Do Adjectives Matter? Exploring the ‘Islamic’ in Constitutions and Constitutionalism(s)

What is it about?

The argument advanced in this paper is simple, yet bold and ambitious. It calls for a paradigm shift in the face of the remarkably common, but ultimately stereotypical and simplistic perceptions of 'Islamic' constitutions requiring all laws to conform to Shari'a. This paper problematizes the use of a single term 'Islamic' to describe disparate constitutions and constitutionalism(s) in Muslim-majority countries. It will do so by demonstrating the plurality of 'Islamic' constitutions, locating this descriptor within varied socio-cultural, historical and political contexts of the Muslim world. Plural interpretations of the religious texts in Islam - i.e., the Qur'an and Sunna - and meanings of complex concepts - 'Shari'a' and 'Islamic law', are integral to Islam's (legal) traditions. In Muslim-majority countries, a variety of constitutional texts, court decisions and state practices, demonstrate this plurality. We argue that use of 'Islamic' as a descriptor for heterogeneous constitutional texts, is a product of 'realpolitik' and deployed in this manner, un-nuanced, simplistic, and reductive of the dynamic and plural nature of Shari'a.

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