Islamism and Its Sociopolitical Functions

Islamic Quarterly. 2019. Vol. 63. No. 3. P. 427–452.

Grinin L. E., Korotayev A.

In the paper Islamism is described as a multi-faceted, multi-dimensional, changing and inconsistent phenomenon. Islamism possesses many levels and manifestations. It is impossible to comprehend modern Muslim (and all the more Arab) societies without an account of the impact of Islam as simultaneously an ideology, cultural environment, modus agenda and mode of life. It would be a mistake to present Islamism as a node on the body of Muslim societies. In fact, Islamism in many respects reflects the essence of modern Muslim societies, of their mode of thought and life. It in many ways helps to maintain social, economic, political and various other spheres of life at different societal levels as well as create a peculiar Islamic pattern of modernization. In this paper we present our own vision of the reasons and grounds for the extensive and deep integration of Islamism into Muslim societies. We will present our views on its broad functions and aspects. 

Keywords: модернизация, демократия, социальная мобильность, values, social mobility, ценности, democracy, modernization, исламизм, политический ислам, revolutions, исламские общества, Political Islam, Islamism, революции, радикальный исламизм, умеренный исламизм, radical islamism, moderate islamism, Muslim societies, mass movement, self-organization of Islamic society

Publication based on the results of: Instruments and Factors of Socio-Political Destabilization in the Middle East and Central Asia (2019)