Pork tenderloin served French-style

Slow-roasting pig on a rotisserie

A pork steak "à la Prague", with fresh asparagus and melted cheese

Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig (Sus domesticus), which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide,^[1] with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC.

Pork is eaten in several forms, mostly cooked. Pork can also be processed into different forms, which may also extend the shelf life of the product, with the resultant products being cured (some hams, including the Italian prosciutto) or smoked or a combination of these methods (other hams, gammon, bacon or pancetta). It is also a common ingredient in sausages. Charcuterie is the branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products, many from pork. However, by some definitions, "pork" denotes only fresh pig meat.^{[citation needed]}

History[link]

Two pigs hanging after being butchered

The pig is one of the oldest forms of livestock, having been domesticated as early as 5000 BC.^[2] It is believed to have been domesticated either in the Near East or in China from the wild boar. The adaptable nature and omnivorous diet of this creature allowed early humans to domesticate it much earlier than many other forms of livestock, such as cattle. Pigs were mostly used for food, but people also used their hides for shields and shoes, their bones for tools and weapons, and their bristles for brushes. Pigs have other roles within the human economy: their feeding behaviour in searching for roots churns up the ground and makes it easier to plough; their sensitive noses lead them to truffles, an underground fungus highly valued by humans; and their omnivorous nature enables them to eat human rubbish, keeping settlements cleaner.

Charcuterie is the branch of cooking devoted to prepared meat products such as bacon, ham, sausage, terrines, galantines, pâtés, and confit, primarily from pork.^[3] Originally intended as a way to preserve meats before the advent of refrigeration, these preparations are prepared today for their flavours that are derived from the preservation processes.^[4] In 15th century France, local guilds regulated tradesman in the food production industry in each city. The guilds that produced charcuterie were those of the charcutiers. The members of this guild produced a traditional range of cooked or salted and dried meats, which varied, sometimes distinctively, from region to region. The only "raw" meat the charcutiers were allowed to sell was unrendered lard. The charcutier prepared numerous items, including pâtés, rillettes, sausages, bacon, trotters, and head cheese.

Before the mass production and re-engineering of pork in the 20th century, pork in Europe and North America was traditionally an autumn dish — pigs and other livestock coming to the slaughter in the autumn after growing in the spring and fattening during the summer. Due to the seasonal nature of the meat in Western culinary history, apples (harvested in late summer and autumn) have been a staple pairing to fresh pork. The year-round availability of meat and fruits has not diminished the popularity of this combination on Western plates.^[5]

Consumption patterns[link]

A traditional Austrian pork dish, served with potato croquettes, vegetables, mushrooms and gravy

Pork is one of the most widely eaten meats in the world, accounting for about 38% of meat production worldwide, although consumption varies widely from place to place.^[1]

According to the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service, nearly 100 million metric tons of pork were consumed worldwide in 2006 (preliminary data). Increasing urbanization and disposable income has led to a rapid rise in pork consumption in China, where 2006 consumption was 20% higher than in 2002, and a further 5% increase projected in 2007.^[6]

2006 worldwide pork consumption[link]

Asian pork consumption[link]

Pork is popular throughout eastern Asia and the Pacific, where whole roast pig is a popular item in Pacific Island cuisine. It is consumed in a great many ways and highly esteemed in Chinese cuisine.^[7] There, pork is preferred over beef for economic and aesthetic reasons; the pig is easy to feed and is not used for labour. The colours of the meat and the fat of pork are regarded as more appetizing, while the taste and smell are described as sweeter and cleaner. It is also considered easier to digest.^[8] In rural tradition, pork is shared to celebrate important occasion and to form bonding.

Pork products[link]

Smoked pork ribs

Pork may be cooked from fresh meat or cured over time. Cured meat products include ham and bacon. The carcass may be used in many different ways for fresh meat cuts, with the popularity of certain cuts and certain carcass proportions varying worldwide.

Fresh meat[link]

Most of the carcass can be used to produce fresh meat and in the case of a suckling pig, the whole body of a young pig ranging in age from two to six weeks is roasted. Danish roast pork or flæskesteg, prepared with crispy crackling is a national favourite and the traditional Christmas dinner.^[9]

Processed pork[link]

Pork is particularly common as an ingredient in sausages. Many traditional European sausages are made with pork, including chorizo, fuet, Cumberland sausage and salami. Many brands of American hot dogs and most breakfast sausages are made from pork. Processing of pork into sausages and other products in France is described as charcuterie.

Ham and bacon are made from fresh pork by curing with salt (pickling) and/or smoking. Shoulders and legs are most commonly cured in this manner for Picnic shoulder and ham, whereas streaky and round bacon come from the side (round from the loin and streaky from the belly).^[10]

Roasted pork knuckle

Ham and bacon are popular foods in the west, and their consumption has increased with industrialisation. Non-western cuisines also use preserved meat products. For example, salted preserved pork or red roasted pork is used in Chinese and Asian cuisine.

Bacon is defined as any of certain cuts of meat taken from the sides, belly or back that have been cured and/or smoked. In continental Europe, it is used primarily in cubes (lardons) as a cooking ingredient valued both as a source of fat and for its flavour. In Italy, besides being used in cooking, bacon (pancetta) is also served uncooked and thinly sliced as part of an antipasto. Bacon is also used for barding roasts, especially game birds. Bacon is often smoked, using various types of wood, a process which can take up to ten hours. Bacon may be eaten fried, baked, or grilled.

A side of unsliced bacon is a "flitch" or "slab bacon", while an individual slice of bacon is a "rasher" (United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Australia and New Zealand) or simply a "slice" or "strip" (North America). Slices of bacon are also known as "collops". Traditionally, the skin is left on the cut and is known as "bacon rind". Rindless bacon, however, is quite common. In the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland, bacon comes in a wide variety of cuts and flavours, and is predominantly known as "streaky bacon", or "streaky rashers". Bacon made from the meat on the back of the pig is referred to as "back bacon" and is part of traditional full breakfast commonly eaten in Britain and Ireland. In the United States, back bacon may also be referred to as "Canadian-style Bacon" or "Canadian Bacon".^[11]

The USDA defines bacon as "the cured belly of a swine carcass", while other cuts and characteristics must be separately qualified (e.g. "smoked pork loin bacon").^[12] "USDA Certified" bacon means that it has been treated for Trichinella.

The canned meat Spam is made of chopped pork shoulder meat and ham.

[edit] Cuts

There are different systems of naming for cuts in America, Britain and France.

British cuts of pork

American cuts of pork

• Head - This can be used to make brawn, stocks and soups. After boiling, the ears can be fried or baked and eaten separately.
• Spare rib roast/spare rib joint/blade shoulder/shoulder butt^[11] - This is the shoulder and contains the shoulder blade. It can be boned out and rolled up as a roasting joint, or cured as "collar bacon". It is not to be confused with the rack of spare ribs from the front belly. Pork butt, despite its name, is from the upper part of the shoulder. The Boston butt, or Boston-style shoulder, cut comes from this area, and may contain the shoulder blade.
• Hand/arm shoulder/arm picnic^[11] - This can be cured on the bone to make a ham-like product, or used in sausages.

• Loin - This can be cured to give back bacon or Canadian-style bacon. The loin and belly can be cured together to give a side of bacon. The loin can also be divided up into roasts (blade loin roasts, centre loin roasts, and sirloin roasts come from the front, centre, or rear of the loin), back ribs (also called baby back ribs, or riblets), pork cutlets, and pork chops. A pork loin crown roast is arranged into a circle, either boneless or with rib bones protruding upward as points in a crown. Pork tenderloin, removed from the loin, should be practically free of fat.
• Fatback - The subcutaneous fat and skin on the back are used to make pork rinds, a variety of cured "meats", lardons, and lard.
• Belly/side/side pork - The belly, although a fattier meat, can be used for steaks or diced stir-fry meat. Belly pork may be rolled for roasting or cut for streaky bacon.
• Legs/hams - Although any cut of pork can be cured, technically speaking only the back leg is entitled to be called a ham. Legs and shoulders, when used fresh, are usually cut bone-in for roasting, or leg steaks can be cut from the bone. Three common cuts of the leg include the rump (upper portion), centre, and shank (lower portion).
• Trotters - Both the front and hind trotters can be cooked and eaten, as can the tail.^[13]
• Spare ribs, or spareribs, are taken from the pig's ribs and the meat surrounding the bones. St. Louis-style spareribs have the sternum, cartilage, and skirt meat removed.
• Knuckles, intestines, jowls and all other parts of the pig may also be eaten.

Feijoada, the national dish of Brazil (also served in Portugal), is prepared with pork trimmings: ears, tail and feet.^[14]

Nutrition[link]

A pack of Tesco diced pork.

Its myoglobin content is lower than that of beef, but much higher than that of chicken. The USDA treats pork as a red meat.^[15] Pork is very high in thiamin (vitamin B₁).^[16] Pork with its fat trimmed is leaner than the meat of most domesticated animals, but is high in cholesterol and saturated fat.

In 1987 the U.S. National Pork Board began an advertising campaign to position pork as "the other white meat" — due to a public perception of chicken and turkey (white meat) as healthier than red meat. The campaign was highly successful and resulted in 87% of consumers identifying pork with the slogan. The board retired the slogan on March 4, 2011.^[17]

Religious restrictions on the consumption of pork[link]

Judaism[link]

Pork is a well-known example of a non-kosher food. This prohibition is based on Leviticus chapter 11 and Deuteronomy chapter 14:

These are the creatures that you may eat from among all the animals that are upon the land. Everything that possesses a split hoof, which is fully cloven, and that brings up its cud – this you may eat. But this is what you shall not eat from what brings up its cud or possesses split hooves – the camel, because it brings up its cud but does not possess split hooves...and the pig, because it has split hooves that are completely cloven, but it does not bring up its cud – it is impure to you and from its flesh you may not eat. — Leviticus 11:2–4, 7–8

And the pig, because it possesses split hooves and does not bring up its cud — from its flesh you may not eat. — Deuteronomy 14:8

As indicated by the Torah verses, pork is non-kosher because Jews may not consume an animal that possesses one trait but not the other of cloven hooves and regurgitating cud. Hogs, which are not ruminants, do not chew cud as cattle and sheep do.

Islam[link]

Pork is prohibited by the Islamic dietary laws. Throughout the Islamic world many countries severely restrict the importation or consumption of pork products. Examples are Iran,^[18] Mauritania,^[19] Oman,^[20] Qatar,^[21] Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Pakistan and Maldives^[22] (though conversely, the pig is the most widely reared livestock in Muslim-majority Malaysia). The Qur'anic basis for the Islamic prohibition of pork can be found in suras 2:173, 5:3, 5:60, 6:145 and 16:115.

Chapter (Sura) 2 - Verse (Ayat) 173 Al-Baqara (The Cow)

"He has forbidden you only the Maitah (dead animals), and blood, and the flesh of swine, and that which is slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than God (or has been slaughtered for idols). But if one is forced by necessity, without wilful disobedience, nor transgressing due limits, then there is no sin on him. Truly, God is Oft-forgiving Most Merciful."

Other religions and cultures[link]

Seventh-day Adventists,^[23] Rastafarians, and members of the Ethiopian Orthodox^[24] church also do not eat pork. Scottish pork taboo was Donald Alexander Mackenzie's phrase for discussing an aversion to pork amongst Scots, particularly Highlanders, which he believed stemmed from an ancient taboo. Several writers who confirm that there was a prejudice against pork, or a superstitious attitude toward pigs, do not see it in terms of a taboo related to an ancient cult. Any prejudice is generally agreed to have disappeared by 1800.

Disease in pork[link]

Pork, usually if undercooked, is also known to carry some life-threatening diseases such as pork tapeworm and trichinosis. Scholars^{[citation needed]} recently have suggested that some of the stigma placed on pork by Islam and Judaism might stem, in part, from ancient times when pork would be the carrier of disease.

Undercooked or untreated pork may harbour pathogens, or it can be recontaminated after cooking. In one instance, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) detected Listeria monocytogenes in 460 lbs of Polidori brand fully cooked pork sausage crumbles.^[25] The FSIS has previously stated Listeria and other microorganisms will be "destroyed by proper handling and thorough cooking to an internal temperature of 160 °F (71 °C)" and that other microorganisms, such as E. coli, Salmonella, and Staphylococcus aureus can be found in inadequately cooked pork, poultry, and other meats.^[26] The FSIS currently recommends cooking ground pork to 160 °F (71 °C) and whole cuts to 145 °F (63 °C) followed by a 3 minute rest.^[27]

The pig is the carrier of various helminths, such as roundworms, pinworms, hookworms, etc. One of the most dangerous and common is Taenia solium, a type of tapeworm. Tapeworms may transplant to the intestines of humans, as well, when they consume untreated or undercooked meat from pigs or other animals. If the infection is not treated, it can be fatal.

Although not a common cause of illness, Yersinia enterocolitica – which causes gastroenteritis – is present in various foods, but is most frequently caused by eating pork and can grow in refrigerated conditions. The bacteria can be killed by heat.^[28] Nearly all outbreaks in the US have been traced to pork.^[29]

Pork may be the reservoir responsible for sporadic, locally acquired cases of acute hepatitis E (HEV) reported in regions with relatively mild climates. It has been found to transmit between swine and humans.^[30]

Vacuum packed pork loin fillets

Trichinosis, also called trichinellosis, or trichiniasis, is a parasitic disease caused by eating raw or undercooked pork infected with the larvae of a species of roundworm Trichinella spiralis, commonly called the trichina worm. Infection was once very common, but is now rare in the developed world. From 2002 to 2007, an annual average of 11 cases per year were reported in the United States; the majority were from consuming wild game or the source was unknown. The number of cases has decreased because of legislation prohibiting the feeding of raw meat garbage to hogs, increased commercial and home freezing of pork, and the public awareness of the danger of eating raw or undercooked pork or wild game products.^[31]

See also[link]

• Beef
• Pig farming
• Religious restrictions on the consumption of pork

References[link]

v t e Pigs Kingdom Animalia · Phylum Chordata · Class Mammalia · Order Artiodactyla · Suborder Suina · Family Suidae · Subfamily Suinae · Genus Sus Domestic Selection List of domestic pig breeds • Swine judging • Pig show Husbandry Pig farming • Intensive pig farming • Sty • Pannage • Pig toilet • Hog oiler • Gestation crate • Cross-fostering • Swine diseases • Swineherd As food or other product Pig slaughter • Pig scalder • Suckling pig • Pork • Ham  • Bacon • Lard • Blood • Dishes • Pig bladder Other uses War pig • Truffle hog • Miniature pig • Pig racing • Pig wrestling Wild Feral Wild boar • Razorback • Wild pigs of the Philippines • Boar hunting • Boars in heraldry Pigs in culture Iron Age pig • Flitch of bacon custom • Miss Piggy • Porky Pig • "The Three Little Pigs" • Babe • Charlotte's Web • The Sheep-Pig  • Peppa Pig Cultural references to pigs

v t e Meat Poultry and game Chicken Duck Turkey Goose Pheasant Grouse Ostrich Quail Partridge Rabbit Venison Livestock Beef and Veal Bison Dog Goat Guinea pig Horse Kangaroo Lamb and mutton Llama Pork Yak Fish and seafood Crab Crayfish Lobster Prawn Shrimp Anchovy Basa Bass Catfish Carp Cod Crappie Dolphin Eel Flounder Grouper Haddock Halibut Herring Kingfish Mackerel Mahi Mahi Marlin Milkfish Orange roughy Perch Pike Pollock Salmon Sardine Sole Swordfish Tilapia Trout Tuna Walleye Whale Cuts and preparation Bacon Barbecued Braised Burgers Chop Corned Cured Fondue Fried Haggis Ham Aged Marinated Offal Pepperoni Pickled Poached Roasted Salami Sausage Salt-cured Smoked Steak Stewed Tartare Tenderized Other Butchery Ethics Preservation Slaughter Red meat White meat

External links[link]

• The Other White Meat Pork Main Website
• National Pork Board Pork Producer's Main Website
• National Pork Producers' Council
• Radio broadcast about pork production by Kootenay Co-op Radio
• Slovak Pork Slaughter and Traditional Sausage Making - article in English with detailed pictures of a Slovak family slaughtering a pig in 68 steps

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Temple Grandin
Born	(1947-08-29) August 29, 1947 (age 64) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Fields	Animal science
Institutions	Colorado State University
Alma mater	Franklin Pierce University Arizona State University University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
Known for	Work in the livestock industry

Temple Grandin (born August 29, 1947) is an American doctor of animal science and professor at Colorado State University, bestselling author, and consultant to the livestock industry on animal behavior. As a person with high-functioning autism, Grandin is also noted for her work in autism advocacy and is the inventor of the squeeze machine designed to calm hypersensitive people.

The subject of an award-winning biographical film, Temple Grandin, in 2010 she was listed in the Time 100 list of the 100 most influential people in the world in the "Heroes" category.^[1]

Early life and education[link]

Grandin was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Richard Grandin and Eustacia Cutler, and diagnosed with autism at age 2 in 1950. Diagnosed and labeled with brain damage, at that early age she was placed in a structured nursery school with what she considers to have been good teachers. Grandin's mother spoke to a doctor who suggested speech therapy, and she hired a nanny who spent hours playing turn-based games with Grandin and her sister.^{[citation needed]}

At age four, Grandin began talking. She considers herself lucky to have had supportive mentors from primary school onwards. However, Grandin has said that middle and high school were the worst parts of her life. She was the "nerdy kid" whom everyone teased. At times, while she walked down the street, people would taunt her by saying "tape recorder," because she would repeat things over and over again. Grandin states that, "I could laugh about it now, but back then it really hurt."^{[citation needed]}

After graduating from Hampshire Country School, a boarding school for gifted children in Rindge, New Hampshire, in 1966, Grandin went on to earn her bachelor's degree in psychology from Franklin Pierce College in 1970, her master's degree in animal science from Arizona State University in 1975, and her doctoral degree in animal science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 1989.

Grandin received an honorary doctorate degree from the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph in Guelph, Ontario, Canada at the 2012 Winter Convocation, where she was the keynote speaker.

Career celebrity, advocacy[link]

Grandin is a philosophical leader of both the animal welfare and autism advocacy movements.^[2] Both movements commonly cite her work regarding animal welfare, neurology, and philosophy. She knows the anxiety of feeling threatened by everything in her surroundings, and of being dismissed and feared, which motivates her work in humane livestock handling processes. Her business website promotes improvement of standards in slaughter plants and livestock farms. In 2004 she won a "Proggy" award, in the "visionary" category, from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.^[3]

One of her notable essays about animal welfare is “Animals are not Things”,^[4] in which she posits that animals are technically property in our society, but the law ultimately gives them ethical protections or rights. She compares the properties and rights of owning cows versus owning screwdrivers, enumerating how both can be utilized to serve human purposes in many ways but, when it comes to inflicting pain, there is a vital distinction between such 'properties': a person can legally smash or grind up a screwdriver but cannot legally torture an animal.

Grandin became well known after being described by Oliver Sacks in the title narrative of his book An Anthropologist on Mars (1995); the title is derived from Grandin's description of how she feels around neurotypical people. She first spoke in public about autism in the mid-1980s at the request of Ruth C. Sullivan, one of the founders of the Autism Society of America. Sullivan writes:

I first met Temple in the mid-1980s ...[at the] annual [ASA] conference.... Standing on the periphery of the group was a tall young woman who was obviously interested in the discussions. She seemed shy and pleasant, but mostly she just listened.... I learned her name was Temple Grandin... It wasn't until later in the week that I realized she was someone with autism....I approached her and asked if she'd be willing to speak at the next year's [ASA] conference. She agreed...The next year... Temple first addressed an [ASA] audience.... people were standing at least three deep....The audience couldn't get enough of her. Here, for the first time, was someone who could tell us from her own experience what it was like to be extremely sound sensitive ("like being tied to the rail and the train's coming")... She was asked many questions: "Why does my son do so much spinning?" "Why does he hold his hands to his ears? "Why doesn't he look at me?" She spoke from her own experience, and her insight was impressive. There were tears in more than one set of eyes that day.... Temple quickly became a much sought-after speaker in the autism community.^[5]

Based on personal experience, Grandin advocates early intervention to address autism, and supportive teachers who can direct fixations of the child with autism in fruitful directions. She has described her hypersensitivity to noise and other sensory stimuli. She claims she is a primarily visual thinker^[6] and has said that words are her second language. Temple attributes her success as a humane livestock facility designer to her ability to recall detail, which is a characteristic of her visual memory. Grandin compares her memory to full-length movies in her head that can be replayed at will, allowing her to notice small details. She is also able to view her memories using slightly different contexts by changing the positions of the lighting and shadows. Her insight into the minds of cattle has taught her to value the changes in details to which animals are particularly sensitive, and to use her visualization skills to design thoughtful and humane animal-handling equipment. She was named a fellow of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers in 2009.^[7]

As a partial proponent of neurodiversity, Grandin has expressed that she would not support a cure of the entirety of the autistic spectrum.^[8]

Personal life[link]

Temple Grandin at TED 2010

On May 16, 2010, Grandin also received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Duke University.^[9]

Grandin says, “the part of other people that has emotional relationships is not part of me” and she has neither married nor had children. Beyond her work in animal science and welfare and autism rights, her interests include horse riding, science fiction, movies, and biochemistry. She describes socializing with others as “boring” and has no interest in reading or watching entertainment about emotional issues or relationships.

She has noted in her autobiographical works that autism affects every aspect of her life. She has to wear comfortable clothes to counteract her sensory integration dysfunction and has structured her lifestyle to avoid sensory overload. She regularly takes anti-depressants, but no longer uses a squeeze-box (hug machine) that she invented at the age of 18 as a form of stress relief therapy, stating in February 2010 that: “It broke two years ago, and I never got around to fixing it. I'm into hugging people now.” ^[10]

In popular culture[link]

Grandin has been featured on major media programs, such as Lisa Davis's It's Your Health, ABC's Primetime Live, the Today Show, and Larry King Live, the NPR show, Fresh Air with Terry Gross, and written up in Time magazine, People magazine, Discover magazine, Forbes and The New York Times.^[11][12]In 2012, Grandin was interviewed on Thriving Canine Radio to discuss "A Different Perspective on Animal Behavior."

She was the subject of the Horizon documentary “The Woman Who Thinks Like a Cow”, first broadcast by the BBC on June 8, 2006, and Nick News in the spring of 2006.^[13] She has also been a subject in the series First Person by Errol Morris.

Grandin is the focus of a semi-biographical HBO film, titled Temple Grandin,^[14][15] starring Claire Danes as Grandin.^[16] The movie was released in 2010, was nominated for 15 Emmys, and received five awards, including Outstanding Made for Television Movie and Best Actress in a Drama.^[17] Grandin was on stage as the award was accepted, and spoke briefly to the audience. Coincidentally, the 2010 Emmy Awards happened on Grandin's birthday. At the 2011 Golden Globes, Claire Danes won a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television.

Grandin was featured in Beautiful Minds: A Voyage Into the Brain, a documentary produced in 2006 by colourFIELD tell-a-vision, a German company. She appeared in a 2011 documentary on Sci Channel, "Ingenious Minds".^{[citation needed]} She was named one of 2010's 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine.^[1]

Major publications[link]

• Emergence: Labeled Autistic (with Margaret Scariano, 1986, updated 1991), ISBN 0-446-67182-7
• The Learning Style of People with Autism: An Autobiography (1995). In Teaching Children with Autism : Strategies to Enhance Communication and Socializaion, Kathleen Ann Quill, ISBN 0-8273-6269-2
• Thinking in Pictures: Other Reports from My Life with Autism (1996) ISBN 0-679-77289-8
• Developing Talents: Careers for Individuals with Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism (2004). ISBN 1-931282-56-0
• Animals in Translation : Using the Mysteries of Autism to Decode Animal Behavior (with Catherine Johnson, 2005), ISBN 0-7432-4769-8
• The Unwritten Rules of Social Relationships: Decoding Social Mysteries Through the Unique Perspectives of Autism (with Sean Barron, 2005), ISBN 1-932565-06-X
• The Way I See It: A Personal Look At Autism And Aspergers (2009)
• Animals Make Us Human: Creating the Best life for Animals (with Catherine Johnson, 2009) ISBN 978-0-15-101489-7

See also[link]

• Controversies in autism
• Wendy Jacob
• Net Koene researching Temple Grandin's ideas regarding linguistics
• Sociological and cultural aspects of autism
• Temple Grandin (film)

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• In Depth with Temple Grandin, interview from November 1, 2009

Zakir Naik
Born	Zakir Abdul Karim Naik (1965-10-18) 18 October 1965 (age 46) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Education	Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery
Alma mater	Kishinchand Chellaram College Topiwala National Medical College and Nair Hospital University of Mumbai
Occupation	President of Islamic Research Foundation, public speaker
Years active	1991–present
Known for	Dawah
Influenced by	Ahmed Deedat
Board member of	Islamic Research Foundation
Religion	Islam
Spouse	Farhat Naik
Website
IRF.net PeaceTV.tv

Zakir Abdul Karim Naik (Urdu: ذاکر عبدالکریم نائیک; born 18 October 1965) is an Indian public speaker on the subject of Islam and comparative religion. He is the founder and president of the Islamic Research Foundation (IRF),^[1] a non-profit organisation that owns the Peace TV channel based in Dubai, UAE. He is sometimes referred to as a televangelist.^[2][3] Before becoming a public speaker, he trained as a doctor.^[3] He has written two booklets on Islam and comparative religion. He is regarded as an exponent of the Salafi ideology; ^[4] he places a strong emphasis on individual scholarship and the rejection of "blind Taqlid", which has led him to repudiate the relevance of sectarian or Madh'hab designations, all the while reaffirming their importance. ^[5][6]

Biography[link]

Zakir Abdul Karim Naik was born on 18 October 1965 in Mumbai, India. He attended St. Peter's High School in Mumbai. Later he enrolled at Kishinchand Chellaram College, before studying medicine at Topiwala National Medical College and Nair Hospital and later the University of Mumbai, where he obtained a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (MBBS).^[1] His wife, Farhat Naik, works for the women's section of the IRF.^[7]

In 1991 he started working in the field of Dawah, and founded the IRF.^[8] Naik says he was inspired by Ahmed Deedat, an Islamic preacher, having met him in 1987.^[9] (Naik is sometimes referred to as "Deedat plus", a label given to him by Deedat himself.)^[9][10] Naik says that his goal is to "concentrate on the educated Muslim youth who have become apologetic about their own religion and have started to feel the religion is outdated."^[11] He considers it a duty of every Muslim to remove perceived misconceptions about Islam and to counter what he views as the Western media's anti-Islamic bias in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks (also known as 9/11) in the United States.^[12] Some of his articles are published in magazines such as Islamic Voice.^[13]

Anthropologist Thomas Blom Hansen has written that Naik's style of memorising the Quran and Hadith literature in various languages, and his related missionary activity, has made him extremely popular in Muslim and non-Muslim circles.^[11] Many of his debates are recorded and widely distributed in video and DVD media and online. His talks are usually recorded in English and broadcast on weekends on several cable networks in Mumbai's Muslim neighbourhoods, and on the Peace TV channel, which he co-produces.^[14][15] Topics he speaks on include: "Islam and Modern Science", "Islam and Christianity", and "Islam and secularism".

Naik is the founder of the Islamic International School in Mumbai.^[16]

Lectures and debates[link]

Naik has held many debates and lectures around the world. One of Naik's most-cited debates was with William Campbell in Chicago in April 2000 on the topic of "The Qur'an and the Bible: In the Light of Science".^[17]

Naik has said that "despite the strident anti-Islam campaign, 34,000 Americans have embraced Islam from September 2001 to July 2002." He says Islam is a religion of reason and logic, and that the Quran contains 1000 verses relating to science, which he says explains the number of Western converts.^[18] A popular theme of Naik's is to try to demonstrate how scientific theories were prophesised by the Quran. For example, he says certain verses of the Quran accurately describe embryological development.^[19]

On 21 January 2006 Naik held an inter-religious debate with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in Bangalore about the concept of God in Islam and Hinduism.^[20]

In February 2011 Naik addressed the Oxford Union via video link from India.^[21]

Peace conference[link]

Every year since November 2007 Naik has led a 10-day Peace Conference at Somaiya Ground, Sion, Mumbai. Lectures on Islam have been presented by Naik and twenty other Islamic scholars.^[22]

During one of the lectures at the 2007 Peace Conference, Naik provoked anger between members of the Shia and Sunni communities, when he said the words "Radiallah ta'la anho" ("May Allah be pleased with him") after mentioning the name of Caliph Yazid I—a figure hated by many Muslims, but particularly by Shias—and said the battle of Karbala was political.^[23] Others, however, believed the comment was blown out of proportion.^[24]

Naik's views[link]

Biological evolution[link]

Naik has said that the theory of evolution is "only a hypothesis, and an unproven conjecture at best".^[25] According to Naik, most scientists "support the theory, because it went against the Bible – not because it was true."^[26]

Religions apart from Islam[link]

Naik says that Islam is the only correct religion (the equivalent of a maths teacher demonstrating that 2+2=4) while other religions are mistaken (the equivalent of saying that 2+2=3 or 2+2=6). He adds that other religions should not be allowed to propagate, and he supports banning the construction of non-Muslim houses of worship in Muslim lands.^[27]

Apostasy[link]

Naik has said that any Muslim is free to convert from Islam if the person so chooses, but added that if a Muslim converts and then speaks against Islam or propagates this other religion, it should be considered treason (as in treason to a country). Naik stated that under Islamic law this is punishable by death.^[28][29]

Terrorism[link]

Naik's views and statements on terrorism have at times been criticised in the media. In a YouTube video, speaking of Osama bin Laden, Naik said that he would not criticise bin Laden because he had not met him and did not know him personally. He added that, "If bin Laden is fighting enemies of Islam, I am for him," and that "If he is terrorizing the terrorist, if he is terrorizing America – the terrorist, biggest terrorist – I am with him. Every Muslim should be a terrorist. The thing is that if he is terrorizing the terrorist, he is following Islam. Whether he is or not, I don’t know, but you as Muslims know that, without checking up, laying allegations is also wrong."^[30][31] When Time hinted that this remark could have inspired Najibullah Zazi's terrorist activities, Naik insisted: "I have always condemned terrorism, because according to the glorious Koran, if you kill one innocent person, then you have killed the whole of humanity".^[30]

In 2010, Naik said that he had been quoted out of context regarding the remarks on terrorism. "As far as terrorist is concerned," he said, "I tell the Muslims that every Muslim should be a terrorist. ... What is the meaning of the word terrorist? Terrorist by definition means a person who terrorises. So in this context every Muslim should be a terrorist to each and every anti-social element. I’m aware that terrorist is more commonly used for a person who terrorises innocent human beings. So in this context no Muslim should ever terrorise a single innocent human being."^[32]

In a lecture delivered on 31 July 2008 on Peace TV, Naik commented on the attacks of 11 September: "it is a blatant, open secret that this attack on the Twin Towers was done by George Bush himself".^[33]

Other countries[link]

Visit to Australia and Wales[link]

In 2004 Naik, at the invitation of the Islamic Information and Services Network of Australasia, made an appearance at Melbourne University, where he argued that only Islam gave women true equality.^[34] He said the more "revealing Western dress" makes women more susceptible to rape.^[35] Sushi Das of The Agecommented that "Naik extolled the moral and spiritual superiority of Islam and lampooned other faiths and the West in general", further criticising that Naik's words "fostered a spirit of separateness and reinforced prejudice".^[36]

In August 2006 Naik's visit and conference in Cardiff caused controversy when Welsh MP David Davies called for his appearance to be cancelled. He said Naik was a "hate-monger", and that his views did not deserve a public platform; Muslims from Cardiff, however, defended Naik's right to speak in the city. Saleem Kidwai, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Wales, disagreed with Davies, stating that "people who know about him [Naik] know that he is one of the most uncontroversial persons you could find. He talks about the similarities between religions, and how should we work on the common ground between them", whilst also inviting Davies to discuss further with Naik personally in the conference. The conference went ahead, after the Cardiff council stated it was satisfied that he would not be preaching extremist views.^[37]

2010 exclusion from the UK and Canada[link]

Naik was denied entry into the United Kingdom and Canada in June 2010.^[38][39] He was banned from entering the UK by Home Secretary Theresa May after arranging to give talks in London and Sheffield. May said of the exclusion order, "Numerous comments made by Dr Naik are evidence to me of his unacceptable behaviour".^[38] Naik argued that the Home Secretary was making a political decision and not a legal one, and his lawyer said the decision was "barbaric and inhuman". He also claimed that his comments were taken out of context.^[40] Film producer Mahesh Bhatt supported Naik, saying the ban constituted an attack on freedom of speech.^[41] It was reported that Naik would attempt to challenge the ruling in the High Court.^[42] His application for judicial review was dismissed on 5 November 2010.^[8] Naik was forbidden from entering Canada after Tarek Fatah, founder of Muslim Canadian Congress, warned MPs of Naik's views.^[39]

Reception[link]

Naik was ranked 89 on The Indian Express's list of the "100 Most Powerful Indians in 2010".^[43] He was ranked 82 in the 2009 edition.^[44] According to Praveen Swami, Naik is "perhaps the most influential Salafi ideologue in India".^[45] Sanjiv Buttoo says he is acknowledged as an authority on Islam, but is known for making negative remarks about other religions.^[38] Sadanand Dhume writes that Naik has a "carefully crafted image of moderation", because of his gentle demeanor, his wearing of a suit and tie, and his quoting of scriptures of other religions.^[46] He is also mentioned in the book "The 500 most influential muslims – 2011" under honourable mentions.^{[citation needed]}

Criticism[link]

Khushwant Singh, a prominent Indian journalist, politician, and author, says he "disagree[s] with almost everything [Naik] has to say about misconceptions about Islam". Singh argues that Naik's pronouncements are "juvenile", and said "they seldom rise above the level of undergraduate college debates, where contestants vie with each other to score brownie points".^[47] Singh also says Naik's audiences "listen to him with rapt attention and often explode in enthusiastic applause when he rubbishes other religious texts".^[48]

Yoginder Sikand wrote in 2011 that influential sections of the Deobandi community in India were beginning to hold a negative view of Naik. They said he was not abiding by ijma (Islamic consensus) and qiyas (analogical deduction of the Quran and Hadith), and therefore, in Sikand's view, was undermining their authority.^[49]

Khaled Ahmed criticised Naik for "indirectly support[ing]" Al-Qaeda by referring to Osama bin Laden as a "soldier of Islam".^[50] In 2008 an Islamic scholar in Lucknow, shahar qazi Mufti Abul Irfan Mian Firangi Mahali, issued a fatwa against Naik, saying that he supported Osama bin Laden, and that his teachings were un-Islamic.^[51]

Torkel Brekke, a professor of religious history in Norway, calls Naik a "very controversial figure" because of his rhetorical attack on other religions and other varieties of Islam.^[52] He writes that Naik is "strongly disliked" by many members of the Indian ulema for ignoring their authority and stating that anybody can interpret the Quran.^[52] Conservative Deobandi mullahs have accused Naik of "destroying Islam" by driving Muslims away from the correct religious authorities.^[52]

Praveen Swami considers Naik to be a part of the ideological infrastructure created to feed "Tempered Jihad", which he defines as Jihad calibrated to advance Islamist political objectives.^[45] He alleges that Naik's IRF has proved to be a "magnet" for figures linked to the Lashkar-e-Taiba, his message has mesmerised violent Islamists, and his works "help make sense of the motivations of Indian recruits to the jihad."^[45]

References[link]

External links[link]

	Mumbai portal
	Biography portal
	Islam portal

• Islamic Research Foundation
• Zakir Naik's All Video Debates and Lectures
• Collection of Books by Zakir Naik in PDF