Degrees of interpretive autonomy: ijtihad and the constraints of competence in late medieval Tilimsan
The social standing and religious legitimacy of learned Muslims ('ulamā') were founded on their access to a sacred body of knowledge and on their ability to remain integral and vital to their immediate communities. This duality in their roles and functions implies that the 'ulamā'...
| Published in: | Islam and Christian-Muslim relations |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic/Print Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Routledge
2002
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| In: |
Islam and Christian-Muslim relations
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| Further subjects: | B
Gesellschaftsmodell
B Law B Islam B Social System B Hermeneutics B Koran |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | The social standing and religious legitimacy of learned Muslims ('ulamā') were founded on their access to a sacred body of knowledge and on their ability to remain integral and vital to their immediate communities. This duality in their roles and functions implies that the 'ulamā' were not exclusively concerned with the preservation and reproduction of an immutable dogma, but were continuously engaged in interpretive contextualizations and adaptations of religious tenets in order acceptably to fulfill their legal and social obligations. In the following paper, I briefly describe the influence of social and intellectual constraints in moderating the extent of the 'ulamā's engagement in interpretive contextualizations and adaptations of Islamic maxims. I will refer to Ibn Maryam's sixteenth-century biographical dictionary of ' ulam # ' from the city of Tilimsan to define prevailing attitudes towards socio-cultural continuity and change, legal consensus and autonomous interpretation. |
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| ISSN: | 0959-6410 |
| Contains: | In: Islam and Christian-Muslim relations
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/09596410220128470 |