Madrasa

Not to be confused with Madras, Madrasi, or Madrasta.
"Madraseh", "Medrese", and "Madraza" redirect here. For other uses, see Madrasa (disambiguation).
The three madrasas at the Registan of Samarkand, built during the Timurid Renaissance
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Madrasa (/məˈdræsə/,[1] also US: /-rɑːs-/,[2][3] UK: /ˈmædrɑːsə/;[4] Arabic: مدرسة [mædˈræ.sæ, ˈmad.ra.sa] ⓘ, pl. مدارس, madāris), sometimes transliterated as madrasah or madrassa,[3][5] is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whether for elementary education or higher learning. In countries outside the Arab world, the word usually refers to a specific type of religious school or college for the study of the religion of Islam (loosely equivalent to a Christian seminary), though this may not be the only subject studied.

In an architectural and historical context, the term generally refers to a particular kind of institution in the historic Muslim world which primarily taught Islamic law and jurisprudence (fiqh), as well as other subjects on occasion. The origin of this type of institution is widely credited to Nizam al-Mulk, a vizier under the Seljuks in the 11th century, who was responsible for building the first network of official madrasas in Iran, Mesopotamia, and Khorasan. From there, the construction of madrasas spread across much of the Muslim world over the next few centuries, often adopting similar models of architectural design.[6][7][8]

The madrasas became the longest serving institutions of the Ottoman Empire, beginning service in 1330 and operating for nearly 600 years on three continents. They trained doctors, engineers, lawyers and religious officials, among other members of the governing and political elite. The madrasas were a specific educational institution, with their own funding and curricula, in contrast with the Enderun palace schools attended by Devshirme pupils.[9]

  1. ^ "madrasa" (US) and "madrasa". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 2019-12-30.
  2. ^ "madrasa". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (5th ed.). HarperCollins. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  3. ^ a b "madrassa". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  4. ^ "Madrasah". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Archived from the original on 6 June 2019. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  5. ^ "madrasa". Cambridge Dictionary. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Aktan, Sümer (2018). Curriculum Studies in Turkey:A Historical Perspective. United States: Palgrave Macmillan US. pp. 46, 76, 77.