Words Relating to Islam

Islam is a monotheistic world religion that began in the 7th century CE, centered on the Quran and the teachings of Prophet Muhammad. The Arabic term islām means "surrender" which is the fundamental religious idea of Islam — each Muslim believer accepts surrender to the will of Allah (in Arabic, Allāh: God).
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  1. caliph
    the civil and religious leader of a Muslim state
    The term "caliph"...is generally regarded to mean "successor of the prophet Muhammad," while "caliphate"...denotes the office of the political leader of the Muslim community (ummah) or state, particularly during the period from 632 to 1258.
    – Oxford Bibliographies
  2. caliphate
    the office of a Muslim civil and religious leader
    The term "caliph"...is generally regarded to mean "successor of the prophet Muhammad," while "caliphate"...denotes the office of the political leader of the Muslim community (ummah) or state, particularly during the period from 632 to 1258.
    – Oxford Bibliographies
  3. chador
    a cloth used as a head and body covering by Muslim women
    A chador is a large cloth that's draped around a woman's head and body, leaving only the face exposed. Americanized
  4. dervish
    a Muslim monk of an order noted for fast ceremonial dancing
    The rite begins with a recital of prayers and verses from the Quran. The dervishes, dressed in long white robes symbolizing shrouds, black cloaks symbolizing tombs and long headgear symbolizing tombstones, then rise from the ground to salute each other.
    – NPR
  5. fakir
    a Muslim or Hindu mendicant monk regarded as a holy man
    Fakirs are generally regarded as holy men who are possessed of miraculous powers, such as the ability to walk on fire.
    – Britannica
  6. hajj
    a pilgrimage to Mecca that is a religious duty for Muslims
    "So, Swami Jesus, will you go on the hajj this year?" he said, bringing the palms together in front of his face in a reverent namaskar.
    – Life of Pi
  7. halal
    meat from animals prepared following Islamic law
    Halal is Arabic for permissible. Halal food is that which adheres to Islamic law, as defined in the Koran.
    – BBC
  8. harem
    living quarters for wives in some Muslim households
    A staircase ascended to the Hall of the Two Sisters above, for the use, not improbably, of the ladies of the harem. Calvert, A. F. (Albert Frederick)
  9. hijab
    a headscarf worn by Muslim women
    She’s wearing a green-and-white silky shalwar kameez—the colors of the Pakistan flag—and a matching white hijab that makes her almost radiant. A Place at the Table
  10. imam
    the person who leads prayers in a mosque
    The imam delivers the weekly Friday sermon, speaks every Sunday, and gives lectures regularly.
    – Amina's Voice
  11. Islam
    the monotheistic religious system of Muslims
    I was thankful for the peace Islam brought to my life when things proved too painful or chaotic. Proud
  12. madrasa
    a Muslim college or school
    I had studied the Quran, our holy book, since I was five; and my parents sent me to a madrasa for religious studies in the afternoons when school finished.
    – Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World
  13. minaret
    a slender tower with balconies, especially on a mosque
    The minaret then, is a tall, slender tower that is a significant feature of every mosque, and is one of the earliest characteristics of Islamic architecture.
    – World History Encyclopedia
  14. mosque
    a Muslim place of worship that usually has a minaret
    My earliest memory of the mosque is being here with my parents during Ramadan for special nightly prayers when I was three or four. Amina's Voice
  15. mufti
    a jurist who interprets Muslim religious law
    He claimed to be a mufti, or an Islamic scholar, and said he had a problem with the school. Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World
  16. seraglio
    a harem
    Every Turkish seraglio and harem, has a garden adjoining to it, and in the middle of this garden a large room, more or less decorated according to the wealth of the proprietor. Anonymous
  17. sultan
    the ruler of a Muslim country
    The furniture was straight out of a sultan's palace: ornate and inlaid with silver and mother-of-pearl. City of the Plague God
  18. turban
    a headdress made of a long scarf wrapped around the head
    We had seen Fazlullah’s followers, with their long hair and beards, dressed in black turbans and white shalwar kamiz, in the small towns on the way to visit our family in the mountains. Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World
  19. vizier
    a high government official in some Muslim countries
    The brilliant Nizam al-Mulk, for example, was a Persian who served as the vizier, or prime minister, of the most famous of Seljuk sultans, Malik Shah. World History: Patterns of Interaction
Created on Tue May 09 14:18:23 EDT 2023 (updated Mon Jun 26 12:36:37 EDT 2023)

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