Recht und historische Entwicklung der Scharia im Islam

Does Sharia have a history? And what societal role does legal thinking (fiqh) play in Islam? This book provides well-founded answers based on new facts and questions. The author's chronologically oriented foundational research in areas of legal rules, legal hermeneutics, and legal documents allows for a revision of previous beliefs about Islamic law. The comprehensive synthesis places the juristic law within the framework of historical legal systems from early times to the upheavals of the 19th century, examining the development of institutions (legal schools), understanding of rules (furūʿ casuistry), and legitimization (uṣūl al-fiqh) by legal scholars. The transformation of Islamic law from caliphal law to juristic law and its Sharia phase from the 13th century onward reflects the changed significance of legal thinking for practice. The legal shaping of revealed law, which also influenced theology and philosophy, contradicts the notion of the prophetic model (Sunna) as the sole guideline in early Islam – and thus parts of today's understanding of Sharia.