madhhab
Sign in to saveA madhhab (, , pl. , ) refers to any school of thought within Islamic jurisprudence. The major Sunni madhhab are Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali. They emerged in the ninth and tenth centuries CE and by the twelfth century almost all Islamic jurists aligned themselves with a particular madhhab. These four schools recognize each other's validity and they have interacted in legal debate over the centuries. Rulings (Fatwa) of these schools are followed across the Muslim world without exclusive regional restrictions, but they each came to dominate in different parts of the world.
AI overview
A madhhab is a school of thought within Islamic jurisprudence that offers guidance on how Islamic law should be interpreted and applied. The four major Sunni madhhabs—Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali—emerged in the ninth and tenth centuries and became so influential that by the twelfth century virtually all Islamic jurists aligned with one of them, with each school dominating different regions of the Muslim world while mutually recognizing each other's validity.
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Article
22 sectionsContents
- History
- "Ancient" schools
- Al-Shafi‘i and afterwards
- Modern era
- Schools
- Sunni
- Hanafi
- Maliki
- Shafi'i
- Hanbali
- Zahiri
- Shia
- Ja'fari
- See also
- General links
- Terms
- Notes
- References
- Citations
- Sources
- Further reading
- External links
A madhhab (, , pl. , ) refers to any school of thought within Islamic jurisprudence. The major Sunni madhhab are Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali. They emerged in the ninth and tenth centuries CE and by the twelfth century almost all Islamic jurists aligned themselves with a particular madhhab. These four schools recognize each other's validity and they have interacted in legal debate over the centuries. Rulings (Fatwa) of these schools are followed across the Muslim world without exclusive regional restrictions, but they each came to dominate in different parts of the world.
For example, the Maliki school is predominant in North and West Africa; the Hanafi school in South and Central Asia; the Shafi'i school in East Africa and Southeast Asia; and the Hanbali school in North and Central Arabia. The first centuries of Islam also witnessed a number of short-lived Sunni madhhabs. The Zahiri school, which is considered to be endangered, continues to exert influence over legal thought. The development of Shia legal schools occurred along the lines of theological differences and resulted in the formation of the Ja'fari madhhab amongst Twelver Shias, as well as the Isma'ili and Zaydi madhhabs amongst Isma'ilis and Zaydis respectively, whose differences from Sunni legal schools are roughly of the same order as the differences among Sunni schools. The Ibadi legal school, distinct from Sunni and Shia madhhabs, is predominant in Oman. Unlike Sunnis, Shias, and Ibadis, non-denominational Muslims are not affiliated with any madhhab.