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The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary has defined it as "a person living in a region overrun by Muslim conquest who was accorded a protected status and allowed to retain his original faith".<ref>[{{Reference archive|1=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dhimmi|2=2021-09-17}} Dhimmi] - Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, accessed May 12, 2012</ref>. The dhimma is the "pact of protection" entailing the social rights, responsibilities, and restrictions entailed by the status of being a dhimmi. According to orthodox [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)|Islamic law]] (Shari'ah), those who are qualified for Dhimmi status within the Muslim society are the free (i.e non-slave) [[People of the Book|Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians]]. Adherents of other religions, as well as those without religion, are asked to convert to [[Islam]]; if they refuse, they are to be [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Forced Conversion|forced to convert (or face execution, ''en masse'')]]. <ref>[http://www.islam-qa.com/index.php?ref=34770&ln=eng There is no compulsion to accept Islam] - Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 34770</ref> However, historically, adherents of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and other religions, have lived as Dhimmis within Muslim states. | The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary has defined it as "a person living in a region overrun by Muslim conquest who was accorded a protected status and allowed to retain his original faith".<ref>[{{Reference archive|1=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dhimmi|2=2021-09-17}} Dhimmi] - Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, accessed May 12, 2012</ref>. The dhimma is the "pact of protection" entailing the social rights, responsibilities, and restrictions entailed by the status of being a dhimmi. According to orthodox [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)|Islamic law]] (Shari'ah), those who are qualified for Dhimmi status within the Muslim society are the free (i.e non-slave) [[People of the Book|Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians]]. Adherents of other religions, as well as those without religion, are asked to convert to [[Islam]]; if they refuse, they are to be [[Qur'an, Hadith and Scholars:Forced Conversion|forced to convert (or face execution, ''en masse'')]]. <ref>[http://www.islam-qa.com/index.php?ref=34770&ln=eng There is no compulsion to accept Islam] - Islam Q&A, Fatwa No. 34770</ref> However, historically, adherents of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and other religions, have lived as Dhimmis within Muslim states. | ||
The dhimma as a whole is conceived of in the Islamic tradition as "protection" of the non-Muslim from the endless state of jihad. As such the Muslim jurists and scholars see it as a form of mercy; in reality, though, the legal discriminations and legal limitations on religious minorities constitute a form of religious apartheid and second class citizenship. The limitations extend to but are not limited to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to marry the partner of one's choosing, freedom of movement, taxation without representation, the right to own and bear arms, and freedom from slavery and unpaid servitude. The implementation of these rules have varied over time, but Islamic scholars to this day continue to advocate for the implementation of the dhimma, and Islamist regimes such as the Islamic State, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan continue | The dhimma as a whole is conceived of in the Islamic tradition as "protection" of the non-Muslim from the endless state of jihad. As such the Muslim jurists and scholars see it as a form of mercy and protection; in reality, though, the legal discriminations and legal limitations on religious minorities constitute a form of religious apartheid and second class citizenship. The limitations extend to but are not limited to freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to marry the partner of one's choosing, freedom of movement, taxation without representation, the right to own and bear arms, and freedom from slavery and unpaid servitude. The implementation of these rules have varied over time, but Islamic scholars to this day continue to advocate for the implementation of the dhimma, and Islamist regimes such as the Islamic State, the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan continue to implement elements of the dhimma. | ||
