Islam has, throughout its history, played a pivotal role in the lives of its adherents. Islam’s significance for its adherents stems from and is informed by it as a doctrine, a system of discipline and ritual, and a system of social ethics and practices. Throughout Islamic history, Islam has undergone significant reformation efforts as was socially and culturally perceived to be necessary from within its community. However, with the advent of colonialism, the introduction of the concept of the nation-state, and the ushering of the age of modernity, the form and structure of such reformation was much informed by the relationship of Islam and its adherents to the ‘other’ (the West) and its knowledge systems. Islam has since been confronted with the question of its own validity, from inside and outside the community of adherents. The struggle with the place of religion, the place of the sacred, has played out throughout the history of Islam within Egypt, at times expanding, at others withdrawing, as it dealt with political, social and cultural forces. This presented and presents its adherents with a dilemma of identity: a constant shifting, manipulating, rejecting, and reforming of religious symbols and meaning and further knowledge systems within Islam – an attempt to deal with the state of (post)coloniality, and the project of modernity. It is my contention that one can map the sacred within Egyptian writing: one that is associated with locations, with time, with human interactions, with social, cultural, historical and religious significance. Mapping such sacred spaces within (post)modern Egyptian writing presents deep insights into the struggle for individualism and representation. Egyptian writing is an expression of cultural contestation, and the struggle for self-definition, mirroring one that is pre-existing in Egyptian society. This is evidence of: a) social and cultural self-awareness; b) an engagement with and a response to ‘other’ narratives; c) an attempt to search for an ‘authentic’ self-sufficient discourse; and, d) an attempt to conjure up viable options for sustainability. This has not always led to self-certainty. In fact, it has led to epistemological uncertainty, ontological anxiety, and a threatened self-identity, to which Egyptian Muslims respond in a myriad of voices through these texts/narratives – tackling existential issues.

<p>This thesis is a small scale in depth exploration into the perceptions of power held by eight Muslim women residing in the Cape Town Metropole area. Using a Qualitative Feminist approach the study aimed to explore and shed light on the multiple ways in which Muslim women negotiate, construct and co-construct agency, power and authority in their everyday lives. This study also sought to explore whether Muslim women who appear independent or empowered actually feel in control of their own lives / and how their ability to make choices is mediated by intersecting identities such as race, class, age, etc. The research highlights a number of emergent themes in which discussion of the women‟s views around education, finance, reproductive responsibilities, patriarchy, etc. takes place and also explores the ways in which the women contest and resist traditional cultural norms in their everyday experiences. Furthermore this study also sought to create a space where the researcher focused and refocused her gaze on the theoretical and epistemological aspects of her chosen method of enquiry in order to interrogate its merits and limits. Upon reflection the researcher also acknowledges that, similar to the participants, she also holds contradictory views on some of the issues discussed.</p>

<p>This thesis is a small scale in depth exploration into the perceptions of power held by eight Muslim women residing in the Cape Town Metropole area. Using a Qualitative Feminist approach the study aimed to explore and shed light on the multiple ways in which Muslim women negotiate, construct and co-construct agency, power and authority in their everyday lives. This study also sought to explore whether Muslim women who appear independent or empowered actually feel in control of their own lives / and how their ability to make choices is mediated by intersecting identities such as race, class, age, etc. The research highlights a number of emergent themes in which discussion of the women‟s views around education, finance, reproductive responsibilities, patriarchy, etc. takes place and also explores the ways in which the women contest and resist traditional cultural norms in their everyday experiences. Furthermore this study also sought to create a space where the researcher focused and refocused her gaze on the theoretical and epistemological aspects of her chosen method of enquiry in order to interrogate its merits and limits. Upon reflection the researcher also acknowledges that, similar to the participants, she also holds contradictory views on some of the issues discussed.</p>

abstract: This thesis examines why young Western Muslim women from the UK are drawn to join and support ISIS in its established territories in Syria and Iraq and identifies their role within these territories. The critical role of technology, specifically social media, in facilitating the recruitment, radicalization, and mobilization of young Muslim women online to join ISIS is also explored. Females emigrating from the UK appear equally drawn to ISIS's ideology and state-building mission as Muslim men. Claims from the media suggest women serve as 'fighters,' however this research finds that women are not permitted by ISIS to participate in fighting. Using Britain as a case study, this study analyzes the social media content of eight young British Muslim women, known as female migrants, for themes motivating them to mobilize. Themes, culled from the literature, include Muslim attitudes and perceptions in the UK regarding Islamophobia or religious discrimination, the erosion of multiculturalism, identity and belonging, and finding purpose in the ummah, and measures whether these variables influence women to mobilize. Excerpts from blog posts and original tweets from their Tumblr, Twitter, and ask.fm accounts provide the actual voices of British female migrants choosing to live within ISIS territory and offers insight on their role as female migrants. Research suggests that, for British Muslim women in the UK, Muslim identity and belonging, both individually and within the ummah, along with attitudes and perceptions of religious discrimination (Islamophobia) and the failing of multiculturalism are influencing them to join ISIS. Additional motives for migration found within the study are based on the following beliefs: that the ummah is under attack, a strong desire to help build a new society, their religious duty as a Muslim, and the opportunity to belong and find purpose in the new "caliphate sisterhood." The role of female migrants residing in ISIS territory is domestic in nature, where they primarily function as wives and mothers of jihadists, as well as serve in online roles as propagandists, proselytizers, and recruiters for ISIS. The strong online presence of women demands an effective counter narrative to deter prospective female migrants from emigrating. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Global Technology and Development 2015

Through a comparative study of two Atlanta full-time Muslim parochial schools, this study examines Muslim approaches to Islamic education by analyzing school leaders' secular and religious goals, their main obstacles and concerns, and what they believe the best practices are. The study explores leaders’ visions of socialization and community development by juxtaposing findings from two schools. In order to answer the aforementioned questions, this study 1) assesses national trends in K-12 Islamic parochial schools across the United States through related research, 2) engages Muslim leaders from both institutions through semi-formal interviews, and 3) supplements findings through an extended period of participant observation.

