Twelver Shiism: Unity and Diversity in the Life of Islam, 632 to 1722

by Andrew J. Newman

Overview

Charts the history and development of Twelver Shi'ism
As many as 40 different Shi‘i groups existed in the 9th and 10th centuries; only 3 forms remain. Why is Twelver Shi‘ism one of them? As the established faith in modern Iran, the majority faith in Iraq and areas in the Gulf and with its adherents forming sizeable minorities elsewhere in the region, it is arguably the most successful branch of Shi'ism.
Andrew Newman charts the history Twelver Shi’ism, uncovering the development of the key distinctive doctrines and practices which ensured its survival in the face of repeated challenges. He argues that the key to the faith's endurance has been its ability to institutionalise responses to the changing, often localised circumstances in which the community has found itself, thereby remaining remarkably resilient in the face of both internal disagreements and external opposition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780748633319
Publisher:	Edinburgh University Press
Publication date:	11/20/2013
Series:	The New Edinburgh Islamic Surveys
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Andrew Newman is Professor of Islamic Studies and Persian at the University of Edinburgh. He is author of Safavid Iran: Rebirth of a Persian Empire (2006) and The Formative Period of Shi'i Law: Hadith as Discourse Between Qum and Baghdad (2000) and editor of Society and Culture in the Early Modern Middle East, Studies on Iran in the Safavid Period (2003).

Table of Contents

Introduction; 1. Shiism fragmented: the faith and the faithful from the 7th to the 9th century; 2. Bereft of a leader: the early traditionists and the beginnings of doctrine and practice; 3. The challenge of ‘the uncertainty’; 4. Majority and minority: rationalism on the defensive in the later Buyid period; 5. Betwixt and between: the Twelvers and the Turks; 6. The Mongol and Ilkhanid periods: the rise and limits of the al-Hilla school of al-Hilla; 7. The severest of challenges; 8. Shiism in the 16th century: the limits of power (and influence); 9. The past rediscovered and the future assured: Shiism in the 17th century; Epilogue; Appendices; Bibliography; Index.

Editorial Reviews

"Newman's analysis provides a valuable perspective and numerous insights into the long intellectual developments which it covers. Moreover, showing as it does what can be achieved through diligent application of the biographical and bibliographical sources, the work has much to offer as a model for further studies." — George Warner, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society

"Twelver Shiism provides a historical account of the development of this sect, from the conflicts over the successors of the Prophet Muhammad following his death in 632 to the fall of the Safavid dynasty in 1722. Newman appeals to a Western, nonspecialist audience that will leave the reader with an understanding of the progression of Twelver Shi'ism as its followers learned to cope with the political and religious landscape that it encountered. The book pays special attention to the internal and external pressures that Twelvers faced, the diversity of the faith throughout its first millennium of existence, the development of the divide between religious scholars and lay believers, and the wide geographic distribution of pockets of Twelvers from Asia through the Middle East."— The Middle East Journal

"Newman has rendered a vital contribution to the blossoming study of Twelver Shi'ism by delivering a survey of the key intellectual turning points supported by exhaustive references to many primary works." — John Cappucci, Journal of Shi'a Islamic Studies

From the Publisher

Newman’s analysis provides a valuable perspective and numerous insights into the long intellectual developments which it covers. Moreover, showing as it does what can be achieved through diligent application of the biographical and bibliographical sources, the work has much to offer as a model for further studies.

Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society - George Warner. SOAS

‘Newman has rendered a vital contribution to the blossoming study of Twelver Shi’ism by delivering a survey of the key intellectual turning points supported by exhaustive references to many primary works.’

Journal of Shi‘a Islamic Studies - John Cappucci

‘Twelver Shiism provides a historical account of the development of this sect, from the conflicts over the successors of the Prophet Muhammad following his death in 632 to the fall of the Safavid dynasty in 1722. Newman appeals to a Western, nonspecialist audience that will leave the reader with an understanding of the progression of Twelver Shi‘ism as its followers learned to cope with the political and religious landscape that it encountered. The book pays special attention to the internal and external pressures that Twelvers faced, the diversity of the faith throughout its first millennium of existence, the development of the divide between religious scholars and lay believers, and the wide geographic distribution of pockets of Twelvers from Asia through the Middle East.’- The Middle East Journal

The Middle East Journal