Virtually Islamic Blog

Gary R. Bunt

Virtual Ummah

Article on the Virtual Ummah (in Russian) by Anton Ignatovich. (Goes to a PDF) Discover More…

Islamic Discourse in Russia

New and noted: The Concept of Traditional Islam in Modern Islamic Discourse in Russia, edited by Renat Bekkin (available via Academia.edu) PDF
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Forthcoming Webinar

I'll be providing a webinar for the Ali Vural Ak Center for Global Islamic Studies at George Mason University: "The 'Allah Algorithm': Interpreting Islamic Influencers' Online Responses to Covid-19", Tuesday, September 8, 2020 2:00 PM to 3:00 PM EDT (RSVP required)
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“Islamist terrorism” and “jihadis”

Terminology concerns apply to academic discussion as well … Discover More…

MA Islamic Studies

I've been involved with the MA Islamic Studies (by distance learning) at UWTSD for fifteen years+, so thought I would share some information on it here:


and here's the MA Islamic Studies Brochure (PDF) Discover More…

Islam and Muslims on UK University Campuses: Perceptions and Challenges

Important new report released on Islam and Muslims on UK University Campuses: Perceptions and Challenges Discover More…

Muhammad Anwar

Obituary of Muhammad Anwar, whose influential work I read while an undergraduate Discover More…

Online resources for MENA studies

Online resources for MENA studies Discover More…

Religion in Quarantine: The Future of Religion in a Post-Pandemic World

Heidi Campbell (ed), Religion in Quarantine: The Future of Religion in a Post-Pandemic World, (OakTrust, 2020) new e-book released on COVID-19 and religion, with a section on Muslim responses. It includes a chapter on Practising Islam in the COVID-19 age. Discover More…

Sir William Jones

British Library, Asian and African studies blog, Sir William Jones’ manuscript copy of al-Fatawa al-'Alamgiriyyah

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Islamophobia and normative sociology

article by Tariq Modood on Islamophobia and normative sociology, published by the British Academy Discover More…

'Islamic State' 2020

Latest on ISIS Discover More…

New book on al-Awlaki

New book on Anwar al-Awlaki Discover More…

'Shaykh Google'

I'm currently reading: Emad Hamdeh, 'Shaykh Google as Ḥāfiẓ al-ʿAṣr: The Internet, Traditional ʿUlamā’, and Self Learning ' via Academia Discover More…

Korean Muslims Online

Farrah Sheikh, ResearchGate, Korean Muslims: Shaping Islamic Discourse and Identities Online, European Journal of Korean Studies Discover More…

CyberOrient

CyberOrient, Online Journal of the Virtual Middle East and Islamic World, Vol. 13 Issue 1
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Research Issues

Michael Krona, GNet, Vicarious Trauma From Online Extremism Research – A Call to Action

This is a significant issue, which I have personal experience of, especially as I recall the impact of some of the first 'jihad' oriented videos I viewed some 20 years ago …

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The Online Public Sphere in the Gulf

Good to see this has been published: Review of Middle East Studies, 53(2) Special Focus: The Online Public Sphere in the Gulf
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New Book on Jihad

A new book from Thomas Hegghammer is out now, discussing global jihad: Discover More…

Research: France, Muslims & Net

L’espace public traditionnel à l’épreuve de la critique de musulmans Français. February 2020
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Islamophobia research

Metro, Muslims experience ‘shared suffering’ when other Muslims go through trauma


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Iran IRGC Report

Kasra Aarabi, Analyst, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, Beyond Borders: the Expansionist Ideology of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Discover More…

Salafi-Sufi online contestations

PhD research Discover More…

Cyber Sufis - Interview

I'm currently listening to New Books Network: Robert Rozehnal, Cyber Sufis - Virtual Expressions of the American Muslim Experience. Interview by Shobhana Xavier
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Extreme Digital Speech

Vox-Pol, New VOX-Pol Report: Extreme Digital Speech: Contexts, Responses and Solutions
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Arab Fashion Heritage Online

