Ahmadiyya

"Ahmadi" redirects here. For the surname, see Ahmadi (surname). For other uses, see Ahmadi (disambiguation).

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Ahmadiyya,[a] officially the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at (AMJ)[4][b] is an Islamic messianic[5][6] movement originating in British India in the late 19th century.[7][8][9] It was founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835–1908), who said he had been divinely appointed as both the Promised Mahdi (Guided One) and Messiah expected by Muslims to appear towards the end times and bring about, by peaceful means, the final triumph of Islam;[10] as well as to embody, in this capacity, the expected eschatological figure of other major religious traditions.[11] Adherents of the Ahmadiyya—a term adopted expressly in reference to Muhammad's alternative name Ahmad[12][13][14][15]—are known as Ahmadi Muslims or simply Ahmadis.

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community
Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at
The White Minaret and the Ahmadiyya flag in Qadian, India. For Ahmadi Muslims, the two symbolize the advent of the Mirza Ghulam Ahmad.
TypeSect of Islam
ScriptureQuran, various books of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
CaliphMirza Masroor Ahmad
FounderMirza Ghulam Ahmad
Origin19th century
British India
Separated fromSunni Islam
Number of followers10–20 million

Ahmadi thought emphasizes the belief that Islam is the final dispensation for humanity as revealed to Muhammad and the necessity of restoring it to its true intent and pristine form, which had been lost through the centuries.[7] Its adherents consider Ahmad to have appeared as the Mahdi—bearing the qualities of Jesus in accordance with their reading of scriptural prophecies—to revitalize Islam and set in motion its moral system that would bring about lasting peace.[16] They believe that upon divine guidance he purged Islam of foreign accretions in belief and practice by championing what is, in their view, Islam's original precepts as practised by Muhammad and the early Muslim community.[17][18] Ahmadis thus view themselves as leading the propagation and renaissance of Islam.[19]

Mirza Ghulam Ahmad established the Community (or Jamāʿat) on 23 March 1889 by formally accepting allegiance from his supporters. Since his death, the Community has been led by a succession of Caliphs. By 2017 it had spread to 210 countries and territories of the world with concentrations in South Asia, West Africa, East Africa, and Indonesia. The Ahmadis have a strong missionary tradition, having formed the first Muslim missionary organization to arrive in Britain and other Western countries.[20] Currently, the community is led by its caliph, Mirza Masroor Ahmad, and is estimated to number between 10 and 20 million worldwide.[21][22][23]

The movement is almost entirely a single, highly organized group. However, in the early history of the community, some Ahmadis dissented over the nature of Ahmad's prophetic status and succession. They formed the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement, which has since dwindled to a small fraction of all Ahmadis. Ahmadiyya's recognition of Ahmad as a prophet has been characterized as heretical by mainstream Muslims, who believe that Muhammad was the final prophet, and the Ahmadi movement has faced non-recognition and persecution in many parts of the world.[24][23][25][26] Some Sunni Muslims pejoratively use the term Qādiyānī to refer to the movement.[27]

  1. ^ "Ahmadiyya". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  2. ^ "Ahmadiyya". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 31 January 2020.
  3. ^ "Ahmadiyyah". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Archived from the original on 30 June 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2019.
  4. ^ Knipp, Kersten (7 July 2019). "Who are the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat?". Deutsche Welle. Archived from the original on 24 September 2022. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  5. ^ Friedmann, Yohanan (2011). "The Ahmadiyyah Movement". Oxford Bibliographies. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  6. ^ Özaykal, K. A. (2016). "Messianic Legitimacy: the case of Ahmadiyya and Mahdiyya Movements". Journal of Istanbul University Faculty of Theology (35): 217–256. Archived from the original on 22 October 2022. Retrieved 16 August 2022.
  7. ^ a b Valentine, Simon (2008). Islam and the Ahmadiyya jamaʻat: History, belief, practice. Columbia University Press. p. xv. ISBN 978-0-231-70094-8.
  8. ^ *Morgan, Diane (2009). Essential Islam: A comprehensive guide to belief and practice. Greenwood Press. p. 242. ISBN 978-0-313-36025-1.
  9. ^ Islam, Sirajul; Jamal, Ahmed A., eds. (2012). "Ahmadiya". Banglapedia: National Encyclopedia of Bangladesh (Second ed.). Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Archived from the original on 9 May 2016. Retrieved 8 May 2016.
  10. ^ Multiple sources:
  11. ^ Khan, Adil Hussain (2015). From Sufism to Ahmadiyya: A Muslim minority movement in south Asia. Indiana University Press. p. 50. ISBN 978-0253015297.
  12. ^ Kotin, I.Y. (2012). "Ahmaddiya". In M., Juergensmeyer; Roof, W.C. (eds.). Archived copy. Encyclopedia of Global Religion. SAGE Publications. p. 22. doi:10.4135/9781412997898. ISBN 9780761927297. Archived from the original on 10 December 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.{{cite encyclopedia}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  13. ^ Rink, Steffen (1997). Religionen feiern: Feste und Feiertage religiöser Gemeinschaften in Deutschland. Diagonal-Verlag. p. 137. ISBN 9783927165342.
  14. ^ Awan, Samina (2009). "Redefinition of identities, subalterns and political Islam: A case of Majlis i Ahrar in Punjab". Journal of the Research Society of Pakistan. 46 (2): 188–189. Archived from the original on 12 July 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  15. ^ Khan, Murtaza (1945). The Name Ahmadiyya and Its Necessity (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2008. Retrieved 21 April 2009.
  16. ^ Multiple sources:
  17. ^ Gualtieri, Antonio R. (1989). Conscience and Coercion: Ahmadi Muslims and orthodoxy in Pakistan. Guernica Editions. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-920717-41-7.
  18. ^ "An Overview". Alislam.org. Archived from the original on 16 March 2015. Retrieved 14 November 2012.
  19. ^ Multiple sources:
    • Valentine, Simon (2008). Islam and the Ahmadiyya jamaʻat: History, belief, practice. Columbia University Press. pp. xv passim. ISBN 978-0-231-70094-8.
    • Louis J., Hammann (1985). "Ahmaddiyyat - an introduction". Ahmadiyya Muslim Community [online]. Archived from the original on 11 June 2016. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  20. ^ Multiple sources:
  21. ^ "Major Branches of Religions". Adherents.com. 28 October 2005. Archived from the original on 15 March 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  22. ^ Multiple sources:
  23. ^ a b Lawton, Kim (20 January 2012). "Ahmadiyya Muslims". PBS. Archived from the original on 10 March 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  24. ^ Lago, Colin, ed. (2011). The Handbook of Transcultural Counselling and Psychotherapy. UK: McGraw-Hill Education (published 1 October 2011). p. 312. ISBN 9780335238514.
  25. ^ Cite error: The named reference persecution was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  26. ^ Cloudhury, Barnie (26 July 2003). "Islamic sect gathers in Surrey". BBC News. Archived from the original on 23 October 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  27. ^ Gualtieri, Antonio R. (1989). Conscience and Coercion: Ahmadis and Orthodoxy in Pakistan. Guernica Editions. p. 14. ISBN 978-0-920717-41-7.


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