Global Salafism

Given the salience of the terms 'Salafism' or 'Jihadi-Salafism, ' not only in specialist analyses but also in the media, the currents of Islamic thought grouped under these terms are poised to become more widely known. Yet much western analysis suffers from a lack of sophistication and discernment on this important doctrinal trend in contemporary Islamic thought, so that 'Salafism' is some what liberally employed to denote, with far too much specificity, a phenomenon that is only opaquely defined to the western reader. The contributors to 'Global Salafism' are careful to map out not only the differences in the Salafist schools, but also to underscore the fluidity of this broad doctrinal tendency. They examine the phenomenon both in its regional manifestations - which demonstrate surprising diversities, ambivalences and contradictions - and in its shared essential doctrines. In so doing they highlight the ambivalences inherent in Salafism itself, and the Salafist believers' claim to be reviving Islamic thought for the modern age - albeit through the paradox of 'out-antiquing the antique' by appealing to a greater, older, purer authenticity. With considerable subtlety the tensions between the local and the global aspirations of exponents and claimants to the 'Salafist method' are explored and the parallels and divergences weighed. This is a unique book that can justifiably claim to be pioneering, as it is the first of its kind to take the phenomenon of Salafism as a whole, and address the task of defining what is, despite its crucial importance, a relatively neglected field.

'Salafism' and 'jihadi Salafism' have become significant doctrinal trends in contemporary Islamic thought yet the West has largely failed to offer a sophisticated and discerning definition of these movements. The contributors to Global Salafism carefully outline not only the differences in the Salafi schools but the broader currents of Islamic thought that constitute this trend as well. They examine both the regional manifestations of the phenomenon and its shared, essential doctrines. Their analyses highlight Salafism's inherent ambivalence and complexities - the 'out-antiquing the antique' that has brought Islamic thought into the modern age while maintaining its relationship to an older, purer authenticity. Emphasising the subtle tensions between local and global aspirations within the 'Salafi method', Global Salafism investigates the movement like no other study currently available.

Some Islamic scholars hold that Salafism is an innovative and rationalist effort at Islamic reform that emerged in the late nineteenth century but gradually disappeared in the mid twentieth. Others argue Salafism is an anti-innovative and antirationalist movement of Islamic purism that dates back to the medieval period yet persists today. Though they contradict each other, both narratives are considered authoritative, making it hard for outsiders to grasp the history of the ideology and its core beliefs. Introducing a third, empirically based genealogy, The Making of Salafism understands the concept as a recent phenomenon projected back onto the past, and it sees its purist evolution as a direct result of decolonization. Henri Lauzière builds his history on the transnational networks of Taqi al-Din al-Hilali (1894–1987), a Moroccan Salafi who, with his associates, participated in the development of Salafism as both a term and a movement. Traveling from Rabat to Mecca, from Calcutta to Berlin, al-Hilali interacted with high-profile Salafi scholars and activists who eventually abandoned Islamic modernism in favor of a more purist approach to Islam. Today, Salafis tend to claim a monopoly on religious truth and freely confront other Muslims on theological and legal issues. Lauzière's pathbreaking history recognizes the social forces behind this purist turn, uncovering the popular origins of what has become a global phenomenon.

Salafism is a fundamentalist Sunni vision of Islam that is growing in popularity in many countries. In this book, Mohamed-Ali Adraoui focuses on quietist Salafism, which he calls a study in contradictions. Strongly opposed to political action, terrorism, and the overthrow of established regimes, quietist Salafism insists on restructuring Islamic norms with the fervor of a revivalist and fundamentalist ethic. Quietist Salafis seek the purification of culture and religious renewal through a "de-militantization" of the Islamic corpus. Adraoui explores the Salafis' individual trajectories, their relationship with politics, and their vision of the world and of modernity, in order to understand how quietist Salafis negotiate their social identities and religious obligations in the Western context. What does the increasing presence of Islamic movements in the global space mean? Adraoui draws parallels between the French case and that of Muslim countries, and argues that the spread of quietist Salafism is partially a result of the foreign policy of Saudi Arabia. Quietist Salafism, he argues, is resonant of Saudi Arabia's efforts to promote a legitimist, anti-anarchist, and counter-revolutionary conception of Islam, after having long legitimized and reinforced the Islamist forces and Jihadist movements when it was in its geopolitical interests to do so. Salafism Goes Global sheds light on a dynamic of globalization that is taking place in the margins.

The conservative, literalist Islamist current known as Salafism is often synonymous with extremism and militancy. In fact, Salafism is an adaptive, diverse and dynamic outlook that has emerged as a major social and political force across the Middle East, especially in the countries of the Arab Maghreb--Mauritania, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya--a vitally important region that impacts the security and politics of Europe, sub-Saharan Africa and the broader Middle East. Through extensive interviews and fieldwork, Middle East scholars Frederic Wehrey and Anouar Boukhars explore the many roles and manifestations of Salafism in the Maghreb, to include its relationship with the Maghreb's ruling regimes, with competing Islamist currents, increasingly youthful populations, and communal groups like tribes and ethno-linguistic minorities. Particular attention is paid to how the boundaries between different Salafi currents--pro-regime "quietists," politically active "politicos" who participate in elections, and militant jihadists like al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, is increasingly blurred, demonstrating how seemingly immutable Salafi ideology is often shaped by local contexts and opportunities. Similarly, the authors show how Maghrebi Salafism is uniquely reflective of each country's political institutions, history, and social makeup and how the much-touted notion of Salafism as a monolithic Saudi or Gulf "export" is undermined by local realities. Informed by rigorous research, deep empathy, and unparalleled access to Salafi adherents, clerics, politicians, and militants, Salafism in the Maghreb offers a definitive account of this important Islamist current that is at once granular and accessible.

Examines how Salafism, a globally influential Muslim movement, is reshaping religious authority in Nigeria, Africa's most populous country.

Salafism is one of the most dynamic and rapidly growing Islamic movements and it is impossible to understand contemporary Islam without taking account of it. The movement has reached almost every corner of the Muslim world, and its transnational networks span the globe. Despite the importance of Salafism, scholars have only recently begun to pay serious attention to the movement, and while the body of literature on Salafism is growing, there are still many lacunae. The Lebanese context adopted by the author of this important study provides an excellent opportunity to explore the dynamics of the Salafi movement worldwide.

This book addresses the issue of one of the most visible and debated currents in contemporary radical Islam. It sheds light on the history, the fundamental principles, and the political and religious translations of Salafism and explains current events involving Salafist actors in an objective and dispassionate manner. The author explains with precision the different contemporary Salafist mobilizations by illustrating them with specific cases while shedding light on the main debates related to this mode of understanding of the Muslim religion, such as its potential role in triggering certain forms of violence, the way to compare it to other fundamentalist versions in other religions, or the way to describe, in terms of social sciences, the main concepts and discourses that can be observed in this current of Islam today.