Gulf Today, Arab heritage through the prism of traditional fashion
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Yasir Qadhi Analysed

Garrett Kiriakos-Fugate, Yasir Qadhi, Homophobia, and Preaching a Muslim Men’s Heterosexual Piety
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Jihadism 101

Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi, Pundicity, Jihadism 101: 'The Neglected Duty'

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AAR on Studying Religion

Elin Johnson, American Academy of Religion, Inside Higher Ed, Understanding, Not Endorsement Discover More…

Hijab and Social Media

New and noted: R. Kauser, Exploring the self-presentation of female Muslims, who wear the hijab, on the social networking site 'Instagram.' (Manchester Metropolitan University, 2019) [PDF] Discover More…

Social Media & Atheism

Leo Igwe, Maravi Post, Islam, Social Media and Rise of Atheism in Northern Nigeria Discover More…

Prevent Strategy Review

Discover Society, FOCUS: An Independent Review of the Prevent Strategy Discover More…

Leaving the War on Terror

TNI, Leaving the War on Terror
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AICIS Conference

One month to go … AICIS 19th Annual Conference on Islamic Studies [and on Facebook here] Discover More…

Hajj 2019/1440

A collection of links and resources associated with Hajj 2019/1440 Discover More…

New book: 'Tweeted Heresies'

New and noted: Abdullah Hamidaddin, Tweeted Heresies Discover More…

Content Removal

Isabelle van der Vegt, Paul Gill, Stuart Macdonald and Bennett Kleinberg, Shedding Light on Terrorist and Extremist Content Removal, RUSI, 3 July 2019 Discover More…

Content Removal Issues

Joe Whittaker, Lawfare, How Content Removal Might Help Terrorists (analysis/opinion)
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Conference - AICIS 2019

AICIS 2019 - 19th International Conference on Islamic Studies Discover More…

Mediating Islam

Mediating Islam in the Digital Age academic project Discover More…

Muslim Pilgrimage in the Modern World

New from UNC Press, Muslim Pilgrimage in the Modern World, Edited by Babak Rahimi, Peyman Eshaghi Discover More…

El Fadl on KSA Scholars

Usuli Institute, Khaled Abou El Fadl Speaks at Protest for Saudi Scholars, 2 June 2019 [published 7 June 2019 on YouTube]
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From Battlefront to Cyberspace

One for future reading:

Asaad Almohammad & Charlie Winter, From Battlefront to Cyberspace: Demystifying the Islamic State’s Propaganda Machine, CTI, June 2019


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‘Orientalism,’ Then and Now

Adam Shatz, NYR Daily, ‘Orientalism,’ Then and Now
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'Cyber Sufis'

This week two important books about Islam and the Internet have appeared. Hussein Kesvani's book on UK Muslims and the net (previously blogged) and this new one from Robert Rozehnal on Sufis and the net. I was able to preview this, which is a really interesting read. It focuses on Inayat Sufism. Discover More…

Cyber-muftis

Alexandre Caeiro, Daily Sabah, Cyber-muftis, digital fatwas - the ongoing transformation of religious authority
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'Cassette Tap Revolution'

New and noted article: Simon, Andrew. “CENSURING SOUNDS: TAPES, TASTE, AND THE CREATION OF EGYPTIAN CULTURE.” International Journal of Middle East Studies, n.d., 1–24. doi:10.1017/S0020743819000035. Discover More…

Online Manipulation

Clint Watts, FPRI, Five Generations of Online Manipulation: The Evolution of Advanced Persistent Manipulators Discover More…

New Muslim Public Digital Spheres

Bibliographical information for researchers on Islam and Muslims online: Discover More…

IS - Analysis

Eurasia Review, Assessment Of Islamic State Ideological Threat – Analysis
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BL's Oldest Qur'an

British Library, The British Library’s oldest Qur’an manuscript now online, 7 April 2016 I have reposted this because of a recent video.

