Summary

The majority of the world’s Muslim population follows the Sunni branch of Islam, and approximately 10-15% of all Muslims follow the Shiite (Shi‘ite, Shi‘a, Shia) branch. Shiite populations live in a number of countries, but they constitute a majority in Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, and Azerbaijan. There are also significant Shiite populations in Afghanistan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Yemen. Sunnis and Shiites share most basic religious tenets. However, their differences sometimes have served as the basis for religious intolerance, political infighting, and violent confrontations. This report includes a historical background of the Sunni-Shiite split and the differences in religious beliefs and practices between and within each Islamic sect as well as their similarities. This report will not be updated. Related CRS products include CRS Report RS21432 and CRS Report RS21695.

The differences between the Sunni and Shiite Islamic sects are rooted in disagreements over the succession to the Prophet Muhammad, who died in 632 AD, and over the nature of political leadership in the Muslim community. The historic debate centered on whether to award leadership to a qualified and pious individual who would lead by following the customs of the Prophet or to preserve the leadership exclusively through the Prophet’s bloodline. The question was settled initially when community leaders elected a close companion of the Prophet’s named Abu Bakr to become the first Caliph (Arabic for “successor”).

Although most Muslims accepted this decision, some supported the candidacy of Ali ibn Abi Talib, the Prophet’s cousin and son-in-law, husband of the Prophet’s daughter Fatima. Ali had played a prominent role during the Prophet’s lifetime, but he lacked seniority within the Arabian tribal system and was bypassed as the immediate successor.

This situation was unacceptable to some of Ali’s followers who considered Abu Bakr and the two succeeding caliphs (Umar and Uthman) to be illegitimate. Ali’s followers believed that the Prophet Muhammad himself had named Ali as successor and that the status quo was a violation of divine order. A few of Ali’s partisans orchestrated the murder of the third Caliph Uthman in 656 AD, and Ali was named Caliph. Ali, in turn, was assassinated in 661 AD, and his sons Hassan (ca. 670 AD) and Hussein (680 AD) died in battle against forces of the Sunni caliph.

Ali and Angels	Ali - Lion and Sword of Allah

Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib (Arabic: علي بن أبي طالب, translit.: ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib,  13^th Rajab, 22 or 16 BH – 21^st Ramaḍān, 40 AH; September 20, 601 or July 17, 607 or 600 – January 27, 661) was the cousin and son-in-law of Islamic prophet Muhammad, ruling over the Islamic Caliphate from 656 to 661. A son of Abu Talib, Ali was also the first male who accepted Islam.Sunnis consider Ali the fourth and final of the Rashidun (rightly guided Caliphs), while Shias regard Ali as the first Imam and consider him and his descendants the rightful successors to Muhammad, all of whom are members of the Ahl al-Bayt, the household of Muhammad. This disagreement split the Ummah (Muslim community) into the Sunni and Shia branches.

Those who supported Ali’s ascendancy became later known as “Shi‘a,” a word stemming from the term “shi‘at Ali,” meaning “supporters” or “helpers of Ali.” There were others who respected and accepted the legitimacy of his caliphate but opposed political succession based on bloodline to the Prophet. This group, who constituted the majority of Muslims, came to be known in time as “Sunni,” meaning “followers of [the Prophet’s] customs [sunna].” In theory, Sunnis believe that the leader (imam) of the Muslim community should be selected on the basis of communal consensus, on the existing political order, and on a leader’s individual merits. This premise has been inconsistently practiced within the Sunni Muslim community throughout Islamic history. The caliphate declined as religious and political institution after the thirteenth century, although the term “caliph” continued to be used by some Muslim leaders until it was abolished in 1924 by Turkey’s first President Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.

Shiite Islam: Development and Basic Tenets

Initially, the Shiite movement gained a wide following in areas that now include Iraq, Iran, Yemen, and parts of Central and South Asia. In most of the world, Shiites would continue as a minority. Today, according to some estimates, Shiite Islam is practiced among approximately 10% to 15% of the world’s Muslim population.