This study deals with the meanings and conditions of motherhood for some Muslim women in Sweden, the majority of which live in Stockholm. The analysis is based mainly on 16 in-depth interviews with women who self-identify as Muslims. A majority of them were born in Sweden. In this study, motherhood and mothering are defined as intentional care work situated within, and shaped by, specific social, cultural and historical contexts. I examine which gendered, religious and spatial meanings are associated with mothering and Muslim identity in a Swedish transnational context. The analysis shows that religion (for most of the women) constitutes an interpretational frame for motherhood and for how children should be mothered into good Muslims and citizens. The women represent Islam as a facilitating religion by making a distinction between religion and culture. The study also shows how the women approach the problem of maintaining the children’s Muslim identities and their self-esteem in a secularized and islamophobic Swedish context, and how they stress the importance of the child developing a strong inner self. Based on the women’s own experiences of having been singled out as different, they respond to a racist logic associated with certain norms and conceptions about what counts as freedom or oppression. The interviews also reveal a transnational aspect of their mothering in which they consider what other places can offer their children. The thesis shows on the one hand how an authentic Muslim identity is related to ideas about Muslim places and origins; on the other hand it demonstrates how the women’s ambivalent affinities with Sweden, and (what they consider to be) Swedish and Muslim values, destabilize such an unambiguous connection. These ambivalent identifications show how the women’s conditional affinities become relevant for how they speak about motherhood and mothering and for how they relate to questions concerning “the good of the child”.

Through a comparative study of two Atlanta full-time Muslim parochial schools, this study examines Muslim approaches to Islamic education by analyzing school leaders' secular and religious goals, their main obstacles and concerns, and what they believe the best practices are. The study explores leaders’ visions of socialization and community development by juxtaposing findings from two schools. In order to answer the aforementioned questions, this study 1) assesses national trends in K-12 Islamic parochial schools across the United States through related research, 2) engages Muslim leaders from both institutions through semi-formal interviews, and 3) supplements findings through an extended period of participant observation.

The South African Constitution provides a comprehensive list of rights, many of which are important, directly or indirectly, to meet the needs of religious minorities in the country. However, due to South Africa being a secular state and also having particular needs, many workplaces tend to adopt this approach which leads to a conflict between Muslims' religious obligations and the rules of the workplace. As a result, Muslim employees may perceive that their employers are religiously discriminating against them. Muslim women may face more discrimination than Muslim men as their stigma is less concealable due to their modest dressing and the hijab (religious identity marker). Surprisingly, there has been an increase in cases of religious discrimination against Muslim women. To elucidate, these Muslim women employees were asked to remove their hijab on their job as it somewhat violated the company policies. Therefore, presenting a challenge for Muslim women as their religious identity is part of their self-concept and they are required to follow their religious obligations. Informed by theories such as Social Identity Theory and Intergroup Threat Theory, the present study utilised a cross-sectional design to examine the role of Muslim identity in perceived religious discrimination in the workplace. To gain insight about the hijab in various contexts, the current study also examined the comfortability of wearing the hijab in different contexts. The participants were 75 Muslim women living and working in organisations in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The findings of this research indicate that the dimensions of Muslim identity are not significant predictors of perceived religious discrimination; however, psychological identity can lead Muslim women to perceive less or no discrimination. Furthermore, the ANOVA showed that Muslim women did not feel significantly more comfortable wearing the hijab in certain contexts. This study offered implications for both research and practice and made significant recommendations for future research.

yes / The car is a symbolic presence at the heart of the everyday experience of multi-ethnic coexistence. Exploring the potential significance of car ownership among members of the Pakistani/Muslim population in Bradford has an inherent interest and virtue, but more acutely, it can shed light on social relations where class, gender, religion and ethnicity intersect. The ‘young Asian/White/Muslim/Black male driver’ has acquired a certain meaning and reputation which has largely negative associations across Britain. However, once stereotypes such as the ones at play in the diary entry above are unpicked and engaged with, meaning becomes more nuanced and complicated, but no less vital. Indeed, the research upon which this paper is based suggests that car culture offers insights: first, into how some aspects of broader ‘British Muslim’ identity are framed; and second, that often negative, exoticized and racialized aspects of identity can be detuned and thus made less potent markers of racialized thinking.

We live in a society where preconceived notions about religious schools and indoctrination are many but the rules regarding a non-denominational education are strict. It is of great importance to get a better understanding of religious schools and their effect on the pupils that attend them. The aim of this study is to analyze whether or not the compulsory religious education on a private religious school in the south of Sweden is non-denominational. In order to get a greater understanding of the impact on the pupils’ religious identity, Henri Tajfel’s theory of social identity is used. A total of eight observations, three interviews and collected materials such as previous tests regarding Islam, Christianity and Judaism have been gathered and discussed with the help of Tajfel’s theory and other previous research. The results show that some denominational elements could be found in the compulsory education and that the school at hand had an impact on their pupils’ Muslim identities. With these results, my ambition is that teachers that read this study will be more reflective and critical of their own teaching. It is possible that some teachers do not notice that their own religion or beliefs are shining through their teaching and could potentially effect the pupils. However, if teachers start to reflect upon their teaching and the impacts it could have on a pupil these denominational elements could be prevented.