Islam in Malawi
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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 ...
is the second largest religion in
Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
behind
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
. Nearly all of Malawi's
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 ...
s adhere to
Sunni Islam 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 disagre ...
. Though difficult to assess, according to the
CIA Factbook ''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a reference resource produced by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print version is available ...
, in 2018 about 13.8% of the country's population was Muslim. Muslim organisations in the country claim a figure of 15-20%. According to the latest census (2018), Muslims make up 13.8% (2,426,754) of the country's population. According to the Malawi Religion Project run by the University of Pennsylvania, in 2010 approximately 19.6% of the population was Muslim, concentrated mostly in the Southern Region.


History

Islam arrived in Malawi with the
Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
and Swahili traders who traded in ivory, gold and later on slaves beginning from 15th century. It is also argued that Islam first arrived in Malawi through traders from the
Kilwa Sultanate The Kilwa Sultanate ( fa, پادشاهی کیلوا) was a sultanate, centered at Kilwa Kisiwani, Kilwa (an island off modern-day, Kilwa District in Lindi Region of Tanzania), whose authority, at its height, stretched over the entire length of t ...
. Two Muslim teachers, Shayhks Abdallah Mkwanda and Sabiti Ngaunje, also played an important role in the spread of Islam. According to
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
, the first mosque was built by Swahili-Arab ivory traders. During the colonial era, the authorities in the country feared that Islam posed the greatest threat, as an ideology of resistance, to their rule. This view was shared by Christian missionaries, who greatly feared that Islam could unite Africans in hostilities and uprisings against colonial rule. The Yao converted to Islam in the 19th century, comprising the largest Muslim group in Malawi since. Some
Chewa Chewa may refer to: *the Chewa people *the Chewa language Chewa (also known as Nyanja, ) is a Bantu language spoken in much of Southern, Southeast and East Africa, namely the countries of Malawi , where it is an official language, and Mozamb ...
also converted to Islam during the same period. The 1970s witnessed the start of an Islamic revival among Muslims in Malawi, as well as among Muslims across the globe. Recently, Muslim groups have engaged in
missionary work A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...
in Malawi. Much of this is performed by the
African Muslim Agency African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...
, based in
Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...
. The Kuwait-sponsored AMA has translated the
Qur'an The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
into
Chichewa Chewa (also known as Nyanja, ) is a Bantu language spoken in much of Southern, Southeast and East Africa, namely the countries of Malawi , where it is an official language, and Mozambique and Zambia. The noun class prefix ''chi-'' is used for la ...
(Cinyanja), one of the official languages of Malawi, and has engaged in other missionary work in the country. There are thought to be about 800
jumu'ah 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 ...
mosques in the country, with at least one or two to be found in nearly every town. There are also several Islamic schools and a broadcasting station called Radio Islam. A major Muslim center of learning exists in Mpemba, outside of
Blantyre Blantyre () is Malawi's centre of finance and commerce, and its second largest city, with an enumerated 800,264 inhabitants . It is sometimes referred to as the commercial and industrial capital of Malawi as opposed to the political capital, L ...
, funded mainly by money from
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
and Kuwait.


