In recent decades, the number of Muslims in the West has increased rapidly, and interesting transformations of Islam have taken place—to some extent with repercussions in Islamic or predominantly Muslim countries in Asia and Africa. This new four-volume Major Work collection from Routledge helps to make sense of the burgeoning scholarship in this area.
Volume I (‘Regions and History’) includes studies on the historical development of Islam, as well as key work on the current situation in various regions and countries. Volume II focuses on religion and culture, while Volume III (‘Social and Economic Issues’) assembles vital materials on topics such as gender, family structures, class, poverty, and health. The final volume in the collection (‘Politics and Law’) gathers the best work on, among other things, Muslim involvement in political life; Muslim presence in the public sphere; the media coverage of Islam; and issues of integration and so-called ‘Islamophobia’. Legal issues covered include laws on freedom of religion, minority rights, separate legislation, and debates about veils and halal slaughter.
With a full index, together with comprehensive introductions newly written by the editors, which place the collected material in its historical and intellectual context, Islam in the West is an essential new addition to Routledge’s Critical Concepts in Islamic Studies series.