Muslim
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A Muslim (Arabic: مسلم) (sometimes also spelled Moslem) is an adherent of Islam. Literally, the word means someone who has submitted to the will of God.
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Definition
Most Muslims accept as a fellow Muslim anyone who has publicly pronounced the Shahada, a ritual declaration of submission to God and assertion that Muhammad is the last prophet.
Muslims describe many Biblical figures, such as Musa (Moses) and Isa (Jesus), as Muslims because they submitted completely to God (Allah) and preached his message as prophets.
Etymology
The word Muslim is Arabic and comes from from the 4-consonantal root As-La-Ma (أَسْلَمَ) meaning "to submit". "Muslim" thus means "someone who has submitted" (to the will of God).
Many people ignorant of basic Arabic morphology state that it comes from the tri-consonantal root Sa-La-Ma (سَلَمَ) meaning "to be at peace", making a "Muslim" a "peaceful person". This, however, is incorrect as this would be "Saalim" (سالم) and not "Muslim".
The plural form is "Muslimeen" (مسلمين) in Arabic and "Muslims" in English.
The word Islaam, however, is closest in meaning to "submission". Some scholars argue, however, that it originally had more to do with submission to one god than submission in general, thereby emphasizing a break with the pre-Islamic polythesitic practices.
Pronunciation and spelling
Until around the late 1980s, the word was commonly spelled Moslem. The spelling has since fallen into disuse. Muslims do not recommend this spelling because it is often pronounced "mawzlem," which sounds somewhat similar to an Arabic word for "oppressor" (Za'lem in Arabic). The word is pronounced "Mus"-lim in Arabic, but often "Muz"-lim in English. The word is now most commonly written "Muslim".
Other words for Muslim
Many English-language writers used to call Muslims Mohammedans or Mahometans, meaning "followers of Mohammed," but this terminology is considered incorrect and insulting by Muslims, because Muslims believe it implies that they worship the prophet Muhammad, contrary to the fundamental principles of Islam itself. This terminology is also seen as too similar to Christians as followers and worshippers of Christ. In addition, Muslims believe that the religion of submitting to God (Islām in Arabic) existed long before the birth of Muhammad, making all the prophets before him "Muslims."
English writers of the 19th century and earlier sometimes used the words Mussulman, Musselman, or Mussulmaun. Variant forms of this word are still used by many Indo-European languages. These words are similar to the French, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese words for "Muslim."
Arabic terms used in discussions of Muslim identity
When discussing whether or not someone is a real Muslim, the following terms may be used by those arguing:
- Mu'min - believer
- Fasiq - shameless sinner
- Munafiq - hypocrite; professes Islam but does not believe in it (one who professes but does not practice is a fasiq)
- Kafir - neither professes nor believes; an infidel
Also, one verse in the Qur'an makes a distiction between a Mu'min and a Muslim:
- (Rodwell 49:14) The Arabs of the desert say, "We believe." (tu/minoo) Say thou: Ye believe not; but rather say, "We profess Islam;" (aslamna) for the faith (al-eemanu) hath not yet found its way into your hearts. But if ye obey God and His Apostle, he will not allow you to lose any of your actions: for God is Indulgent, Merciful.
Disagreements
There are some groups that claim to be Muslim, but are not accepted as Muslim by most Muslims. For example, neither Sunni nor Shi'a Muslims accept Ahmedis as fellow Muslims. This is also true of other groups as well. An agnostic of Islamic background may refer to him/herself as a "cultural Muslim", but this is likewise unacceptable to most observant Muslims, but it is a common practice especially in secular Muslim countries like Turkey and other parts of the former Ottoman Empire. Some Sunni regard the Shi'a and the Alawī sects as non-Muslim. There have also been numerous instances in which some Sunni have declared other Sunni to be unbelievers, some Shi'a have declared other Shi'a the same, and so on.
The act of calling another a disbeliever is called takfir.
