''The Taqwacores'' is the

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

Michael Muhammad Knight Michael Muhammad Knight (born 1977) is an American novelist, essayist, and journalist. His writings are popular among American Muslim youth. The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' described him as "one of the most necessary and, paradoxically enough, ...

, depicting a fictitious

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

ic punk rock scene. The title is a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordstaqwa ''Taqwa'' ( ar, تقوى '' / '') is an Islamic term for being conscious and cognizant of God, of truth, "piety, fear of God."Nanji, Azim. "Islamic Ethics," in ''A Companion to Ethics'', Peter Singer. Oxford: Blackwells,n(1991), pp. 106– ...

, an Islamic concept of love and fear for

Allah Allah (; ar, الله, translit=Allāh, ) is the common Arabic word for God. In the English language, the word generally refers to God in Islam. The word is thought to be derived by contraction from '' al- ilāh'', which means "the god", an ...

, and

Hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

, the punk rock subgenre. Some of the most popular

taqwacore Taqwacore is a subgenre of punk rock, punk music dealing with Islam, its culture, and interpretation. Originally conceived in Michael Muhammad Knight's 2003 novel, ''The Taqwacores'', the name is a portmanteau of "hardcore punk, hardcore" and the ...

bands are:

The Kominas The Kominas are a punk rock band formed in 2005 by two Pakistani-Americans from Worcester, Massachusetts. In over ten years, the band has experienced a number of line-up changes and self-released albums. Musical style Their dance-oriented so ...

Al-Thawra Al-Thawra ( ar, الثورة, meaning "The Revolution") is an experimental metal punk band with rhythms and modes that draw heavily on Middle Eastern influences. Band member Marwan Kemal describes a "third identity" between the "false dichotomy ...

Secret Trial Five Secret Trial Five is a Canadian five-piece political punk rock band formed in 2006 in Vancouver. Origins Sena Hussain formed Secret Trial Five with four friends following 9/11, when she became interested in making music with political messages. ...

, and

Fedayeen Fedayeen ( ar, فِدائيّين ''fidāʼīyīn'' "self-sacrificers") is an Arabic term used to refer to various military groups willing to sacrifice themselves for a larger campaign. Etymology The term ''fedayi'' is derived from Arabic: '' ...

. Knight originally self-published The Taqwacores in

DIY "Do it yourself" ("DIY") is the method of building, modifying, or repairing things by oneself without the direct aid of professionals or certified experts. Academic research has described DIY as behaviors where "individuals use raw and sem ...

zine A zine ( ; short for '' magazine'' or '' fanzine'') is a small-circulation self-published Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to writ ...

format, giving copies away for free until finding distribution with

Alternative Tentacles Alternative Tentacles is an independent record label established in 1979 in San Francisco, California. It was used by Dead Kennedys for the self-produced single " California Über Alles". After realizing the potential for an independent label, t ...

, the punk record label founded by

Jello Biafra Eric Reed Boucher (born June 17, 1958), known professionally as Jello Biafra, is an American singer, spoken word artist and politician. He is the former lead singer and songwriter for the San Francisco punk rock band Dead Kennedys. Initially ac ...

. After receiving an endorsement from

Peter Lamborn Wilson Peter Lamborn Wilson (October 20, 1945 – May 23, 2022) was an American anarchist author and poet, primarily known for his concept of Temporary Autonomous Zones, short-lived spaces which elude formal structures of control. During the 1970s, Wils ...

(aka Hakim Bey), the novel was published by radical press

Autonomedia Autonomedia is a nonprofit publisher based in Williamsburg, Brooklyn known for publishing works of criticism. Staffed by volunteers, they have published over 200 books, usually with 3,000 of each run. Its most renowned book is Hakim Bey's essays o ...

. A UK version is published by Telegram Books. In its Italian translation, the novel is retitled ''Islampunk.'' The narrator of ''The Taqwacores,'' Yusuf Ali, is a

Pakistani American Pakistani Americans ( ur, ) are Americans who originate from Pakistan. The term may also refer to people who also hold a dual Pakistani and U.S. citizenship. Educational attainment level and household income are much higher in the Pakistani-Am ...

engineering student from

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

, who lives off campus with a diverse group of Muslims in their house in Buffalo. Besides being their home, the house serves as a place to have punk parties and a place for Muslims not comfortable with the

Muslim Student Association The Muslim Students Association, or Muslim Student Union, of the U.S. and Canada, also known as MSA National, is a religious organization dedicated to establishing and maintaining Islamic societies on college campuses in Canada and the United Sta ...

or local mosques to have

Friday prayer In Islam, Friday prayer or Congregational prayer ( ar, صَلَاة ٱلْجُمُعَة, ') is a prayer ('' ṣalāt'') that Muslims hold every Friday, after noon instead of the Zuhr prayer. Muslims ordinarily pray five times each day according ...

. The book also inspired a documentary entitled ''Taqwacore: The Birth of Punk Islam'', directed by Omar Majeed, which follows author Michael Muhammad Knight and several Taqwacore bands across the United States. It was released in

Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...

, Canada, at the Cinéma du Parc on October 19, 2009.

Soft Skull Press Counterpoint LLC was a publishing company distributed by Perseus Books Group launched in 2007. It was formed from the consolidation of three presses: Perseus' Counterpoint Press, Avalon Publishing Group's Shoemaker & Hoard and the independent So ...

is publishing the revised edition, which became available in December 2008.

Censorship

Due to the Danish

Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy The ''Jyllands-Posten'' Muhammad cartoons controversy (or Muhammad cartoons crisis, da, Muhammedkrisen) began after the Danish newspaper ''Jyllands-Posten'' published 12 editorial cartoons on 30 September 2005, most of which depicted Muhamma ...

, the UK edition of The Taqwacores was partially censored.

Film

A feature film adaptation of The Taqwacores directed by Eyad Zahra premiered at the 2010

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

."The Taqwacores" page at the Sundance Film Festival website
/ref> also titled

The Taqwacores (film) ''The Taqwacores'' is a 2010 film adaptation of the 2003 novel ''The Taqwacores'' by Michael Muhammad Knight. The film was directed by Eyad Zahra and stars Bobby Naderi, Dominic Rains, and Noureen Dewulf. The film imagines a fictitious Islamic ...

Cultural impacts

Asra Nomani Asra Quratulain Nomani (born September 7, 1965) is an American author and former Georgetown University professor. Born in India to Muslim parents, she earned a BA from West Virginia University in liberal arts in 1986 and an MA from the American ...

credited the novel as first presenting her with the idea for woman-led prayer, leading to a widely reported woman-led congregation on March 18, 2005 with

Amina Wadud Amina Wadud (born September 25, 1952) is an American Muslim theologian. Wadud serves as Professor Emeritus of Islamic Studies at Virginia Commonwealth University and is also a visiting scholar at Starr King School for the Ministry. Wadud has writt ...

acting as imam.

References

External links

"Noureen DeWulf"

Autonomedia's official site for The Taqwacores, now out of print

* ttp://www.muslimwakeup.com/main/archives/2003/06/juma_with_the_p.php Jum'a with the Punks: An Excerpt from ''The Taqwacores'' @ Muslim WakeUp!
Whitaker, Brian, "Punk Muslims"

Preview the novel
at

Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...

"Soft Skull Press, publisher of the revised edition, 2009"
*
Taqwacore: The Birth of Punk Islam web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taqwacores 2004 American novels Taqwacore Self-published books Soft Skull Press books 2004 debut novels Books about Islam Islam in fiction Punk literature pt:Taqwacore