Demography

A large number of Muslims in Malawi come from the
Yao people The Yao people (its majority branch is also known as Mien; ; vi, người Dao) is a government classification for various minorities in China and Vietnam. They are one of the 55 officially recognised ethnic minorities in China and reside in ...
, who are described as "the most important source of Islam in the country". Even before their conversion to Islam, many Yao chiefs used Swahili Muslims as scribes and advisers. As a result of their strong trading contacts with Swahili-Arabs, many Yao adopted Islam and the two groups had cases of intermarriages in the past. The Yao form the largest majority south and east of
Lake Malawi Lake Malawi, also known as Lake Nyasa in Tanzania and Lago Niassa in Mozambique, is an African Great Lake and the southernmost lake in the East African Rift system, located between Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. It is the fifth largest fre ...
. Muslims can also be found among other groups, such as the lakeside
Chewa people The Chewa (or AChewa) are a Bantu ethnic group native to central and southern Africa and the largest ethnic group in Malawi. The Chewa are closely related to people in surrounding regions such as the Tumbuka and Nsenga. They are historically ...
and Indian and other Asian Malawians. Muslims in the country have been described as a "vocal and powerful community." In general, most Malawian Muslims are
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 ...
. According to a source, 72 percent of Muslims are ethnic Yao and 16 percent are ethnic
Chewa Chewa may refer to: *the Chewa people *the Chewa language Chewa (also known as Nyanja, ) is a Bantu language spoken in much of Southern, Southeast and East Africa, namely the countries of Malawi , where it is an official language, and Mozamb ...
. Most Muslims of African descent in Malawi are Sunni and belong to the
Shafi'i The Shafii ( ar, شَافِعِي, translit=Shāfiʿī, also spelled Shafei) school, also known as Madhhab al-Shāfiʿī, is one of the four major traditional schools of religious law (madhhab) in the Sunnī branch of Islam. It was founded by ...
madhhab A ( ar, مذهب ', , "way to act". pl. مَذَاهِب , ) is a school of thought within ''fiqh'' (Islamic jurisprudence). The major Sunni Mathhab are Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali. They emerged in the ninth and tenth centuries CE an ...
. Meanwhile, Muslims of Asian descent in Malawi are also mostly Sunni and belong to the
Hanafi The Hanafi school ( ar, حَنَفِية, translit=Ḥanafiyah; also called Hanafite in English), Hanafism, or the Hanafi fiqh, is the oldest and one of the four traditional major Sunni schools ( maddhab) of Islamic Law (Fiqh). It is named aft ...
madhhab A ( ar, مذهب ', , "way to act". pl. مَذَاهِب , ) is a school of thought within ''fiqh'' (Islamic jurisprudence). The major Sunni Mathhab are Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali. They emerged in the ninth and tenth centuries CE an ...
. Additionally, there is a small number of
Shiites Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most n ...
among people of Lebanese origin in Malawi. According to the 2018 census, over half of Malawian Muslims live in
Mangochi Mangochi is a township in the Southern Region of Malawi. Located near the southern end of Lake Malawi, in colonial times it used to be called Fort Johnston. As of 2018 it has a population of 53,498. History Mangochi was founded by colonial adm ...
and
Machinga district Machinga is a district in the Southern Region of Malawi. The capital is Machinga. The district covers an area of 3,771 km.² and has a population of 369,614. Demographics At the time of the 2018 Census of Malawi, the distribution of the ...
. Muslims comprised 72.6% of the population in Mangochi district and 66.9% of the population in Machinga.


Distribution


Notable Muslims

An important Malawian Muslim is
Bakili Muluzi Elson Bakili Muluzi (born March 17, 1943 in Machinga, Nyasaland) is a Malawian politician who was the first freely elected president of Malawi from 1994 to 2004. He was also chairman of the United Democratic Front (UDF) until 2009. He succeeded ...
, the first (and only) freely elected President of Malawi from 1994 to 2004. Another important Malawian Muslim was the late
Sidik Mia Sidik Mia (4 March 1965 – 12 January 2021) was a Malawian businessman, politician, and Member of Parliament who held various ministerial positions within the Cabinet of Malawi beginning in 2004, serving as Minister of Transport and Public Work ...
, who was a minister in the Tonse Alliance elected in the 2020 Malawi tripatite Elections and died in 2021.
Cassim Chilumpha Cassim Chilumpha (born 29 November 1959) is a Malawian politician who was Vice-President of Malawi from June 2004 to May 2009. Later, under President Joyce Banda, he was appointed as Minister of Energy and Mining in April 2012. Early life Chilu ...
is a prominent politician that has served as Vice-President of Malawi.
Atupele Muluzi Atupele Muluzi (born 6 August 1978) is a Malawian politician, businessman and was a Member of Parliament for Machinga North East constituency from 2004 until May 27, 2019. He is also the President of the United Democratic Front and was a presi ...
, son of Bakili Muluzi, is also a notable politician who is Muslim.


See also

*
Islam in Africa Islam in Africa is the continent's second most widely professed faith behind Christianity. Africa was the first continent into which Islam spread from Southwest Asia, during the early 7th century CE. Almost one-third of the world's Muslim popula ...
*
Religion in Malawi Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...


References


Further reading

* * * {{Africa in topic, Islam in