Theology (Volume 1)

Discussions of religious questions may be traced back to the first Islamic century, but the term kalam was coined in the second/eight century. The term mutakallimuin was applied to theologians by Malik ibn Anas, though some companions of Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq were also designated as such. Such discussions presented rational arguments for religious doctrines and principles against followers of different religions and sects. 

The present volume includes the English translations of selected articles devoted to this subject which were originally published in Persian in the Encyclopaedia of the World of Islam (EWI). Other entries from this encyclopaedia which are available in English include History and Historiography, Historical Sources of the Islamic World, Quranic Exegeses, Tafsir, and Hawza-yi ‘Ilmiyya.