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Antarah ibn Shaddad

Radio 4, In Our Time, Antarah ibn Shaddad Discover More…

Islamic State's caliphate online

LA Times, Islamic State's caliphate is all but finished, but its online presence endures [opinion] Discover More…

Internet contributes to radicalism among young RI Muslims: Study

Jakarta Post, Internet contributes to radicalism among young RI Muslims: Study Discover More…

Digitised Manuscripts

HindustanTimes, Jamia digitises rare, old books, manuscripts as part of conservation project
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'Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan'

Aaron Zelin on the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (via Twitter) Discover More…

'State of Social Media: Middle East 2018'

al-Bawaba, 5 Takeaways on Social Media in the Middle East in 2018 According to Oregon’s School of Journalism

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Tablighi Jama'at/Zakir Naik Research

Matthew J. Kuiper, Da'wa and Other Religions: Indian Muslims and the Modern Resurgence of Global Islamic Activism, Routledge, 2017 Discover More…

Product Placement

Blackwell's have a page for 'Hashtag Islam'. Discover More…

'The Unlikely Connection Between Trump and Ayatollah Khomeini'

Philip Kowalski, Ozy.com, The Unlikely Connection Between Trump and Ayatollah Khomeini
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Social media and the 'Arab Uprising'

Washington Post, Eight years after Egypt’s revolution, here’s what we’ve learned about social media and protest
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Digital Piety in Bangladesh: A Psychosocial Analysis

Sayeed al-Zaman, Digital Piety in Bangladesh: A Psychosocial Analysis (ResearchGate)
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New book: 'A Critique of the Abrogation Theory'

My former student, Jasser Auda, has a new book out: Jasser Auda & Adil Salahi, A Critique of the Abrogation Theory in Islam (Goodreads page)
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Digital Religion

Gizmodo, How Ancient Religious Texts Went Digital
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Digital Qur'an MSS Tweet

Tweet about digital Qur'an mss in the Vatican Discover More…

Manuscripts | Digital Resources and Projects in Islamic Studies

Maydan, Manuscripts | Digital Resources and Projects in Islamic Studies Discover More…

Gille Kepel's Analysis

Gavin Mortimer, Spectator, The link between the gilet jaunes and the Strasbourg attack, 13 Dec 2018
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How Islamic is "Islamic Studies"?

YouTube, How Islamic is "Islamic Studies"? Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad, Distinguished Lecture
I haven't seen this in fully yet.
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Jihadology

Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, Don't Shut Down the Internet's Biggest Jihadi Archive, 10 Dec 2018 Discover More…

True Origins of ISIS

Hassan Hassan, The Atlantic, The True Origins of ISIS: A secret biography suggests that Abu Ali al-Anbari defined the group’s radical approach more than any other person, 30 Nov 2018
Important article from Hassan Hassan.

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Building pictures of online activity

phys.org, 'Big picture' platforms boost fight against online terror activity, 29 Nov 2018
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Panel on social media and information war in the Middle East

CFTNI, Social Media and Information War in the Middle East
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Mawlid Celebration

Omid Safi, OneBeing, The Celebration of Mawlid, The Birthday of the Prophet article from 2015, but relevant at the moment too.
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Matthew Hedges' Case

Matthew Hedges Case Discover More…

Islam as statecraft: How governments use religion in foreign policy

Peter Mandaville and Shadi Hamid, Islam as statecraft: How governments use religion in foreign policy, Brookings
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CPF

CFP, Sociology of Religion Study Group (SocRel) Annual Conference 2019, 'Communicating Religion', 9-11 July 2019, Cardiff University [PDF] Discover More…

'Defending Scholarship'

Michael Munnik, Centre for the Study of Islam in the UK. Defending scholarship in public debates

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Google Scholar issues

Benefits of Google scholar, and their implications Discover More…

Counter-Islamophobia Toolkit

Middle East Eye, Muslims in Europe facing 'hostility in everyday life', Islamophobia study finds "European academics and policy makers came together at the European Parliament in Brussels on Wednesday to launch what they describe as a "toolkit" to tackle Islamophobia across the continent." Toolkit link here: Counter-Islamophobia Toolkit – Prof. Ian Law, Dr Amina Easat-Daas and Prof. S. Sayyid
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