Editorial

Abstract

Editorial Nuraan Davids and Ilham Nasser In a rather unremarkable way this special issue brings together two deeply misunderstood and misrepresented themes: Africa and Muslim education. Unremarkable, because as articulately expressed and described in this volume, Islam and Muslims are deeply etched into the African milieu, reverberating across a kaleidoscope of tradition and culture. Africa has always known the presence of Islam’s vibrancy in much the same way as Islam has always enjoyed a sense of belonging in the sacred primordiality of Africa’s soil. And yet this vibrancy has largely been obscured. This issue contributes to changing the discourse of casting Africa under a dark, uncivilized veil to justify the colonization not only of her people but her soul. It sheds a new light on various Muslim communities and more specifically on education and brings into question the misinformed constructions of Muslims as the archetypal “Others.” If the West is progressive, modern, educated, and rational, then both Africa and Islam must be backward, uncivilized, uneducated, tradition-bound, irrational, and obsolete—in need of both liberation and re-civilization. Together with Christianity, Islam is the most common religious affiliation in Africa, followed by several traditional African religions. Islam constitutes a majority religion in many African countries, especially in the north of the continent. In Mauritania, Somalia, Algeria, and Morocco, at least 99% of the population is Muslim. As of 2019, 16% of the Muslims worldwide live in sub-Saharan Africa, while 20 % of them live in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region (Statista, 2022). In this issue, scholars from the continent, Muslim and non-Muslims alike, share their work to bring attention to current educational experiments and challenges. It is true that not all regions are represented here, and this issue does not bring to light all of Africa’s many diversities in education, but we believe it opens the door for discussions on topics pertinent to Muslim learners and sheds light on educational matters on the continent. This special issue is not only about reawakening African voices on education in Muslim communities. These voices have always been unwavering in both their preservation and perseverance. We recognize the longstanding (oral) traditions that serve as the foundation for a volume such as this. Nevertheless, this special issue is about proclaiming a body of [End Page 1] knowledge that has long given shape and meaning to what it means to be Muslim and African—revealing a remarkable cradling of one another. How knowledge is valued, normalized, and disseminated plays a critical role in the construction of hegemonic identities, and in the end, whose lives matter. Consider, for example, debates on which is the world’s first university. Commonly, preference is given to the University of Bologna in Italy, established in 1088 as the oldest university in the world. Situated in Fez, Morocco, however, is the University of al-Qarawiyyin, which was founded by Fatima bint Muhammad Al-Fihriya Al-Qurashiya, in 895. On offer at the University of al-Qarawiyyin were philosophy, astronomy, and mathematics taught by teachers who included Al-Idrisi, Ibn Khaldun, Ibn al-Arabi, and Leo Africanus. Between the 12th and 15th centuries, the university attracted students from Africa and the Middle Eastern territories as well as Europe. It was the first institution to award degrees according to different levels of study, in Islamic studies, mathematics, grammar, and medicine. And yet, not only does the presumption of universities as a European creation persist, but scant attention is afforded to the influence of Islamic scholars on Western thought. This issue is especially significant to us as an editorial team, least because it is the first special issue for JEMS. Alongside our commitment to mentoring traditionally excluded and marginalized voices, we see this special issue as yet another first for JEMS—one that we hope will stimulate renewed ideas and perspectives on Muslim education in African contexts as well as elsewhere. We are privileged to provide incredibly rich and diverse contributions from an array of scholars. We open from the south with a special article, Yusef Waghid’s “Re-imagining Muslim Education and Cultivation of Democratic Citizens in South Africa.” He argues in defense of ta’arruf...