This research puts a focus on the presentation of the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran in contemporary schoolbooks used on primary schools in Iran in 2016. As a conclusion, I argue that the...Show moreThis research puts a focus on the presentation of the history of the Islamic Republic of Iran in contemporary schoolbooks used on primary schools in Iran in 2016. As a conclusion, I argue that the current Iranian regime legitimizes its power through a certain presentation of the modern history of Iran after the Iranian Revolution of 1979. Notions of nationalism and Islam are important and point to a certain framing of descriptions around events such as the Iranian Revolution, the Iran-Iraq War and Iran's relations with the 'West'. Education therefore seems to be used as a powerful tool by the current government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.Show less
This research deals with the question what the economic system based on precious metals (the natural situation) looked like in the Muslim world and if the evolution toward fiat money violated the...Show moreThis research deals with the question what the economic system based on precious metals (the natural situation) looked like in the Muslim world and if the evolution toward fiat money violated the commandments of the sharia concerning riba, particularly riba al-fadl and riba nasi’ah? These two forms of riba apply specifically to gold and silver, designated in the Quran and Sunnah as natural money. The evolution of money described by Fox and Ernst consists of five different stages, namely the natural situation where gold and silver are valued by their intrinsic value. This situation is sharia compliant but in the next stage coins were valued at face or nominal value, a violation of riba al-fadl which prescribes the exchange of weight for weight. Bank money is seen as the next stage, and this is problematic regarding riba nasi’ah as the exchange of gold and silver is deferred whereas the sources prescribe exchange being done on the spot. Paper money convertible to gold is the fourth stage. This again constitutes deferred exchange of metals, but also riba al-fadl as there is no 100% backing of the notes brought in circulation. Fiat money is totally divorced from gold and silver and is always brought into existence as a loan with interest. Islamic finance hasn’t really engaged with the topic of the permissibility of fiat money, but it appears interest in the subject is gaining traction as most Muslims feel that from an Islamic perspective there is something fundamentally wrong with the current financial system.Show less
The thesis investigates in what ways cultural institutions in the West provide a platform for the representation of Muslim identities and how this can be significant for the accommodation of Muslim...Show moreThe thesis investigates in what ways cultural institutions in the West provide a platform for the representation of Muslim identities and how this can be significant for the accommodation of Muslim communities within the Netherlands at large. It does so by re-evaluating existing political and aesthetic theories and by analysing four case studies on different art and culture instances within the Netherlands.Show less
This thesis sheds light on the political motivations that lay at the basis of the dogmatic condemnations of Salafi Wahhabis of demonstrations against unjust Muslim rulers as engineered by Ash'aris....Show moreThis thesis sheds light on the political motivations that lay at the basis of the dogmatic condemnations of Salafi Wahhabis of demonstrations against unjust Muslim rulers as engineered by Ash'aris. It consults an enormous number of primary sources on which the selective justification of Salafi Wahhabis base these dogmatic condemnations of their Ash'ari components. As a result, the dogmatic condemnation by Salafi Wahhabis of Ash'aris as innovators due to the latter's justification of demonstrating against the unjust ruler is put in an international political context.Show less
Sâmiha Ayverdi represents a curious case of where the usual crude dichotomic categorisations that mark modern Turkey appear to loose validity. Having the outward appearance of a westernised ...Show moreSâmiha Ayverdi represents a curious case of where the usual crude dichotomic categorisations that mark modern Turkey appear to loose validity. Having the outward appearance of a westernised ‘republican woman’ as envisaged by the reformist Kemalist elite, Ayverdi managed to merge multiple, seemingly conflicting, personas in her person as a novelist, a public intellectual and the head of a Sufi brotherhood. This thesis seeks to evaluate Ayverdi’s memoirs in terms of their value of providing us with a counter-narrative on the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, the rise of the republic and the numerous political crises that it faced throughout its existence. It is not a study of Ayverdi’s Sufi inspired religious views which have been discussed elsewhere. It is hoped this study will constitute a humble contribution to the academic discourse regarding the hybridity of Turkish intellectuals.Show less
The Alevi community is the biggest religious minority in Turkey today. Although the Turkish state is by definition secular and laicist, it considers Sunni Islam the state’s religion and the mosque...Show moreThe Alevi community is the biggest religious minority in Turkey today. Although the Turkish state is by definition secular and laicist, it considers Sunni Islam the state’s religion and the mosque as offical worship place for all groups who describe themselves "Islamic". The Alevi religious practices which are not performed in the mosque have been weakened as a result of social differentiation and migration during the 1950’s and 1960’s which firstly occurred in the cities and later on in the villages. The demands of Democratic Party (the beginning of Multiparty system - 1946) for a more central role of religion (Sunni Islam), especially after the coup in 1980 has resulted in the construction of more and more mosques in Alevi villages, clearly designed to assimilate the Alevis in Sunni Islam. As time passed by, the Alevis got more organized after 1990s, opposition to this project increased, and most Alevis did not attend the newly built mosques which resulted in a deterioration of the relationship with the state- appointed (Sunni) imam. Contrary to many other villagers, the state-appointed Imam in Koyunpinari has a very good relationship with the villagers, of whom some even attend his Friday prayers. He has spent 23 years in Koyunpinari and does not show any intention of leaving. In 2014 the first cem-house (House of Gathering where religious ceremonies take place that has not been performed in the past 60 years in Koyunpinari) was constructed in that village after the village association in Ankara and Istanbul managed to collect enough means. This paper investigates where this sudden urge in willing to have a cem-house came from while the mosque seems to be embraced. Also it traces the development of the relationship between the Alevi community and their adhering to certain religious dogma’s, and the mosque as the most visible manifestation of Sunni Islam.Show less
The present thesis aims at a better understanding of Islamophobia in Western Europe. For this purpose, it investigates how the issue is perceived from the Arabic and from the Western European...Show moreThe present thesis aims at a better understanding of Islamophobia in Western Europe. For this purpose, it investigates how the issue is perceived from the Arabic and from the Western European perspective, what both of these views have in common and where the differences between them. In the opening section, the results of a literature research are presented, which focuses on academic Arabic sources, articles on the Aljazeera website, and academic publications by West European authors. In this context, various aspects of the phenomenon such as the definition of the term, roots and causes, the role of media and of the political right, and its relation to the anti-Semitism are considered. As example of manifestation of Islamophobia the French head scarf ban is discussed. Comparing the Arabic and the Western European view on Islamophobia, one cannot detect specific differences concerning the definition of the term, albeit the latter appears contested and vague. In contrast, the identified reasons for Islamophobia and the role attributed to media and the political right are controversial and depend very much on the particular perspective involved. While the majority of the Western sources identifies the reason of Islamophobia as the perceived incompatibility of Islam with Western and European values, Arab authors mostly hold Western misunderstanding and lack of knowledge responsible for the phenomenon. They also attribute an essential role to media and the political right in its dissemination. While at least the majority of the Arab sources attribute a positive character to the headscarf, in Western Europe it is frequently understood as symbol of a radical Islam and gender discrimination, therefore justifying its ban. The comparison with anti-Semitism appears to be restricted to the Western European perspective, which is possibly due to the role this phenomenon has played in Europe's history.Show less
