Islamization

Islamization (also spelt Islamisation, see spelling differences; Arabic: أسلمة‎ aslamah) or Islamification (pejorative Muhammadization) has been used to describe the process of a society's conversion to the religion of Islam. In contemporary usage, it may refer to the perceived imposition of an Islamist social and political discourse on a society with a tradition of a more varied interpretation of Islam.

The English synonyms, muslimization and arabization, in use since before 1940 (e.g., Waverly Illustrated Dictionary) convey a similar meaning. Due to the trend towards identifying all Muslims with Arab people, common in the Western world, the latter tends to be applied to non-Arab (e.g. Berber, Turkish or Iranian) influence as well. Muslimization has recently been used as a term coined to describe the overtly Muslim practices of new converts to the religion who wish to reinforce their newly acquired religious identity.