Madrasa - Definition

Definition

This article is part of a series on:
Islam
Beliefs
  • Oneness of God
  • Prophets
  • Revealed books
  • Angels
  • Predestination
  • Day of Resurrection
Practices
  • Profession of faith
  • Prayer
  • Fasting
  • Alms
  • Pilgrimage
Texts & laws
  • Quran
  • Sunnah
  • Hadith
  • Fiqh
  • Sharia
  • Kalam
History & leaders
  • Timeline
  • Muhammad
  • Ahl al-Bayt
  • Sahaba
  • Rashidun
  • Imamate
  • Caliphate
  • Spread of Islam
Denominations
  • Sunni
  • Shia
  • Wahabi
  • Ibadi
  • Ahmadiyya
  • Quranism
  • NOI
  • Liberal
Culture & society
  • Academics
  • Animals
  • Art
  • Calendar
  • Children
  • Dawah
  • Demographics
  • Festivals
  • Mosques
  • Philosophy
  • Politics
  • Science
  • Women
See also
  • Other religions
  • Glossary
Islam portal

The word madrasa is derived from the triconsonantal Semitic root د-ر-س D-R-S 'to learn, study', through the wazn (form/stem) (مفعل(ة mafʿal(ah), meaning a place where X is done. Therefore, madrasa literally means "a place where learning and studying are done". The word is also present as a loanword with the same innocuous meaning in many Arabic-influenced languages, such as: Urdu, Bengali, Hindi, Persian, Turkish, Azeri, Kurdish, Indonesian, Malay and Bosnian / Croatian. In the Arabic language, the word مدرسة madrasa simply means the same as school does in the English language, whether that is private, public or parochial school, as well as for any primary or secondary school whether Muslim, non-Muslim, or secular. Unlike the understanding of the word school in British English, the word madrasa is like the term school in American English, in that it can refer to a university-level or post-graduate school as well. For example, in the Ottoman Empire during the Early Modern Period, madrasas had lower schools and specialized schools where the students became known as danişmends. The usual Arabic word for a university, however, is simply جامعة (ǧāmiʿah). The Hebrew cognate midrasha also connotes the meaning of a place of learning; the related term midrash literally refers to study or learning, but has acquired mystical and religious connotations.

However, in English, the term madrasa usually refers to the specifically Islamic institutions. A typical Islamic school usually offers two courses of study: a ḥifẓ course teaching memorization of the Qur'an (the person who commits the entire Qur'an to memory is called a ḥāfiẓ); and an ʿālim course leading the candidate to become an accepted scholar in the community. A regular curriculum includes courses in Arabic, tafsir (Qur'anic interpretation), šarīʿah (Islamic law), hadiths (recorded sayings and deeds of Prophet Muhammad), mantiq (logic), and Muslim history. In the Ottoman Empire, during the Early Modern Period, the study of hadiths was introduced by Süleyman I. Depending on the educational demands, some madrasas also offer additional advanced courses in Arabic literature, English and other foreign languages, as well as science and world history. Ottoman madrasas along with religious teachings also taught "styles of writing, grammary, syntax, poetry, composition, natural sciences, political sciences, and etiquette."

People of all ages attend, and many often move on to becoming imams. The certificate of an ‘ālim for example, requires approximately twelve years of study. A good number of the ḥuffāẓ (plural of ḥāfiẓ) are the product of the madrasas. The madrasas also resemble colleges, where people take evening classes and reside in dormitories. An important function of the madrasas is to admit orphans and poor children in order to provide them with education and training. Madrasas may enroll female students; however, they study separately from the men.

Read more about this topic:  Madrasa

Famous quotes containing the word definition:

    It is very hard to give a just definition of love. The most we can say of it is this: that in the soul, it is a desire to rule; in the spirit, it is a sympathy; and in the body, it is but a hidden and subtle desire to possess—after many mysteries—what one loves.
    François, Duc De La Rochefoucauld (1613–1680)

    The very definition of the real becomes: that of which it is possible to give an equivalent reproduction.... The real is not only what can be reproduced, but that which is always already reproduced. The hyperreal.
    Jean Baudrillard (b. 1929)

    Although there is no universal agreement as to a definition of life, its biological manifestations are generally considered to be organization, metabolism, growth, irritability, adaptation, and reproduction.
    The Columbia Encyclopedia, Fifth Edition, the first sentence of the article on “life” (based on wording in the First Edition, 1935)