Great Muslims of the West: Makers of Western Islam (Paperback)

Muslims have lived in the “West” for hundreds of years, yet the lives of all but a few are little known.

In this illuminating work, Muhammad Mojlum Khan sets out to change this by revealing the lives and impact of over fifty significant Muslims, from the founder of Muslim Spain in the eighth century to Muhammad Ali today.

The GREAT MUSLIMS OF THE WEST is a unique, inspiring and authoritative study of the history, culture and heritage of the Western world from an Islamic perspective. Through the lives of more than 50 great Western Muslims, this book reveals a remarkably rich and diverse cultural history spanning more than 1400 years. Challenging Eurocentric or essentialist views on Western history, culture and civilization, this book argues that Islam – like Christianity – has always been a Western religion and culture. 

This extraordinary book features biographies on the enslaved African Prince Ayuba Sulaiman Diallo, who was put to work in the tobacco fields of Maryland; Alexander Russell Webb, the voice of Muslims in Victorian America; and W.D. Muhammad, Elijah Muhammad’s son, who converted the Nation of Islam’s followers to an authentic version of Islam.

Indeed, the lives and contributions of the extraordinary and influential Western Muslims covered in this book shows that Islam is truly a global faith and culture, transcending race, color, language and geographical boundaries. Aimed at students, scholars and general readers, this highly innovative, informative and invaluable book is a must read for Muslims and non-Muslims, Westerners and Easterners alike.

Muhammad Mojlum Khan was born in 1973 in Habigong, Bangladesh, and was brought up and educated in England. He is a literary critic, prolific writer, and a researcher in Islamic thought and history. He has published over 100 essays and articles on Islam, comparative religion, contemporary thought, and current affairs, and has been a regular contributor to The Muslim News. He has published two major works: The Muslim 100 and The Muslim Heritage of Bengal.