A Popular Dictionary of Islam [Paperback]

Ian Richard Netton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 11, 1997

Written by accomplished scholars in the field of religion, these are fascinating and easy-to-understand references for the religions of the world. These books are ideal for anyone seeking a basic grasp of a religious system as well as for students and scholars who need an in-depth reference work.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill/Contemporary (December 11, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0844204226
• ISBN-13: 978-0844204222
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,923,555 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Islam dictionary, March 1, 2009

By 

William Garrison Jr. (Bellevue, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Popular Dictionary of Islam (Popular Dictionaries of Religion) (Paperback)

This dictionary (and glossary) is useful in getting a quick "popular" reference at some topic regarding Islam. Alas, each explanation is all-to-short, brief, but interesting. After reading a number of them, I said to myself: "That was a nice refresher tidbit regarding that topic." But, no real deep scholarly analysis as one would find in larger dictionaries or glossaries. The author found it worthwhile to comment: "it contains an individual entry for each one of the 114 chapters (suras) of the Qur'an, listed under its Arabic tit...[but] do not...provide an exhaustive summary" of what is contained in any sura. Even after having read about a hundred books regarding Islam, I found this 279-page dictionary still to be very informative; a nice refresher `popular' outline. Besides references to the Quran, this dictionary also notes topics pertaining to individuals, caliphs, sharia, fiqh, tafsir, hadith, and Islamic rituals. This dictionary was published before "political correctness" regarding Islam came into vouge c. 2003, so "jihad" is first defined as "holy war" [for Western readers], but the author does note "the word derives from an Arabic root meaning basically `to strive'...this is the other major sense of jihad." Useful for the quick short reference, alongside the bigger reference tomes.