What do you mean by the term caliphate?

Caliphate, the political-religious state comprising the Muslim community and the lands and peoples under its dominion in the centuries following the death (632 ce) of the Prophet Muhammad.

What is an example of a caliphate?

The definition of a caliphate is the rule of, or land ruled by, an Islamic political leader. An example of a caliphate is an Islamic leader believed to be directly descended from Muhummad. A unified federal Islamic government for the Muslim world, ruled by an elected head of state or caliph.

What is caliphate in Islam?

A caliphate or khilāfah (Arabic: خِلَافَة, Arabic pronunciation: [xi’laːfah]) is an Islamic state under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (/ˈkælɪf, ˈkeɪ-/; Arabic: خَلِيفَة Arabic pronunciation: [xæ’liː’fæh], pronunciation (help·info)), a person considered a political-religious successor to …

What type of government is a caliphate?

A caliphate is an Islamic form of government in which political and religious leadership is united, and the head of state (the caliph) is a successor to the Prophet Muhammad. The first caliphate was established in 632 A.D. after the death of the Prophet Muhammad.

What are the four caliphates?

Definition. The first four caliphs of the Islamic empire – Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali are referred to as Rashidun (rightly guided) Caliphs (632-661 CE) by mainstream Sunni Muslims.

When was the last caliphate?

The Ottoman Caliphate, the world’s last widely recognized caliphate, was abolished on 3 March 1924 (27 Rajab 1342 AH) by decree of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. The process was one of Atatürk’s reforms following the replacement of the Ottoman Empire with the Republic of Turkey.

Was the Ottoman Empire a caliphate?

Officially the Ottoman Empire was an Islamic Caliphate ruled by a Sultan, Mehmed V, although it also contained Christians, Jews and other religious minorities.

What is a caliphate for kids?

The Caliphate is the name of the Muslim government that ruled the Islamic Empire during the Middle Ages. For a long period of time, the Caliphate controlled Western Asia, North Africa, and parts of Europe.

Where was the first caliphate?

Medina
The caliphate arose out of Muhammad’s death in June 632 and the subsequent debate over the succession to his leadership. Muhammad’s childhood friend and close companion Abu Bakr ( r. 632–634), of the Banu Taym clan, was elected the first caliph in Medina and he began the conquest of the Arabian Peninsula.

How do caliphs talk?

Break ‘caliph’ down into sounds: [KAY] + [LUHF] – say it out loud and exaggerate the sounds until you can consistently produce them.

How long did the caliphate last?

The original caliphate existed from 632 AD, when Mohammed died and the first caliph Abu Bakr took over, until 661 when it fell into civil war (that civil war also led to the permanent divide between Sunni and Shia Islam).

Why did the golden age of Islam end?

The Islamic golden age ended with the fall of the Abbasid caliphate around 1258. The reason for the end of both the Abbasid and the golden age was Mongol invasions and the takeover of the city Baghdad.

Why it is called Golden Age of Islam?

Baghdad was centrally located between Europe and Asia and was an important area for trade and exchanges of ideas. Scholars living in Baghdad translated Greek texts and made scientific discoveries—which is why this era, from the seventh to thirteenth centuries CE, is named the Golden Age of Islam.

Why do Muslims want a caliphate?

The first is that the caliphate is a sacred institution – it is universal and necessary for all Muslims. The second is that it is a political institution and was established according to the needs of Muslims.

Who accepted Islam first?

The first converts to Islam at the time of Muhammad were: Khadija bint Khuwaylid – First person to convert and first free female convert. Ali ibn Abi Talib – First free male child in Muhammad’s family to convert. Zayd ibn Harithah – First freed slave male convert.

Why did the Sunni and Shia split?

The divide originated with a dispute over who should succeed the Prophet Muhammad as leader of the Islamic faith he introduced. Today, about 85 percent of the approximately 1.6 billion Muslims around the world are Sunni, while 15 percent are Shia, according to an estimate by the Council on Foreign Relations.

Can anyone be a caliph?

Not everyone agrees that a Caliph has to be from Quraysh. But he does need the consensus of the Muslim umma, and he needs to be a just ruler with religious knowledge. (He is the khalifa or successor of the Prophet in his political and religious authority, though not to his prophethood.)

Is Saudi Arabia an Islamic state?

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the heartland of Islam, the birthplace of its history, the site of the two holy mosques and the focus of Islamic devotion and prayer. Saudi Arabia is committed to preserving the Islamic tradition in all areas of government and society.