11.3 To Go Further

This chapter is but a very short introduction to Islamism. On the one hand, the chapter summarizes the birth and growth of Islamism as an ideology and movement in a variety of contexts, but on the other, each individual case has peculiarities that short and general summaries such as this one cannot capture. Further readings are thus necessary to appreciate the complexity of Islamism. Variations across and within national contexts are among the first to be aware of. So are key scholastic and political movements, such as Wahhabism and Muslim Brotherhood, whose influence and membership often transcend beyond national borders (Al-Anani, 2016; Baron, 2014; Meijer, 2013). Also important are key figures and ideologues such as Muhammad Abduh (1849–1905), Jamal al-Din al-Afghani (1838/1839–1897), Muhammad Iqbal (1877–1938), Ruhollah Khomeini (1900–1989), Abul A’la Maududi (1903–1979), Hassan al-Banna (1906–1949), Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani (1914–1999), and many others. Some familiarity with the above figures, phenomena, and the involved debates and intricacies is necessary for a full introduction to Islamism.