This concise reference guide is designed specifically for readers and students who wish to learn more about the world''s fastest-growing religion. Fully illustrated, the encyclopedia contains hundreds of alphabetically arranged entries which give succinct yet authoritative information on everything from the Qur''an and its origins to the role of Islam in the USA.

Covering everything from Adam to Zakariyyah, this concise reference guide is designed specifically for readers and students who wish to learn more about the world's fastest-growing religion. Fully illustrated, the book contains hundreds of alphabetically arranged entries which give succinct yet authoritative information on everything from the Qur'an and its origins to the role of Islam in the USA. It offers even-handed coverage of the different schools of belief, while featuring photographs, a timeline, and a guide to further reading.

The Concise Encyclopedia of Islam is a mandatory reference tool that will prove to be indispensable for students of all subjects which concern, or touch on, the religion and law of Islam. It includes all the articles contained in the first edition and supplement of the Encyclopedia of Islam which are particularly related to the religion and law of Islam. This volume has a vast geographical and historical scope which includes the old Arabo-Islamic Empire, the Islamic states of Iran, Central Asia, the Indian sub-continent and Indonesia, the Ottoman Empire and the various Muslim states and communities in Africa, Europe, and the former U.S.S.R. The Concise Encyclopedia of Islam contains an extensive index and bibliography. This publication has also been published in hardback, please click here for details.

The first edition of the Encyclopaedia won worldwide acclaim. As a western scholar of the Islamic faith, Cyril Glassé straddle both cultures and has a respect for and an understanding of both the currrent Islamic world and its complex past. This unique single-volume work covers the contemporary Islamic scene, which includes a substantial entry on the Taliban. This new edition also contains an extensively revised chronology which spans the history of Islam, from its origins through developments in the Muslim world today.

"In 2012, the year 1433 of the Muslim calendar, the Islamic population throughout the world was estimated at approximately a billion and a half, representing about one-fifth of humanity. In geographical terms, Islam occupies the center of the world, stretching like a big belt across the globe from east to west."--P. vii.