Leadership of the Community. For Shiites, the first true leader of the Muslim community is Ali, who is considered an imam, a term used among Shiites not only to indicate leadership abilities but also to signify blood relations to the Prophet Muhammad. As Ali’s descendants took over leadership of the Shiite community, the functions of an imam became more clearly defined. Each imam chose a successor and, according to Shiite beliefs, he passed down a type of spiritual knowledge to the next leader. Imams served as both spiritual and political leaders. But as Shiites increasingly lost their political battles with Sunni Muslim rulers, imams focused on developing a spirituality that would serve as the core of Shiite religious practices and beliefs. Shiites believe that when the line of imams descended from Ali ended religious leaders, known as mujtahids, gained the right to interpret religious, mystical, and legal knowledge to the broader community. The most learned among these teachers are known as ayatollahs (lit. the “sign of God”).

Shiite Jurisprudence and Core Beliefs. The basic sources for Islamic jurisprudence, be it Sunni or Shiite, are the Quran, the sunna (customs of the Prophet Muhammad) as relayed in the hadiths (sayings of the Prophet and his companions), qiyas (analogy), ijma‘ (consensus), and ijtihad (individual reasoning). The primary function of the learned religious leaders is the interpretation of Islamic law (shari‘a). There are no codified laws in either Sunni or Shiite Islam. Rather, there are sources for the interpretation of law, and these sources are similar among Shiites and Sunnis. Shiite hadiths differ from Sunni hadiths, mainly in that they include the sayings of the Shiite imams who are considered to have been divinely inspired. Shiite legal interpretation, in contrast to Sunni interpretation, also allows more space for human reasoning.

Shiite religious practice centers around the remembrance of Ali’s younger son, Hussein, who was martyred near the town of Karbala in Iraq by Sunni forces in 680. His death is commemorated each year on the tenth day of the Islamic month of Muharram in a somber and sometimes violent ritualistic remembrance known as “Ashura,” marked among some Shiites by the ritual of self-flagellation. As a minority that was often persecuted by Sunnis, Shiites found solace in the Ashura ritual, the telling of the martyrdom of Hussein and the moral lessons to be learned from it, which reinforced Shiite religious traditions and practices.

Twelver Shiism. Twelver Shiism - the most common form of Shiism today - is pervasive in Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, and Bahrain. Twelvers accept a line of twelve infallible imams descendent from Ali and believe them to have been divinely appointed from birth. The twelve imams are viewed as harbors of the faith and as the designated interpreters of law and theology. Twelvers believe that the twelfth and last of these imams “disappeared” in the late ninth century. This “hidden imam” is expected to return some day to lead the community. Following the twelfth imam’s disappearance, as one scholar notes, many Twelvers “chose to withdraw from politics and quietly await his coming.”[1] This is considered as the “pacifist” trend among Twlevers. In the twentieth century, when changes in the political landscape of the Middle East called to activism some groups in Lebanon and Iran, a new and competing “activist” trend found appeal among certain Twelver groups, typified by the late Iranian religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini.

Ismaili or Sevener Shiism. Although most Shiites agree on the basic premise that Ali was the first rightful imam, they disagree on his successors. The Ismailis, who are the second largest Shiite sect, broke off in the eighth century, recognizing only the first seven imams (the seventh was named Ismail, hence the names “Ismaili” and “Sevener”). Historically and at least until the sixteenth century, the Ismailis were far more disposed than the Twelvers to pursuing military and territorial power. In the past, they established powerful ruling states, which played significant roles in the development of Islamic history. Today, Ismailis are scattered throughout the world but are prominent in Afghanistan (under the Naderi clan), in India, and in Pakistan. There are also Ismaili communities in East and South Africa.

