Islamism
The word Islamism first appeared in English as Islamismus in 1696 and later as Islamism in 1712. By the turn of the twentieth century, the shorter Arabic term Islam had displaced it from common usage. The Encyclopaedia of Islam completed by Orientalist scholars in 1938 marked a point where the term virtually disappeared from Western vocabulary. It remained practically absent until the Iranian Islamic Revolution of 1978, 79 brought Ayatollah Khomeini's concept of Islamic government to global attention. This new usage ignored how the term Islamist was already used in traditional Arabic scholarship to refer simply to anyone who attributes themselves to Islam without affirming or negating that attribution. Arab journalists invented the term Islamawi instead of Islami to evade confusion between Western political definitions and theological meanings. In heresiographical works like al-Ash'ari's Maqālāt al-Islāmiyyīn, an Islamist refers to any person claiming association with Islam regardless of their specific beliefs.
Proponents believe Islam is innately political and superior to communism, liberal democracy, capitalism, and other alternatives for achieving a just society. They emphasize implementing Sharia law, pan-Islamic political unity, and creating Islamic states. Rashid Rida published articles titled The Caliphate or the Supreme Imamate during 1922, 1923 advocating restoration of Caliphate guided by Islamic jurists. He proposed gradualist measures of education, reformation, and purification through Salafiyya reform movements across the globe. Sayyid Qutb argued that since Sharia was not in force, Islam did not really exist in the Muslim world which existed in Jahiliyya or pre-Islamic ignorance. He urged a two-pronged attack involving preaching to convert and jihad to forcibly eliminate structures of Jahiliyya. Qutism called for offensive Jihad to eliminate Jahiliyya from both the Islamic homeland and the face of Earth while maintaining vigilance against Western and Jewish conspiracies. Abul A'la Maududi believed Muslim society could not be Islamic without Sharia and the establishment of an Islamic state to enforce it.
Syrian-born theologian Muhammad Rashid Rida visited India in 1912 and was impressed by Deoband and Nadwatul Ulama seminaries carrying the legacy of Sayyid Ahmad Shahid's pre-modern Islamic emirate. Egyptian schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna founded the Muslim Brotherhood movement in Ismailiyah, Egypt in 1928 with the motto The Qur'an is our constitution. Al-Banna provided basic community services including schools, mosques, and workshops while seeking Islamic revival through preaching. Anti-Zionist Grand Mufti of Jerusalem Hajji Amin al-Husayni became another disciple influenced by Rida's Salafi-Arabist synthesis. Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini led the Islamist Revolution that created the Islamic Republic of Iran where clerics controlled levers of power under Velayat-e Faqih. He executed more than 3,400 political dissidents between June 1981 and March 1982 during consolidation of power. Syrian Sunni cleric Muhammad Rashid Riāda advocated Sunni internationalism through revolutionary restoration of a pan-Islamic Caliphate to politically unite the Muslim world. His ideas greatly influenced disciples like Hasan al-Banna and Hajji Amin al-Husayni.
Moderate reformist Islamists accept and work within democratic processes including Tunisia's Ennahda Movement which abandoned original vision of implementing Sharia as Post-Islamism. Jamaat-e-Islami of Pakistan functions as socio-political vanguard party working within democratic process but gained influence through military coups d'état in past. Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine claim participation in democratic process alongside armed attacks by powerful paramilitary wings. Jihadist organizations like al-Qaeda and Egyptian Islamic Jihad entirely reject democracy seeing it as kufr or disbelief calling for offensive jihad on religious basis. Salafist-jihadist ideology combines literal interpretations of scripture with promotion of fighting against military and civilian targets pursuing establishment of new Caliphate. The far enemy concept introduced formally under attack by al-Qaeda in 1996 targeted United States and other Western countries while near enemy referred to governments of majority-Muslim countries perceived as apostates from Islam. Mohammed Abdul-Salam Farag coined term near enemy after leading assassination of Anwar al-Sadat with Egyptian Islamic Jihad in 1981.
Since the 1960s, Saudis have funnelled over USD 100 billion into funding schools and mosques worldwide spreading puritanical Wahhabi Islam. David A. Kaplan described this effort as dwarfing Soviets' propaganda efforts at height of Cold War. During mid-1970s Islamic resurgence funded by abundance of money from Saudi Arabian oil exports covered estimated 90% of entire faith expenses. More than 1500 mosques were built and paid for with public Saudi funds over last 50 years alone. Qatar backed Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt even after 2013 overthrow of Mohamed Morsi regime with ruler Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani denouncing coup. In Libya, Qatar supported Islamists with tens of millions dollars aid, military training and more than 20,000 tons weapons before and after 2011 fall of Muammar Gaddafi. U.S. President Eisenhower agreed in 1957 to stress holy war aspect currency in Middle East against communists lacking religion. US spent billions aiding mujahideen Muslim Afghanistan enemies of Soviet Union while non-Afghan veterans like Osama bin Laden returned home with prestige experience ideology and weapons.
Olivier Roy identifies socioeconomic realities sustaining Islamist wave including poverty uprootedness crises in values identities decay educational systems North-South opposition problem immigrant integration into host societies. Demographic transition caused gap between lowering death rates from medical advances and lowering fertility rates leads population growth beyond ability housing employment public transit sewer water provide. Urban agglomerations created in Cairo Istanbul Tehran Karachi Dhaka Jakarta each with well over 12 million citizens many young unemployed or underemployed. One American anthropologist found slum dwellers all recently dispossessed peasants used religion substitute lost communities oriented social life around mosque accepted zeal teachings local mullah compared stable village where villagers took religion grain salt even ridiculed visiting preachers. Gilles Kepel notes Islamist uprisings Iran Algeria decade apart coincided large numbers youth first generation taught mass read write separated rural illiterate progenitors cultural gulf radical Islamist ideology exploit. In 1990 Algeria housing so crowded average eight inhabitants room 80% youth aged 16 to 29 still lived parents old clan ethnic solidarities clout elders family control fading little face changes social structure.
Common questions
When did the word Islamism first appear in English?
The word Islamism first appeared in English as Islamismus in 1696 and later as Islamism in 1712. By the turn of the twentieth century, the shorter Arabic term Islam had displaced it from common usage.
Who founded the Muslim Brotherhood movement and when was it established?
Egyptian schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna founded the Muslim Brotherhood movement in Ismailiyah, Egypt in 1928 with the motto The Qur'an is our constitution. Al-Banna provided basic community services including schools, mosques, and workshops while seeking Islamic revival through preaching.
What happened during the Iranian Islamic Revolution of 1978 79?
Ayatollah Khomeini's concept of Islamic government brought global attention to the new usage of Islamism after the Encyclopaedia of Islam completed by Orientalist scholars in 1938 marked a point where the term virtually disappeared from Western vocabulary. He executed more than 3,400 political dissidents between June 1981 and March 1982 during consolidation of power.
How much money have Saudis funneled into funding schools and mosques worldwide since the 1960s?
Since the 1960s, Saudis have funnelled over USD 100 billion into funding schools and mosques worldwide spreading puritanical Wahhabi Islam. More than 1500 mosques were built and paid for with public Saudi funds over last 50 years alone.
Why do jihadist organizations like al-Qaeda reject democracy according to the script text?
Jihadist organizations like al-Qaeda and Egyptian Islamic Jihad entirely reject democracy seeing it as kufr or disbelief calling for offensive jihad on religious basis. They pursue establishment of new Caliphate through Salafist-jihadist ideology which combines literal interpretations of scripture with promotion of fighting against military and civilian targets.