Shaykh al-Azhar (Shaykh al-Azhar)

(Language: Arabic)

Short Description: The Rector of al-Azhar, one of the oldest Islamic universities in the world. It is perhaps the foremost institution for the training of Islamic religious scholars of the majority SunnĪ perspective

Long Description: The Rector of al-Azhar, one of the oldest Islamic universities in the world, founded in Cairo over one thousand years ago. It is perhaps the foremost institution for the training of Islamic religious scholars of the majority Sunnī perspective. Although the Shaykh al-Azhar is today an appointee of the Egyptian government, the position still wields a great deal of religious and legal influence among Sunnī Muslims worldwide.

Sources: Islam, Fundamentalism, and the Betrayal of Tradition, edited by Dr. Joseph Lumbard

Notes & References: a term of respect (in its masculine form) for an elder, a Muslim religious leader or scholar, a chieftain of a social group (e.g. a tribe), etc. In esoteric Islam, Sufism, shaykh is the term of respect used for the head of a Sufi Order; in this usage it typically designates a person of a high spiritual station who has been authorized to lead others in the Sufi path.