Arab Mediterranean Islam: Intellectual and Political Trends

This chapter reflects on the Arab world as a representation of the ‘Mediterranean Islam’ and outlines the intertwining territories between theoretical and practical Islam of mostly the vital period of the twentieth century, with references to pre-and-post this era. This chapter describes how Arab Mediterranean Islam aspires for change based primarily on its own tradition, without neglecting the importance of modern socio-cultural and political challenges that impact revisiting this tradition and its re-appropriation. It ultimately shows how it is internally plural and diverse, and also conflictual. To facilitate this task of presenting a complex mosaic of Arab Mediterranean Islam in limited space, I will adopt a typology of Islam that is as comprehensive as possible: (1) Ultra-conservative or Salafi Islam, (2) conservative or orthodox Islam, and (3) progressive or critical Islam. Within each of these types other sub-types emerge, where needed, for ease of picturing the plurality of the phenomenon under study. The chapter ends with a brief reflective closure on ‘Mediterranean thinking’, closing in so doing the opening reflections on the same point.