Fiqh al-aqalliyyāt and Muslim minorities in the West

Abstract

Muslim immigration in the second half of the 20th century to the Western world presented a new phenomenon in the history of Muslim minority communities. Muslims immigrated in unprecedented numbers to Western Europe and North America. Within a few decades, however, Muslim immigrants realized that the new land had become their new home, and they were the ones who needed to rethink their tradition in light of the changing realities. The attitudes of early immigrants changed, and a solid Muslim community started to carve its way into the Western public sphere. Gradually, Muslim immigrants developed concerns about their Islamic identity. The experience of Muslim minorities of the second half of the 20th century was also different from the earlier presence of Muslims in non-Muslim polities due to a number of significant shifts in the structure of both the host society and the Muslim communities themselves.