Next Steps in the Study of Islam and Politics: From 'Islam' to 'Muslims'

Abstract

During the past 20 years, scholars and policy makers have shown considerable interest in the politics of Islam. Area studies programmes—traditionally focused on East Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America—have added new initiatives focused on the cross-regional world of Islam. Scholars have debated the analytical merits of terms like ‘Islamism’ to describe those who instrumentalise Islam to achieve state-based political ends. Sometimes, ‘Islam’ itself has been transformed into a political actor: ‘Islam demands X or Y’.