Entry requirements

General entry requirements

Learning outcomes

The course’s main objective is to introduce core issues related to the Islamic law. Herein we focus on the legal sources and the areas of development of interpretation methodologies used by the Sunni and Shi’i schools of jurisprudence in premodern and modern periods. After the completion of the course the student is expected to proficiently:

• Discuss the development and spread of each school of jurisprudence
• Identify the variety of methods of interpretation of the basic sources of law used by each school of jurisprudence
• Critically review the set of challenges Islamic jurisprudence faces in European socio-political contexts
• Describe and summarise the ongoing intra-Muslim debates regarding the jurisprudence of minorities (fiqh al-aqaliyyat)

Content

The course offers an introduction in Islamic jurisprudence as a broad field of academic study. It presents an insight into the basic sources (the Qur’an and the canonical traditions of the Prophet Muhammad) of what is described as Islamic law (fiqh and usul al-fiqh). Furthermore, the course critically examines a range of methods of interpretation (ijtihad) of these and other sources of law by connecting these interpretative processes to a variety of socio-political and historical contexts. The course also introduces the student to a range of contentious and reconciliatory issues regarding the Islamic jurisprudence in western contexts today.

Instruction

Lectures and group discussions

Assessment

Examination is done in two parts: (home exam 5hp) and active participation in group discussions (including two written assignments) (seminars 2,5hp).