New Encyclopedia of Islam: A Revised Edition of the Concise Encyclopedia of Islam [Hardcover]

Cyril Glasse (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0759101892 | ISBN-13: 978-0759101890 | Publication Date: December 2001 | Edition: Revised

The New Encyclopedia of Islam is the only single-volume work in print which so comprehensively encompasses the beliefs, practices, history and culture of the Islamic world, in over 1300 entries. All aspects of religious belief, ritual, practices, prayer, significant political movements, spiritual and political leaders, art, architecture, sects, law, social institutions, history, ethnography, nations and states, languages, science, major cities and centers of learning are covered.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This grand, beautifully illustrated book is a feast of fact and insight about this ancient religion of 800 million believers." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Born in 1944, Cyril Glasse, author of "The New Encyclopedia of Islam", is an American citizen of mainly Russian descent. He is currently an international lecturer on comparative religion, and is preparing a timeline of Islamic history (alongside other works). He has recently lectured at the University of Saratov, Russia; the Oriental Institutes in St Petersburg and Moscow; at the Grand Mosque, Tashkent; the Badshahi Mosque, Lahore; the University of Calabria, Italy; the Open Center and Cooper Union in New York; and at Lund Sweden. He is the author of "The Berlitz Guide to Saudi Arabia", editor of "A Pilgrim's Guide to Mecca" for the Hajj Research Center of King Abd al-'Aziz University in Jeddah. His graduate degree in Islamic Studies from Columbia College in 1991 had been preceded 15 years earlier with a degree, also from Columbia, in Russian. As a young man, Cyril Glasse worked in Morocco as a volunteer on a United Nations development project. It was in Ouzzanne, the religious center in the foothills of the Rif mountains in Morocco, and site of age-old Arabo-Islamic institutions, that Glasse converted to Islam. In the late 1960s, he studies there with traditional teachers, and "faqihs". At the same period of early life he conversed or studied with the heads of various important mosques and centers of pilgrimmage, including Moulay Idriss Zerhoun, the Imam of the Qarawiyyin, Sidi Boush'arah (one of the last surviving representatives of the Shaykh Tayyib Darqawi), Sidi Ahmad al-'Alawi (of Algeria), and various other "'ulama" (scholars of theology). His acquaintanceship and region of studies included association with wandering dervishes and Sufis of various orders. In parallel, he studied the full range of Western academic authorities on Islam (and the other major religions), in the five langauges of which he has a fluent command. From this period Glasse has continued to travel extensively throughout the Islamic world, attending spiritual centers in Maurentia, Algeria, Egypt, Turkey, Arabia, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, and the republics of Central Asia. He has an intimate acquaintance with Mecca. From 1972-1978 his main residential base was Switzerland, as editor of an international journal. He know lives in New York City, with his wife and sonu

Product Details

• Hardcover: 582 pages
• Publisher: AltaMira Press; Revised edition (December 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0759101892
• ISBN-13: 978-0759101890
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 6.7 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,388,191 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The New Encyclopedia Of Islam, March 14, 2002

By 

Iyad T. Alashqar (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: New Encyclopedia of Islam: A Revised Edition of the Concise Encyclopedia of Islam (Hardcover)

First of all, I'd like to say "BRAVO" and "EXCELLENT JOB" to the Author and international lecturer Mr. Cyril Glasse.

I used the 1989 edition to find some information about a few entries. I thought i'll just find the entries, read about them, and close the book. But it didn't happen. Each enrty lead me to other entries which were more interesting and so on.

I really enjoyed every second I spent using this encyclopedia. That's what I call a "quality time". That is because I am interested in comparative religion and I like reading about Christianity, Judaism, Freemasonry, and Islam. And this is a very nice addition to my small library of cool books.

Highly recommended...

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good overview of terms you hear on the nightly news, July 6, 2007

By 

J. LaCoss "Rt. Rev. Maker-of-sawdust" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: New Encyclopedia of Islam: A Revised Edition of the Concise Encyclopedia of Islam (Paperback)

I wanted an overview of the major topics and issues of Islam. This is a great introduction, providing enough basic material to guide further investigation. Not all that many photos, but a good chronology as well as the "family trees" of the sects/off-shoots of Islam, and the major governing groups and individuals.

Worth having.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sets a high standard, April 16, 2007

By 

Dr. Milo Jones "Dr. Milo Jones" (EU & USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: New Encyclopedia of Islam: A Revised Edition of the Concise Encyclopedia of Islam (Paperback)

This is THE outstanding reference on Islam for non-Arabic speakers, and to my thinking sets an extremely high standard in terms of clarity, balance and coverage for one-volume reference works generally. Highly recommended.