fatwah - (Islam) a legal opinion or ruling issued by an Islamic scholar; "bin Laden issued three fatwahs calling upon Muslims to take up arms against the United States"

religion, faith - institution to express belief in a divine power; "he was raised in the Baptist religion"; "a member of his own faith contradicted him"

Shia, Shiah, Shiah Islam, the Shiites - one of the two main branches of orthodox Islam; mainly in Iran

the Sunnites, Sunni - one of the two main branches of orthodox Islam

Islamist, Mohammedan, Moslem, Muhammadan, Muhammedan, Muslim - a believer or follower of Islam

sigeh - a Shiite tradition of temporary marriage permitted in Iran that allows a couple to specify the terms of their relationship; can last from a few mintues to 99 years; "sigheh legally wraps premarital sex in an Islamic cloak"

Sunna, Sunnah, hadith - (Islam) the way of life prescribed as normative for Muslims on the basis of the teachings and practices of Muhammad and interpretations of the Koran

Had crime - (Islam) serious crimes committed by Muslims and punishable by pre-established punishments found in the Koran; "Had crimes include apostasy from Islam and murder and theft and adultery"

Tazir crime - (Islam) minor crimes committed by Muslims; crimes that are not mentioned in the Koran so judges are free to punish the offender in any appropriate way; "in some Islamic nations Tazir crimes are set by legislation"

Ramadan - (Islam) a fast (held from sunrise to sunset) that is carried out during the Islamic month of Ramadan

Caaba, Kaaba - (Islam) a black stone building in Mecca that is shaped like a cube and that is the most sacred Muslim pilgrim shrine; believed to have been given by Gabriel to Abraham; Muslims turn in its direction when praying

mihrab - (Islam) a niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the direction of Mecca

mihrab - (Islam) a design in the shape of niche in a Muslim prayer rug; during worship the niche must be pointed toward Mecca

masjid, mosque, musjid - (Islam) a Muslim place of worship

Hadith - (Islam) a tradition based on reports of the sayings and activities of Muhammad and his companions

pillar of Islam - (Islam) one of the five religious obligations accepted by all Muslims

monotheism - belief in a single God

Salafi movement, Salafism - a militant group of extremist Sunnis who believe themselves the only correct interpreters of the Koran and consider moderate Muslims to be infidels; seek to convert all Muslims and to insure that its own fundamentalist version of Islam will dominate the world

Shiism - the branch of Islam that regards Ali as the legitimate successor to Mohammed and rejects the first three caliphs

Wahabism, Wahhabism - a conservative and intolerant form of Islam that is practiced in Saudi Arabia; "Osama bin Laden and his followers practice Wahhabism"

Ta'ziyeh - (Islam) a form of Iranian musical pageant that is the theatrical expression of religious passion; based on the Battle of Kerbala and performed annually (in Farsi)

kismat, kismet - (Islam) the will of Allah

halal - (Islam) meat from animals that have been slaughtered in the prescribed way according to the shariah

Islam Nation, Islamic Ummah, Muslim Ummah, Umma, Ummah - the Muslim community or people, considered to extend from Mauritania to Pakistan; "moderate Muslims urge the Ummah to reject the terrorism of radical Muslims"

Beelzebub, Devil, Lucifer, Old Nick, Prince of Darkness, Satan, the Devil, the Tempter - (Judeo-Christian and Islamic religions) chief spirit of evil and adversary of God; tempter of mankind; master of Hell

djinni, djinny, genie, jinnee, jinni - (Islam) an invisible spirit mentioned in the Koran and believed by Muslims to inhabit the earth and influence mankind by appearing in the form of humans or animals

shaitan, shaytan - (Islam) a rebellious jinni who leads men astray

eblis - (Islam) the principal evil jinni in Islamic mythology

houri - (Islam) one of the dark-eyed virgins of perfect beauty believed to live with the blessed in Paradise

paynim - a heathen; a person who is not a Christian (especially a Muslim)

imam, imaum - (Islam) the man who leads prayers in a mosque; for Shiites an imam is a recognized authority on Islamic theology and law and a spiritual guide