Muslim community

⭐ In the context of the Muslim community, the term *Ummah* is most accurately distinguished from the Arabic word *shaʻb* by its emphasis on what defining characteristic?

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⭐ Core Definition: Muslim community

Ummah (/ˈʊmə/; Arabic: أُمَّة [ˈʊm.mæ]) is an Arabic word meaning Muslim identity, nation, religious community, or the concept of a Commonwealth of the Muslim Believers (أمة المؤمنين ummat al-muʼminīn). It is a synonym for ummat al-Islām (أمّةْ الإِسْلَامُ, lit. 'the Islamic nation'); it is commonly used to mean the collective community of Muslim people. In the Quran, the ummah typically refers to a single group that shares common religious beliefs, specifically those that are the objects of a divine plan of salvation. The word ummah (pl. umam [ˈʊmæm]) means nation in Arabic. For example, the Arabic term for the United Nations is الأمم المتحدة al-Umam al-Muttaḥidah, and the term الأمة العربية al-Ummah al-ʻArabiyyah is used to refer to "the Arab Nation".

Ummah is distinguished from shaʻb (شَعْب [ˈʃæʕb], "people"), which means a nation with common ancestry or geography. The word ummah differs from the concept of a country or people. In its greater context it is used to describe a larger group of people. For example, in Arabic the word شعب shaʻab ("people") would be used to describe the citizens of Syria. However, the term ummah is used to describe the Arab people as a whole, which includes Syrians as well as the people of the Arab world. Ummah can be a supra-national polity with a common history and identity based on religion. Pan-Islamism advocates for the unity of Muslims in one nation as an Islamic country or an Islamic state.

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In this Dossier

Muslim community in the context of Rashidun Caliphate

The Rashidun Caliphate (Arabic: ٱلْخِلَافَةُ ٱلرَّاشِدَةُ, romanizedal-Khilāfah ar-Rāšidah) is the early Islamic polity led by the first four successive caliphs (lit. "successors") Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, collectively the Rashidun, or "Rightly Guided" caliphs. These early caliphs led the Muslim community from the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in 632 CE to the foundation of the Umayyad Caliphate in 661 CE.

The title Rashidun stems from the Sunni Islamic belief that the caliphs were "rightly guided". Endowed with superior piety and wisdom, their era is regarded in Sunni Islam as a "golden age", second only to the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad in sanctity and in providing moral and religious guidance. Sunni Muslims consider the "rightly guided" reign of the first four caliphs as a model to be followed and emulated from a religious point of view. The term Rashidun is not used by Shia Muslims, who make up 10–15% of the global Muslim population, as they reject the rule of the first three caliphs as illegitimate.

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Muslim community in the context of Succession to Muhammad

The issue of succession following the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad is the central issue in the schisms that divided the early Muslim community in the first century of Islamic history into numerous schools and branches. The two most prominent branches that emerged from these divisions are Sunni and Shia as well as Ibadi branches of Islam. Sunni Islam and Ibadi Islam asserts that Abu Bakr rightfully succeeded Muhammad through a process of election. In contrast, Shia Islam maintains that Ali ibn Abi Talib was Muhammad's designated successor.

These differing viewpoints on succession stem from varying interpretations of early Islamic history and the hadiths, which are the recorded sayings of Muhammad. Sunni Muslims contend that Muhammad did not explicitly appoint a successor, leaving the choice of leadership to the Muslim community. They recognize the legitimacy of Abu Bakr's rule, who was elected at Saqifah, as well as that of his successors, collectively known as the Rashidun caliphs.

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Muslim community in the context of Eid prayers

Eid prayers, also referred to as Salat al-Eid (Arabic: صلاة العيد), are holy holiday prayers in the Islamic tradition. The literal translation of the word "Eid" in Arabic is "festival" or "feast" and is a time when Muslims congregate with family and the larger Muslim community to celebrate.

There are generally two central Eids that take place in accordance with the Islamic lunar calendar (hence the additional name Ṣalāt al-’Īdayn (Arabic: صلاة العيدين "Prayer of the Two Eids"):

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Muslim community in the context of Munafiqun

In Islam, the munafiqun (lit.'hypocrites', Arabic: منافقون, singular منافق, munāfiq) or false Muslims or false believers are a group decried in the Quran as outward Muslims who were inwardly concealing disbelief ("kufr") and actively sought to undermine the Muslim community. A munafiq is a person who in public and in community shows that he is a Muslim, but rejects Islam or speaks against it either in his heart or among the enemies of Islam. The hypocrisy itself is called nifāq (نفاق).

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