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Muslim World Almanac
muslim world almanac is a single volume encyclopedic compendium on islam and the muslim world ecompassing virtualluy every part of life in general and muslim life in particular. in thousan pages, it brings ou to an entire world of information made accesible trough simple and clear writing and meticulous indexing.being the first and only work of its knd produced at such scale , the Almanac should be of immense help to students,experts, lay persons and profesionals.
908 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 19, 2009
Almanac season is upon us: at last glance, Watermark had the World, the Time, the Time for Kids, and the Sports Illustrated versions in stock. There’s no doubt these hefty little tomes are fun and useful: when you need the state flower of Oregon (Oregon grape), the 1934 Best Supporting Actress Oscar winner (Claudette Colbert for It Happened One Night), or even the third-deadliest tsunami in history (1755, Portugal & Morocco), these are the titles to turn to. The fascinating Muslim World Almanac 2008, however, provides knowledge and perspective of a less trivial nature; the goal of its editors (based in Pakistan and Saudi Arabia) is to give readers worldwide an “objective, straightforward and informative treatise” on Islam and the Ummah (global community of believers).
A good half of the book’s 900 pages is an A-Z overview of the 60 Muslim-majority states of the world (Afghanistan-Yemen), covering history and demographics for each. Perhaps more interesting from an American perspective is the lengthy series of essays on Islam itself. Too often our information on this topic comes from either bigotry, well-meaning cluelessness, or secular academia, but the deeply religious authors of the Almanac consider Islam to be a serious matter of belief, based on scripture and tradition. Yet they also feel that much of the Muslim world has left off the dogged pursuit of knowledge enjoined by the Qu’ran. The authors readily admit that individual Muslims have not always lived up to the ideal precepts of the faith (few religions could claim this with a straight face), but their intent is to clear up common misconceptions and stereotypes. To this end, there are articles on madrasas, jihad, and the position of women in Islamic society. They also address, from a moderate, thoughtful viewpoint, conflicts in Israel, Afghanistan, and Iraq, as well as the recent furor over a Danish newspaper’s caricatures of Mohammed (which points out that maybe, rather than being amazed at Muslim reaction to what is to them blasphemy, the Judeo-Christian world should wonder why it is not similarly outraged at equally offensive portrayals of their sacred subjects).
I can’t say that I agreed with everything I read in the Muslim World Almanac—not surprising for a Catholic American. But the good faith and struggle for understanding in this project are evident on every page, and by providing me with a better knowledge of how most of the world’s 1 billion Muslims believe and live, it gave me a firm basis for further discussion.
A good half of the book’s 900 pages is an A-Z overview of the 60 Muslim-majority states of the world (Afghanistan-Yemen), covering history and demographics for each. Perhaps more interesting from an American perspective is the lengthy series of essays on Islam itself. Too often our information on this topic comes from either bigotry, well-meaning cluelessness, or secular academia, but the deeply religious authors of the Almanac consider Islam to be a serious matter of belief, based on scripture and tradition. Yet they also feel that much of the Muslim world has left off the dogged pursuit of knowledge enjoined by the Qu’ran. The authors readily admit that individual Muslims have not always lived up to the ideal precepts of the faith (few religions could claim this with a straight face), but their intent is to clear up common misconceptions and stereotypes. To this end, there are articles on madrasas, jihad, and the position of women in Islamic society. They also address, from a moderate, thoughtful viewpoint, conflicts in Israel, Afghanistan, and Iraq, as well as the recent furor over a Danish newspaper’s caricatures of Mohammed (which points out that maybe, rather than being amazed at Muslim reaction to what is to them blasphemy, the Judeo-Christian world should wonder why it is not similarly outraged at equally offensive portrayals of their sacred subjects).
I can’t say that I agreed with everything I read in the Muslim World Almanac—not surprising for a Catholic American. But the good faith and struggle for understanding in this project are evident on every page, and by providing me with a better knowledge of how most of the world’s 1 billion Muslims believe and live, it gave me a firm basis for further discussion.
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October 11, 2009very good reading...
December 28, 2013
its a very good book i am eager to read this book
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews