Ulama

Ulama (/ˈuːləˌmɑː/; Arabic: علماء‎ ʿUlamāʾ, singular عالِم ʿĀlim, "scholar", also spelled ulema; female is alimah (singular) and uluma (plural)), is defined as the "those recognized as scholars or authorities" in the "religious hierarchy" of the Islamic religious sciences. The guardians of legal and religious tradition in Islam. Often they are "Imams of important mosques, judges, teachers in the religious faculties of universities", or the body of Muslim Islamic scholars have been trained in the whole body of Islamic law and in other Islamic disciplines, but may also be used to include the village mullahs and imams on the lowest rungs of the ladder of Islamic scholarship.In as much they correspond most closely to the class of the Scribes or Rabbis in Judaism.

Most ulama specialize in fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) (these are known as fuqaha or muftis), and are considered the arbiters of sharia law by mainstream Muslims (though the closeness of some ulama to rulers may prevent them from being universally accepted). Ulama may also include specialists in other areas such as muhaddith (concerned with the study of hadith) and mufassir (concerned with tafsir of the Quran).

List of modern-day Muslim scholars of Islam

This article is a list of modern-era (20th to 21st century) scholars of Islam who are considered by reliable sources to be leading authorities on the teachings and rulings of the Islamic religion.

Geographical categories have been created based on commonalities in culture and language across the Muslim World.

Africa and the Middle East

Ismail ibn Musa Menk

Ismail ibn Musa Menk, also known as Mufti Menk, is a Muslim cleric and current Grand Mufti of Zimbabwe.

Biography

Early life

Menk was born in Harare, where he undertook his initial studies. Menk then went on to obtain a degree in Shariah Law from the Islamic University of Madinah. Following this, he went on to specialize in Jurisprudence in Gujarat, India.

Work

He is the director of the Daar ul Ilm (Islamic Educational Centre) of the Majlisul Ulama which caters to the educational needs of the Muslim population of Zimbabwe. Mufti Menk is known especially in eastern Africa and also teaches internationally.

Controversy

The Huffington Post has described Menk as an "openly homophobic Islamic preacher" who has denounced gay people as "filthy". In 2013, he was due to visit six British universities – Oxford, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Cardiff and Glasgow – but the speaking tour was cancelled after student unions and university officials expressed concern about his views.

Awards