Other Shiite Sects. The Zaydis, who acknowledge the first five imams and differ over the identity of the fifth, are a minority sect of Shiite Islam, mostly found in Yemen. The Zaydis reject the concepts of the imams’ infallibility and of a “hidden imam.” Other sects, such as the Alawites and Druzes, are generally considered to be derived from Shiite Islam, although some do not regard their adherents as Muslims. The Alawites exist mostly in Syria and Lebanon. The Assad family that effectively has ruled Syria since 1971 are Alawite. For the most part, Alawites interpret the pillars (duties) of Islam as symbolic rather than applied, and they celebrate an eclectic group of Christian and Islamic holidays. Little more is known about this sect because most of its practices are secretive. In Turkey, the Alevis are an offshoot group of Shiite Islam that has been often confused with Syrian Alawites or with other Shiite communities. Not much is known about their religious practices. Alevis are, for the most part, well-integrated into Turkish society, where they speak both Turkish and Kurdish. The Druze community, which is concentrated in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, and Israel, was an eleventh-century offshoot of Ismaili Shiite Islam. Today, the Druze faith differs considerably from mainstream Shiite Islam. Most Druze practices are secretive and are kept among the elites of the community.

Sunni Islam: Development and Basic Tenets

Religious Practices and Beliefs. The majority of Muslims today are Sunnis. They accept the first four Caliphs (including Ali) as the “rightly guided” rulers who followed the Prophet. They reject the belief that the subsequent Shiite imams are divinely inspired leaders who should be revered. Sunni Muslims do not bestow upon human beings the exalted status given only to prophets in the Quran, in contrast to the Shiite veneration of imams. Sunnis have a less elaborate and arguably less powerful religious hierarchy than Shiites. In contrast to Shiites, Sunni religious teachers historically have been under state control. At the same time, Sunni Islam tends to be more flexible in allowing lay persons to serve as prayer leaders and preachers. In their day-to-day practices, Sunnis and Shiites exhibit subtle differences in the performance of their obligatory prayers. Both groups share a similar understanding of basic Islamic beliefs.

Islamic Law. Within Sunni Islam, there are four schools of jurisprudence that offer alternative interpretations of legal decisions affecting the lives of Muslim believers. Traditionally, the study of law was done at the Islamic educational institutions known as madrasas.² The four schools of jurisprudence rely mostly on analogy as a way to formulate legal rulings, and they also give different weight to the sayings of the Prophet and his companions (hadiths) within their decisions. In some secular countries, such as Turkey, the opinions issued by religious scholars represent moral and social guidelines for how Muslims should practice their religion and are not considered legally binding.

The four legal schools, which vary on certain issues from strict to broad legal interpretations, are the (1) Hanafi: this is the oldest school of law. It was founded in Iraq by Abu Hanifa (d. 767 AD). It is prevalent in Turkey, Central Asia, the Balkans, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh; (2) Maliki: this was founded in the Arabian Peninsula by Malik ibn Anas (d. 795 AD). It is prevalent in North Africa, Mauritania, Kuwait, and Bahrain; (3) Shaf‘i: this school was founded by Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi‘i (d. 819 AD). It is prevalent in Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, parts of Yemen, Indonesia, and Malaysia; and (4) Hanbali: this was founded by Ahmad Hanbal (d. 855). It is prevalent in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, parts of Oman, and the United Arab Emirates.

Sectarian Divisions. Sunni Islam has had less prominent sectarian divisions than Shiite Islam. The Ibadi sect, which is centered mostly in Oman, East Africa, and in parts of Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia, has been sometimes misrepresented as a Sunni sect. While, in general, the Ibadi religious and political dogma resembles basic Sunni doctrine, the Ibadis are neither Sunni nor Shiite. The Ibadis believe strongly in the existence of a righteous and just Muslim society. They argue that the Muslim leader should be chosen for his knowledge and piety, without regard to race or lineage, and that he should be selected by the leaders of the community.

