyme: the Culinary Cultures of the Middle East (both I.B. Tauris)

Table of Contents

Introduction
• Concepts, Origins and Mutations
• Institutions: Courts, Qadis and Muftis
• The Shari'a and Political Authority
• The Age of Reform: The Etatization of law
• The Shari'a in Modern Debates and Insitutions: Egypt
• The Politics of the Shari'a in Iran
• Conclusion
• Notes on the Text
• References
• Glossary
• Index

Editorial Reviews

""Combines deep historical analysis with a vital sociological and political perspective... it will be required reading both for experts and for the general reader with any serious interest in the world today.""--Eberhard Kienle, SOAS

From the Publisher