This book explores the Christian caliphal provinces of Armenia and Caucasian Albania as part of the larger Iranian cultural sphere.

First published in 1988, Ira Lapidus' A History of Islamic Societies has become a classic in the field, enlightening students, scholars, and others with a thirst for knowledge about one of the world's great civilizations. This book, based on fully revised and updated parts one and two of this monumental work,describes the transformations of Islamic societies from their beginning in the seventh century, through their diffusion across the globe, into the challenges of the nineteenth century. The story focuses on the organization of families and tribes, religious groups and states, showing how they were transformed by their interactions with other religious and political communities. The book concludes with the European commercial and imperial interventions that initiated a new set of transformations in the Islamic world, and the onset of the modern era. Organized in narrative sections for the history of each major region, with innovative, analytic summary introductions and conclusions, this book is a unique endeavour.

The Muslim conquest of the East in the seventh century entailed the subjugation of Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians and others. Although much has been written about the status of non-Muslims in the Islamic empire, no previous works have examined how the rules applying to minorities were formulated. Milka Levy-Rubin's remarkable book traces the emergence of these regulations from the first surrender agreements in the immediate aftermath of conquest to the formation of the canonic document called the Pact of 'Umar, which was formalized under the early 'Abbasids, in the first half of the ninth century. The study reveals that the conquered peoples themselves played a major role in the creation of these policies and that they were based on long-standing traditions, customs and institutions from earlier pre-Islamic cultures that originated in the worlds of both the conquerors and the conquered. In its connections to Roman, Byzantine and Sasanian traditions, the book will appeal to historians of Europe as well as Arabia and Persia.

Due to mass migration over a number of decades, many Muslims today find themselves residing as minorities in Western secular nations and as a result are searching for answers in order to live within these societies yet remain true to their faith. This book sets out to counter the idea that there are only two possibilities for Muslim minorities--isolation or assimilation--by arguing that traditional Islamic law, or fiqh as it is found in the classical schools of law, is not outdated or too inflexible to be utilized in the 21st century and that rather it can provide the means for Muslims to integrate within secular societies while maintaining a link to the sources of their religion and its legal rulings. Amjad M. Mohammed demonstrates how Islamic law, as interpreted by the Hanafi School of Law, is a multifaceted, complex legal system that takes into account both the individual's situation and the society's culture and customs. The concept of diyar, or political-legal jurisdictions, is discussed with special emphasis on the criteria for the application of dar al-Islam (Muslim state), dar-al-sulh (peace-treaty state), and dar al-harb (enemy state). A number of rulings for different situations that confront Muslim minorities are also included, such as working with illegal products or services, halal meat, food additives, medicines and medical interventions, financial transactions, and political participation.

Examines the treatment of non-Arab people under the rule of the Muslims and collects historical documents related to this subject

In a world where almost all societies are multi-religious and multi-ethnic, we need to study how social cohesion can be achieved in different contexts. In some geographical areas, as in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent, people of different religious belonging have, through the ages, lived side by side, sometimes in harmony and sometimes in dissonance. In other geographical regions, as in Scandinavia, societies have been quite religiously homogeneous but only recently challenged by immigration.In both locations the relations between religious minority and majority are very much on the agenda. In order to discuss the situation for non-Muslims in Muslim majority societies, a consultation was convened with both Muslim and Christian participants from Pakistan, Palestine, Lebanon, and Sweden. Some of the participants work in academic settings, others in faith-based organisations, some in jurisprudence and others with theological issues. Non-Muslims in Muslim Majority Societies is the result of thatconsultation. The intention of the book is to trigger reflection and further thinking, through papers that discuss issues such as freedom of religion, minority rights, secular and religious legislation, and inter-religious dialogue in Muslim majority societies. Although the articles are presented as 'works in progress' and remain tentative in many of their conclusions, this book is an important contribution to the global debate over religious tolerance and religious pluralism.