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''Mohammedan'' (also spelled ''Muhammadan'', ''Mahommedan'', ''Mahomedan'' or ''Mahometan'') is a term for a follower of Muhammad, the
Islamic prophet Prophets in Islam ( ar, الأنبياء في الإسلام, translit=al-ʾAnbiyāʾ fī al-ʾIslām) are individuals in Islam who are believed to spread God in Islam, God's message on Earth and to serve as models of ideal human behaviour. So ...
. It is used as both a noun and an adjective, meaning belonging or relating to, either Muhammad or the religion, doctrines, institutions and practices that he established. The word was formerly common in usage, but the terms ''
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
'' and ''
Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...
'' are more common today. Though sometimes used stylistically by some Muslims, a vast majority consider the term either archaic or offensive.


Etymology

The Oxford English Dictionary cites 1663 as the first recorded usage of the English term; the older spelling ''Mahometan'' dates back to at least 1529. The English word is derived from New Latin ''Mahometanus'', from Medieval Latin ''Mahometus'', Muhammad. It meant simply a follower of Mohammad. In Western Europe, down to the 13th century or so, some Christians had the belief that Muhammad had either been a heretical Christian or that he was a god worshipped by Muslims.Kenneth Meyer Setton (1 July 1992).
Western Hostility to Islam and Prophecies of Turkish Doom
. DIANE Publishing. . pg 4–15 – "Some Europeans believed that Moslems worshipped Mohammed as a god, .. (4)
Some works of Medieval European literature referred to Muslims as "
pagans Pagans may refer to: * Paganism, a group of pre-Christian religions practiced in the Roman Empire * Modern Paganism, a group of contemporary religious practices * Order of the Vine, a druidic faction in the ''Thief'' video game series * Pagan's ...
" or by sobriquets such as the "paynim foe" (enemy). Depictions, such as those in the ''
Song of Roland ''The Song of Roland'' (french: La Chanson de Roland) is an 11th-century ''chanson de geste'' based on the Frankish military leader Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in 778 AD, during the reign of the Carolingian king Charlemagne. It is t ...
'', show Muslims praying to a variety of " idols", including Apollo, Lucifer, Termagant, and Mahound. When the
Knights Templar , colors = White mantle with a red cross , colors_label = Attire , march = , mascot = Two knights riding a single horse , equipment ...
were being tried for heresy, reference was often made to their worship of a demon Baphomet; this is similar to "Mahomet", the Latin transliteration of Muhammad's name, and Latin was, for another 500 years, the language of scholarship and erudition for most of Europe. These and other variations on the theme were all set in the "temper of the times" of the Muslim–Christian conflict, as Medieval Europe was becoming aware of its great enemy in the wake of the quickfire success of the Muslims through a series of conquests shortly after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, as well as the lack of real information in the West of the mysterious East.Watt, Montgomery,''Muhammad: Prophet and Statesman.'' Oxford University Press, 1961. from pg. 229


Obsolescence

The term has been largely superseded by ''
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
'' (formerly transliterated as ''Moslem'') or ''Islamic''. ''Mohammedan'' was commonly used in European literature until at least the mid-1960s. ''Muslim'' is more commonly used today, and the term ''Mohammedan'' is widely considered archaic or in some cases even offensive. The term remains in limited use. The Government Muhammadan Anglo Oriental College in Lahore, Pakistan retains its original name, while the similarly named "Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College" in Aligarh, India was renamed
Aligarh Muslim University Aligarh Muslim University (abbreviated as AMU) is a Public University, public Central University (India), central university in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which was originally established by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan as the Muhammadan Anglo-Orie ...
in 1920. There are also a number of sporting clubs in Bangladesh and India which include the word, such as
Mohammedan Sporting Club (Dhaka) Mohammedan Sporting Club Limited Dhaka, founded in 1936 at Dhaka, is one of the oldest and one of the most popular football clubs in Bangladesh, with a support base in all parts of the country. The club currently plays in the Bangladesh Premie ...
,
Mohammedan Sporting Club (Chittagong) Chittagong Mohammedan Sporting Club ( bn, চট্টগ্রাম মোহামেডান স্পোর্টিং ক্লাব) is a sports club based in Chittagong, Bangladesh. The club was established in 1950. Chittagong Mohammeda ...
,
Mohammedan Sporting Club (Jhenaidah) Mohammedan Sporting Club (MSC) is a major sporting club in Bangladesh. It is mainly located in Jhenaidah, Bangladesh, though there are many local branches throughout the country. See also * Kolkata Mohammedan * Dhaka Mohammedan * Chittagong Moha ...
and
Mohammedan S.C. (Kolkata) Mohammedan Sporting Club is an Indian multi-sports club based in Kolkata, West Bengal. Its football team competes in I-League, the second-tier of Indian football, as well as in Calcutta Football League (CFL), the oldest football league in Asi ...
.


Muslim objections to the term

Some modern Muslims have objected to the term, saying that the term was not used by Muhammad himself or his early followers, and that the religion teaches the worship of God alone (see '' shirk'' and '' tawhid'') and not Muhammad or any other of God's prophets. Thus modern Muslims believe "Mohammedan" is a misnomer, "which seem to them to carry the implication of worship of Mohammed, as Christian and Christianity imply the worship of Christ." Also, the term ''al-Muḥammadīya'' (the Arabic equivalent of Mohammedan) has been used in Islam to denote several sects considered heretical.JOHN BOWKER. "Muhammadans." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved 8 June 2012


Usage by Muslims

Islam has, and has had, many schools and branches. ''Tariqa Muhammadiyya'' ("the Way of Mohammad") is a school of reform
Sufism Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...
that arose in the 18th century and seeks to redirect and harmonize Sufi philosophy and practices with the authority and example of the prophet and hadith.Green, Nile, Sufism: A Global History, Jon Wiley & Sons, 2012 pg 167-168 In Indonesia, ''
Muhammadiyah Muhammadiyah ( ar, محمدية; 'followers of Muhammad'); also known as the Muhammadiyah Society ( id, Persyarikatan Muhammadiyah) is a major Islamic non-governmental organization in Indonesia.A. Jalil HamidTackle the rising cost of living longer ...
'' ("followers of Muhammad") is the name of a
Sunni Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...
socioreligious reform movement that shuns syncretistic and Sufi practices and advocates a return to a purer form of Islam based on the hadith and examples from the life of the prophet. It has adapted institutions such as the Boy Scouts to Islamic ends as the Gerakan Pramuka Indonesia.


See also

* Christianity and Islam * Moors *
Muhammad in Islam Muḥammad bin ʿAbd Allāh bin ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib bin Hāshim ( ar, ; 570 – 8 June 632 CE), is believed to be the seal of the messengers and prophets of God in all the main branches of Islam. Muslims believe that the Quran, the cen ...
*
Orientalism In art history, literature and cultural studies, Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects in the Eastern world. These depictions are usually done by writers, designers, and artists from the Western world. In particular, Orientalist p ...
* Saracen


References

{{Reflist Islam and other religions Christian terminology English words Archaic English words and phrases Linguistic controversies Islam-related controversies