Nurullah Ardic - Islam and the Politics of Secularism: The Caliphate and Middle Eastern Modernization in the Early 20th Century

Islam and the Politics of Secularism

This book examines the process of secularization in the Middle East in the late 19th and early 20th centuries through an analysis of the transformation and abolition of Islamic Caliphate. Focusing on debates in both the center of the Caliphate and its periphery, the author argues that the relationship between Islam and secularism was one of accommodation, rather than simply conflict and confrontation, because Islam was the single most important source of legitimation in the modernization of the Middle East.

Through detailed analysis of both official documents and the writings of the intellectuals who contributed to reforms in the Empire, the author first examines the general secularization process in the Ottoman Empire from the late 18th century up to the end of the 1920s. He then presents an in-depth analysis of a crucial case of secularization: the demise of Islamic Caliphate. Drawing upon a wide range of secondary and primary sources on the Caliphate and the wider process of political modernization, he employs discourse analysis and comparative-historical methods to examine how the Caliphate was first transformed into a spiritual institution and then abolished in 1924 by Turkish secularists. Ardi also demonstrates how the books argument is applicable to wider secularization and modernization processes in the Middle East.

Deriving insights from history, anthropology, Islamic law and political science, the book will engage a critical mass of scholars interested in Middle Eastern studies, political Islam, secularization and the near-global revival of religion as well as the historians of Islam and late-Ottoman Empire, and those working in the field of historical sociology and the sociology of religion as a case study.

Nurullah Ardi is an assistant professor of sociology at Istanbul ehir University, Turkey. His research focuses on religion and politics in the Middle East, Ottoman-Turkish modernization, social theory, and globalization, using historical-comparative and discourse analysis methods.

SOAS/Routledge studies on the Middle East

Series Editors

Benjamin C. Fortna, SOAS, University of London

Ulrike Freitag, Freie Universitt Berlin, Germany

This series features the latest disciplinary approaches to Middle Eastern Studies. It covers the Social Sciences and the Humanities in both the pre-modern and modern periods of the region. While primarily interested in publishing single-authored studies, the series is also open to edited volumes on innovative topics, as well as textbooks and reference works.

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Islam and the Politics of Secularism

The Caliphate and Middle Eastern modernization in the early 20th century

Nurullah Ard

First published 2012

by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN

Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada

by Routledge

711 Third Ave, New York, NY 10017

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

2012 Nurullah Ardi

The right of Nurullah Ardi to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Ardi, Nurullah.

Islam and the politics of secularism: the Caliphate and Middle Eastern modernization in the early 20th century/Nurullah Ardi.

p. cm. (SOAS/Routledge studies on the Middle East; 16)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. CaliphateHistory20th century. 2. Islam and politicsTurkey.

3. TurkeyPolitics and government19091918. 4. SecularismTurkeyHistory20th century. I. Title.

BP166.9.A73 2011

297.272095609041dc23

2011028858

ISBN: 978-0-415-67166-8 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-203-13773-4 (ebk)

Typeset in Times

by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear

To Asuman, my wife, and Rabia and Haluk who grew up along with the book

Contents

Figures and tables

Figures

Tables

Preface

This book examines the process of secularization in the Middle East in the early 20th century through an analysis of the debates over the transformation and abolition of Islamic Caliphate. It argues that the relationship between Islam and secularism was one of accommodation, rather than simply conflict and confrontation, because Islam was the single most important source of legitimation in the modernization process of the Middle East. It uses the comparative-historical method to examine how the Caliphate was first transformed into a spiritual institution and then abolished in 1924 by Turkish secularists, and draws on both secondary and primary sources (official documents, parliament records, political speeches, periodicals, and intellectuals writings) on the Caliphate and the wider process of political modernization in both the center (Turkey) and the periphery (the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, and India) of the Caliphate. It also demonstrates, with the discourse analysis method, that virtually all actors representing different groups involved in the debates, including traditionalists, modernists and secularists, made use of a similar Islamic discourse through a number of discursive strategies and discursive techniques in order to legitimize their politico-ideological positions. It also shows how this Islamic discourse was secularized by both Islamists and secularists during this period. It thus tries to demonstrate the interaction between discourse and action by examining how the (Islamic) discourse both shaped, and was shaped by, the political and military developments in the Middle East during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.