Written by Theresa Corbin

If you have ever heard someone confuse Middle Eastern politics with the religion of Islam, or you yourself have mix up the cultural identity of “Arab” with “Muslim”, or you have been called “Islamic” when you are really a Muslim. If any of these things have ever happened to you, keep reading. What follows is a practical guide to the basics of the what, when, who, and how of Islam, Islamic, Muslim and more. 

Islam [iss-LAMB] (n.)- One of three major monotheistic religions, a religion of a long line of  prophets, the last of whom was Muhammad, born in the 6^th century CE. A religion with 6 pillars of belief and 5 pillars of practice, a religion of one God (the creator of all things) who has no partners.

ex: Islam, it ain’t you momma’s religion … um … well, it ain’t my momma’s religion, but if Islam is your momma’s religion, that’s cool too.  

Islamic [iss– LAMB- ick] (adj.)- Anything used to describe a place or thing that has to do with Islam. People are not Islamic.

ex: I am excited to wear my awesome Islamic attire to the Islamic center, but alas, I am not Islamic. I am a Muslim.

Islamist [say it however you want because it is not a word] – something the Western media made up to sound like they know what they are talking about without doing any actual research on Islam. 

ex: Fox news caster: The world is ending so you have to give us all your money and do what we tell you, or the Islamists win.

 

Muslim [MOOSE– limb] – 1.) (n.) Any person who believes in the one-ness of God, the Day of Judgement, the true prophets who came with proof, the angels, and in the Quran as the word of God. And who does the five pillars of Islam: prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, testament of faith, and charity  2.) (adj.) anything used to describe a person, place, or thing. Can be used to replace Islamic, but it’s a one way street. Islamic cannot but used to replace Muslim.

ex: Some sources say that only 20% of the 2 billion Muslims (n.) are from the Middle East. By God! I believe that is a minority of Muslims (n.)!! That would explain why there are all kinds of people who wear Muslim (adj.) clothes at the Muslim (adj.) Center.

islamwich [iss-LAMB-witch] (n.)- 1.) An awesome blog about Islam and the reactions that occur when Islam appears in Western culture. 2.) A sandwich that is made without the use of pork.

ex: Before you eat that islamwich, tell all your friends about the blog islamwich.com, and follow islamwich.com on FB, Pinterest, Tumblr, & Twitter (@islamwich).

But seriously, pass it on.

P.S. Pronunciations really depend on who you are talking to. The only thing you should really be careful of in these pronunciations is swapping “S’s” for “Z’s”. This is common English practice, as in “itz my blog, I will end my sentencez with prepositionz if I want to!”, or the infamously clichéd “wazzzup!”… i.e. it is not Muzlim, or Izlamic etc. The “S’s” really sound like “S’s” 😉

Part 2 is here

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