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Fiqh and uṣūl al-fiqh (Islamic law)

İmam ŞâfiîEbû Hanîfeİmam MâlikAhmed b. Hanbel

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For everyone

Fiqh is the Islamic discipline studying the practical rulings of religion, from worship and trade to family law and penalties. Uṣūl al-fiqh studies the methods by which rulings are derived from sources such as the Qur'an, the Sunna, consensus (ijmāʿ) and analogy (qiyās). The earliest surviving work of uṣūl is al-Shāfiʿī's al-Risāla. The Ḥanafī, Mālikī, Shāfiʿī and Ḥanbalī schools are the main Sunni legal schools.

For specialists

Uṣūl al-fiqh discusses the hierarchy of proofs, the interpretation of terms (general–specific, absolute–qualified), abrogation, juristic preference (istiḥsān), public interest (istiṣlāḥ) and custom. Whether the "gate of ijtihād" closed has been debated in modern times; Hallaq argued that ijtihād continued in the classical period. Maqāṣid al-sharīʿa (al-Shāṭibī) is an approach emphasising the purposes of the law (religion, life, intellect, lineage, property).

Claims

Positions

Wael Hallaq
The thesis that the "gate of ijtihād closed" is historically inaccurate; jurists continued ijtihād for centuries.[4]

Connections

Parent

Law and politics

Built upon by

The Mecelle (Ottoman civil code)

Related

Islam and the Qur'anKalām (Islamic theology)The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

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Sources

  1. EncyclopediaFıkıh. TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisiislamansiklopedisi.org.trarchive
  2. EncyclopediaUsûl-i fıkıh. TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisiislamansiklopedisi.org.trarchive
  3. Encyclopediaer-Risâle (Şâfiî). TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisiislamansiklopedisi.org.trarchive
  4. ArticleHallaq, W. B. (1984). Was the gate of ijtihad closed?. International Journal of Middle East Studies 16(1), 3–41DOI 10.1017/S0020743800027598archive

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APA

Athena contributors. (2026). Fiqh and uṣūl al-fiqh (Islamic law). Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Retrieved November 1, 2026, from https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/fikih/

BibTeX
@misc{athena_fikih,
  title        = {Fiqh and uṣūl al-fiqh (Islamic law)},
  author       = {{Athena contributors}},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {\url{https://latifkedi.github.io/athena/en/d/fikih/}},
  note         = {Athena: The tree of human knowledge. Accessed: 2026-11-01}
}

Added: September 27, 2026 · Last changed: September 27, 2026 · Page history

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