Note on Translation and Transliteration
For the translation and transliteration of Arabic words in this study, I follow the general translation and transliteration guidelines of the International Journal of Middle Eastern Studies (IJMES), with the exception of a few adjustments and additions:1
ââIf an (originally) Arabic term is commonly used in the English language, such as Quran, I omit hamzas and Ê¿ayns as well as diacritical marks. In order to avoid confusion, however, I limit these cases to an absolute minimum and provide translations for all other Arabic words, including titles of journals and newspapers, names of institutions, etc.
ââAll other Arabic terms and phrases are fully transliterated according to the IJMES guidelines (including hamzas, Ê¿ayns, and diacritical marks, yet case endings are omitted) and italicized. These include titles of sources and names of historical figures and institutions in the main text.
ââArabic place names in the main text and Arabic names of authors who published their works in a language other than Arabic are not transliterated. In the latter case, I follow these authorsâ preferred transliteration.
ââFor the sake of consistency, I transliterate Arabic words according to my transliteration system when quoting secondary literature in the main text or referring to their titles. The original transliteration of these words can be found in the corresponding reference. Also, I transliterate Persian and Ottoman names of historical figures and movements according to the Arabic transliteration system. I add the most common Persian or Ottoman transliteration of these names between brackets (e.g. Ê¿Abd al-ḤamÄ«d II (Abdülhamid II)).
ââI use anglicized plurals in order to avoid confusion for the reader who is not accustomed to the broken plural in the Arabic language. The only exception is Ê¿ulamÄʾ (Islamic scholars) because I suspect that most readers are more familiar with the plural of this word than with the singular (i.e. Ê¿Älim).
ââFor adjectives derived from Arabic words, I use âi (e.g. Salafi, MuÊ¿tazili).
ââIn the references and bibliography, I fully transliterate names, titles, places, and publishersâ names. However, I translate names of months that have an equivalent in English. In addition, whenever provided in the original source, I add the dates according to the Islamic calendar (indicated by âh after the year, e.g. 1437h).