Who or what is the wali al-amr

Modern Islamic political thought has grappled with the nature of state authority by using and reshaping the tools of classical legal and political thought. That is a tradition that gives rich guidance on what a ruler should and should not do, but it gives much less certain guidance (and all but rend...

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Main Author: Nathan Brown
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Oñati International Institute for the Sociology of Law 2018-11-01
Series:Oñati Socio-Legal Series
Subjects:
Online Access:https://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/1095
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author Nathan Brown
author_facet Nathan Brown
author_sort Nathan Brown
collection DOAJ
description Modern Islamic political thought has grappled with the nature of state authority by using and reshaping the tools of classical legal and political thought. That is a tradition that gives rich guidance on what a ruler should and should not do, but it gives much less certain guidance (and all but renders invisible) the questions of administration and policy. The wali al-amr – the head of the community (a term identical to the one used for legal guardian over a minor) – has been transformed from an individual ruling to a modern bureaucratic and policy state in Islamic political writings without that transformation drawing notice. This paper explores the resulting ways in which Islamic practices and concepts, developed for a rudimentary state apparatus focused on public order, care for the poor, and some urban public services, operates in a world in which states administer and develop policy over a wide array of public affairs.
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spelling doaj-art-da321aa7a304452aa8616eb09729e6d62025-08-20T02:23:43ZengOñati International Institute for the Sociology of LawOñati Socio-Legal Series2079-59712018-11-01105985100010.35295/osls.iisl/0000-0000-0000-10281004Who or what is the wali al-amrNathan Brown0George Washington UniversityModern Islamic political thought has grappled with the nature of state authority by using and reshaping the tools of classical legal and political thought. That is a tradition that gives rich guidance on what a ruler should and should not do, but it gives much less certain guidance (and all but renders invisible) the questions of administration and policy. The wali al-amr – the head of the community (a term identical to the one used for legal guardian over a minor) – has been transformed from an individual ruling to a modern bureaucratic and policy state in Islamic political writings without that transformation drawing notice. This paper explores the resulting ways in which Islamic practices and concepts, developed for a rudimentary state apparatus focused on public order, care for the poor, and some urban public services, operates in a world in which states administer and develop policy over a wide array of public affairs.https://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/1095islampolicy stateislamic governance
spellingShingle Nathan Brown
Who or what is the wali al-amr
Oñati Socio-Legal Series
islam
policy state
islamic governance
title Who or what is the wali al-amr
title_full Who or what is the wali al-amr
title_fullStr Who or what is the wali al-amr
title_full_unstemmed Who or what is the wali al-amr
title_short Who or what is the wali al-amr
title_sort who or what is the wali al amr
topic islam
policy state
islamic governance
url https://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/1095
work_keys_str_mv AT nathanbrown whoorwhatisthewalialamr