Islamic revivalIslamic revival (تجديد , lit., "regeneration, renewal"; also الصحوة الإسلامية , "Islamic awakening") refers to a revival of the Islamic religion, usually centered around enforcing sharia. A leader of a revival is known in Islam as a mujaddid. Within the Islamic tradition, tajdid is an important religious concept, called for periodically throughout Islamic history and according to a sahih hadith occurring every century.
UlamaIn Islam, the ulama (ˈuːləˌmɑː; Ulamā; singular Ālim) also spelled ulema (feminine singular alimah; plural aalimath) are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam, including Islamic doctrine and law. By longstanding tradition, ulama are educated in religious institutions (madrasas). The Quran and sunnah (authentic hadith) are the scriptural sources of traditional Islamic law. Students do not associate themselves with a specific educational institution, but rather seek to join renowned teachers.
Osama bin LadenOsama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (Usāma bin Muḥammad bin ʿAwaḍ bin Lādin; 10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born militant who was the founder and leader of al-Qaeda from 1988 until his death. The group is designated as a terrorist group by the United Nations Security Council, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union, and various other countries. Under bin Laden, al-Qaeda was responsible for the September 11 attacks in the United States and many other mass-casualty attacks worldwide.
Pan-IslamismPan-Islamism (الوحدة الإسلامية) is a political movement advocating the unity of Muslims under one Islamic country or state – often a caliphate – or an international organization with Islamic principles. Pan-Islamism was promoted by the Ottoman empire during the last quarter of 19th century by Sultan Abdul-Hamid II for the purpose of combating the process of westernization and fostering the unification of Islam.
Saddam Hussein'Saddam Husseinefn|sʌˈdɑ:m huːˈseɪn; صدام حسين, sʕɐdˈdɑːm ɜħsɪe̯n;efn|Saddam, pronounced sʕɑdˈdæːm, is his personal name, and means the stubborn one or he who confronts in Arabic. Hussein (sometimes also transliterated as Hussayn or Hussain') is not a surname in the Western sense, but a patronymic, his father's given personal name; Abid al-Majid his grandfather's; al-Tikriti means he was born and raised in (or near) Tikrit. He was commonly referred to as Saddam Hussein, or Saddam for short.
ShuraShura (شُورَىٰ) can for example take the form of a council or a referendum. The Quran encourages Muslims to decide their affairs in consultation with each other. Shura is mentioned as a praiseworthy activity often used in organizing the affairs of a mosque, Islamic organizations, and is a common term involved in naming parliaments. In the 21st century, some emerging scholars are now advocating the infusion of Shura with digital technology as a means to enhance participatory governance or E-Governance among Muslims for state- and community-building purposes.
JahiliyyahJahiliyyah (جَاهِلِيَّة d͡ʒæːhɪˈlɪj.jæ, "ignorance") is an Arabic term used to refer to the opposite of Islam. It usually refers to the Age of Ignorance, the period of time and state of affairs in pre-Islamic Arabia in 610 CE. The term jahiliyyah may be derived from the verbal root jahala (جهل), "to be ignorant or stupid, to act stupidly". Alternatively, it is an abstract noun derived from jāhil, referring to barbarism. In modern times various Islamic thinkers have used the term to criticize what they see as the un-Islamic nature of public and private life in the Muslim world.
Ba'ath PartyThe Arab Socialist Baʿth Party (also anglicized as Baath in loose transcription; حزب البعث العربي الاشتراكي Ḥizb al-Baʿth al-ʿArabī al-Ishtirākī ˈħɪzb alˈbaʕθ alˈʕarabiː alʔɪʃtɪˈraːkiː) was a political party founded in Syria by Mishel ʿAflaq, Ṣalāḥ al-Dīn al-Bīṭār, and associates of Zakī al-ʾArsūzī. The party espoused Baʿthism (from Arabic بعث baʿth meaning 'resurrection'), which is an ideology mixing Arab nationalist, pan-Arab, Arab socialist, and anti-imperialist interests.
History of the Islamic Republic of IranOne of the most dramatic changes in government in Iran's history was seen with the 1979 Iranian Revolution where Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was overthrown and replaced by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. The authoritarian monarchy was replaced by a long-lasting Shiite Islamic republic based on the principle of guardianship of Islamic jurists, (or "Velayat-e faqih"), where Shiite jurists serve as head of state and in many powerful governmental roles.
Ruhollah KhomeiniAyatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (born Ruhollah Mostafavi Musavi; 17 May 1900 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian revolutionary, politician and religious leader who served as the first supreme leader of Iran from 1979 until his death in 1989. He was the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the leader of the 1979 Iranian Revolution, which saw the overthrow of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and the end of the Iranian monarchy.
