JMH385H1

Islamic Law and the Modern State

What happens to the shariʿa when it is applied by modern nation-states? This course introduces students to the way states, with Muslim majorities and minorities, from Canada to Malaysia, passing by Nigeria, Palestine, Iran, and Pakistan approach, accommodate, or apply Islamic law. We also discuss the way Muslims, lay and scholarly, talk about, practice, and follow Islamic law under modern states. Based on an examination of law in practice, we will be able to theorize modern transformations of the shariʿa and provincialize the modern state and its legal regime.