The Sunni puritanical movement called “Wahhabism” has become well-known in recent years and is arguably the most pervasive revivalist movement in the Islamic world. This movement, founded in Arabia by the scholar Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703-1791 AD), is considered to be an offshoot of the Hanbali school of law. Unlike other schools of law, which usually relied on scholarly interpretations of religious texts, Hanbali followers tended to apply the Quran and the hadith in a literal way. In the same vein, Abd al-Wahhab encouraged a return to the pure and orthodox practice of the “fundamentals” of Islam, as embodied in the Quran and in the life of the Prophet Muhammad. In the eighteenth century, Muhammad ibn Saud, founder of the modern-day Saudi dynasty, formed an alliance with Abd al-Wahhab as he began the process of unifying disparate tribes in the Arabian Peninsula. From that point forward, there has been a close relationship between the Saudi ruling family and the Wahhabi religious establishment. The most conservative interpretations of Wahhabi Islam view Shiites and other non-Wahhabi Muslims as dissident heretics.³

Shared Beliefs and Practice

Core Beliefs. Although there are considerable differences between Sunni and Shiite Islam, the two Islamic sects share common traditions, beliefs, and doctrines. All Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad was the messenger of Allah (the Arabic word for God). All believe that they must abide by the revelations given to the Prophet by Allah (as recorded in the Quran) and by the hadith. The concepts of piety, striving for goodness, and social justice are fundamental to Islamic belief and practice. Additionally, all Muslims are expected to live in accordance to the five pillars of their faith: (1) shahada - recital of the creed “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is His Prophet”; (2) salat - five obligatory prayers in a day; (3) zakat - giving alms to the poor; (4) sawm - fasting from sunrise to sunset during the month of Ramadan; and (5) hajj - making a pilgrimage to Mecca once during a lifetime if one is physically and financially able.

Popular Religion and Sufism. Sufism has sometimes been mistaken for being an Islamic “sect,” but the practices of Sufism transcend, in many ways, the sectarian divisions of Sunni and Shiite Islam. “Sufism” can be described as a way of practicing Islam. It is a term used loosely to refer to numerous mystical orders, which generally teach that through mystical practices, a Muslim may seek an understanding of the divine and a personal experience with God. Because of its accommodative teachings, Sufism also served as a vehicle for Muslims to accept the basic tenets of both Shiite and Sunni Islam. For instance, many Sufis value Ali’s prominence and unique virtues as espoused by Shiite Islam without rejecting the first three Sunni Muslim Caliphs. Historically, most Sufi groups have been flexible in accommodating local non-Muslim practices and customs wherever Islam has spread. This flexibility has led to the persecution of Sufis by some orthodox Islamic establishments who view Sufi practice as heretical.

Although Sunni Islamic doctrines frown upon the idea of human beings possessing intercessory powers, Sufism has contributed to the spread of popular religious practices by promoting the veneration of pious individuals and holy shrines in many parts of the Islamic world. Sufism has sometimes been represented as a strictly pacifist and apolitical form of Islam and, in recent years, has been offered by some groups as a moderate alternative to the puritanical Wahhabi doctrine. Some Sufi groups, however, are not strictly pacifist, and in modern times, some Sufi groups throughout Central Asia and the Balkans have participated in defensive military struggles.

Demographic Distribution Estimates

Source: Map Resources. Adapted by CRS. (K. Yancey 2/02/04)

Notes: Figures in this map indicate the percentages of Sunni and Shiite Muslims in the population. They do not total 100%, since they exclude Christians and other minorities. In many countries, particularly where Shiites constitute a significant religious minority, there are no reliable or exact statistics of the percentage of these groups in the broader population. For instance, the most recent official census in Saudi Arabia, conducted in 1999, did not count the number of Shiites. For Iraq, it is widely acknowledged that there has been no reliable census in decades. Existing indicators of religious affiliation in Iraq, as reported by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), are only estimates. In Lebanon, no census has been conducted since 1932. These complications, in addition to general shortcomings in the gathering of reliable statistical information about the region, must be considered when examining this map.

Statistics on Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, and Pakistan are taken from CIA World Factbook (2003). Statistics on Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen are taken from the Department of State International Religious Freedom Report (2003). Statistics on Lebanon are from Lebanon’s Political Mosaic, published by the Directorate of Intelligence of the CIA, NESA 92-10020, LDA 92-13537, August 1992. Not all Lebanese agree with the CIA figures. The Turkish government is a secular government and does not produce official statistics on any religious or ethnic group in Turkey. For Syria, “non-Sunni Muslims” include Twelvers, Seveners, Alawites, and Druzes.

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