The spread of Islam around the globe has blurred the connection between a religion, a specific society, and a territory. One third of the world´s Muslims now live as members of a minority. Neofundamentalism has been gaining ground among a rootless Muslim youth, particularly among second- and third-generation migrants in the West, and this phenomenon is feeding new forms of radicalism, ranging from support for Al Qaeda to the outright rejection of Western culture.
Olivier Roy argues that Islamic revival results from the Muslim diaspora´s efforts to assert its identity in a non-Muslim context. A schism has emerged between mainstream Islamist movements in the Muslim world (e.g. Hamas of Palestine and Hezbullah of Lebanon) and the uprooted militants who strive to establish an imaginary ummah, or Muslim community, not embedded in any particular society or territory. Roy provides a detailed comparison of these transnational movements, whether peaceful, like Tabligh Jamaat and the Islamic brotherhoods, or violent, like Al Qaeda. Neofundamentalism, he argues, is both a product and an agent of globalization.
Acclaim for Olivier Roy:
"Olivier Roy is perhaps the most provocative and innovative writer on Islamism today. . . . There is no more reliable guide to this labyrinth." -Martin Kramer, Middle East Quarterly
"Roy is one of the most important analysts of political Islam today." -James Piscatori, Fellow, Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies and Wadham College
"This book extends the argument of Roy´s The Failure of Political Islam, both by taking into account the momentous impact of new jihad movements like Al Qaeda, as well as by looking closely at the development of immigrant groups in the West. . . . Brilliant insights on almost every page." -Faisal Devji, Yale University
* A bestseller in France.
* Foreign rights sold in Italy, Spain, The Netherlands, Denmark, Ukraine, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon
Olivier Roy argues that Islamic revival results from the Muslim diaspora´s efforts to assert its identity in a non-Muslim context. A schism has emerged between mainstream Islamist movements in the Muslim world (e.g. Hamas of Palestine and Hezbullah of Lebanon) and the uprooted militants who strive to establish an imaginary ummah, or Muslim community, not embedded in any particular society or territory. Roy provides a detailed comparison of these transnational movements, whether peaceful, like Tabligh Jamaat and the Islamic brotherhoods, or violent, like Al Qaeda. Neofundamentalism, he argues, is both a product and an agent of globalization.
Acclaim for Olivier Roy:
"Olivier Roy is perhaps the most provocative and innovative writer on Islamism today. . . . There is no more reliable guide to this labyrinth." -Martin Kramer, Middle East Quarterly
"Roy is one of the most important analysts of political Islam today." -James Piscatori, Fellow, Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies and Wadham College
"This book extends the argument of Roy´s The Failure of Political Islam, both by taking into account the momentous impact of new jihad movements like Al Qaeda, as well as by looking closely at the development of immigrant groups in the West. . . . Brilliant insights on almost every page." -Faisal Devji, Yale University
* A bestseller in France.
* Foreign rights sold in Italy, Spain, The Netherlands, Denmark, Ukraine, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon