Shaykh Ahmad Shakir and the Adoption of a Scientifically-Based Lunar Calendar
Islamic Law and Society, Vol. 5, No. 1. (1998), pp. 57-89
34 Pages Posted: 3 Aug 2012
Date Written: February 1, 1998
Abstract
The computation of the Muslim lunar calendar has been a subject of controversy for centuries. In the twentieth century, the debate surfaced again in different parts of the Muslim world. In Egypt, the distinguished jurist Ahmad Shakir added his voice to the debate by writing a short treatise or riscila in which he argued that a calendar based on crescent sighting should be abandoned in favour of one based on scientific and astronomical computation. After providing some background information on Shakir and the lunar debate in Egypt and elsewhere in the Muslim world, I present an annotated translation of Shakir's treatise.
Keywords: lunar calendar, Islamic law, Ahmad Shakir
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