According to the [[Qur'an]] and [[hadith]], the centerpiece of the dhimma contract is that the [[Jizyah]] tax must be paid by the dhimmis as a sign of submission. Legally, the payment of this tax grants the dhimmis some legal protection in return. As established by [[The Pact of Umar|the Pact of Omar]], dhimmis usually are not allowed to carry arms to protect themselves, serve in the army or government, display symbols of their faith, build or repair places of worship, they must wear distinctive clothing which includes the Zunar (a kind of belt) wherever they go (which parallels the Nazi practice of making Jews wear yellow badges), etc. Many of these laws are still enforced today in Muslim countries, like Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which enforce various aspects of Shari'ah. If the conquered do not wish to pay or convert, their fate may very well be slavery (under which, [[rape]] is permitted) or death. The | According to the [[Qur'an]] and [[hadith]], the centerpiece of the dhimma contract is that the [[Jizyah]] tax must be paid by the dhimmis as a sign of submission. Legally, the payment of this tax grants the dhimmis some legal protection in return. As established by [[The Pact of Umar|the Pact of Omar]], dhimmis usually are not allowed to carry arms to protect themselves, serve in the army or government, display symbols of their faith, build or repair places of worship, they must wear distinctive clothing which includes the Zunar (a kind of belt) wherever they go (which parallels the Nazi practice of making Jews wear yellow badges), etc. Many of these laws are still enforced today in Muslim countries, like Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which enforce various aspects of Shari'ah. If the conquered do not wish to pay or convert, their fate may very well be slavery (under which, [[rape]] is permitted) or death. The Pact of Umar also declares that dhimmis are forbidden to ride horses and camels, and may only ride donkeys, and only on packsaddles. | ||
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{{Main|The Pact of Umar}} | {{Main|The Pact of Umar}} | ||
The Pact of Umar is a historical document preserved by Islamic historians such as Al-Tabari which lays out the rights and responsibilities of the non-Muslims living under the Islamic rule of the 2nd [[Rashidun Caliphs|Rashidun Caliph]] [[Umar]]. It is a document which was utilized frequently by later jurists dealing with the subject of the dhimma < | The Pact of Umar is a historical document preserved by Islamic historians such as Al-Tabari which lays out the rights and responsibilities of the non-Muslims living under the Islamic rule of the 2nd [[Rashidun Caliphs|Rashidun Caliph]] [[Umar]]. It is a document which was utilized frequently by later jurists dealing with the subject of the dhimma <ref>Citation needed</ref>. | ||
==Background== | ==Background== | ||
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==Jizya, Kharaj and Fay== | ==Jizya, Kharaj and Fay== | ||
{{Main|Jizyah}} | |||
The classic trifecta of options that the jihadist presents to the enemies of Islam (conversion, death, or paying the [[jizya]]), were attributed to Muhammad but first offered to infidel people's in Iraq by the brilliant jihad general Khalid bin Al-Walid, the "Sword of God." The jizya is the operative legal condition of the dhimma; so long as the dhimmis pay it as the Qur'an says "saaghirun" (صاغرون) (surat 9, At-Tauba, verse 29), that is "subdued/in a position of submission", they are afforded the protections of the dhimmah. In order that they might feel "subdued", jurists have traditionally ruled that the tax must be rendered with the dhimmi kneeling in a submissive position, recieving ritual blows on both sides of his head, and in other ways suffering indignities meant to remind him of his lowly position. | |||
==Slavery== | ==Slavery== | ||
{{Main|Slavery}}The dhimmi is by definition not a slave; despite his ostensibly free status though, dhimmis were historically often subject to the collection of corvees or forced labor. In addition to this, later Islamic practices of recruitmnent of children from amongst the dhimmi populations such as the Turkish devshirme more or less amounted to a form of slavery. In many ways the believing slave was often superior in social position to the ostensibly free dhimmi; multiple Islamic dynasties such as the Mamluks in Egypt found their origin in Muslim slave warriors, but dhimmis were always limited in what they could accomplish and how far they could rise in Muslim states. | |||
==Rights and Role of the Dhimmi Clergy== | ==Rights and Role of the Dhimmi Clergy== | ||
The jurists established strict rules for the interactions between the Muslim ummah and the dhimmi populations, and these rules designated the clergy as the intermediary through which Muslim emirs would rule their cowed dhimmi subjects. As such Muslim authorities took great interest in the elections of Christian and Jewish clergy to their offices, often favoring one party or the other, and as a consequence many favored Christian clergy were the willing agents of the dhimma's humiliation and exploitation of their flocks. | |||
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==Historical Implementation== | ==Historical Implementation== | ||
Implementation varied from Muslim state to Muslim state. The weakness of Muslim and instability of Muslim states often prompted the intensification of the persecution of the dhimmis. There was often tension between the emirs of Muslim states who wished to lighten the burden of the dhimmah on their dhimmah subjects in the interest of economic objectives and later to appease the powerful European Christian states which came to dominate them, and the [[Ulema]] who generally agitated for more faithful and stricter implementation of the strictures of the dhimmah. | |||
==Dhimmitude== | ==Dhimmitude== | ||
Scholar Bat Ye'or see the social rules, restrictions, and customs originating in and evolving from the dhimmah as producing a state of what she calls Dhimmitude in the subject peoples. This fearful state was characterized by obedience to the dhimmis' Muslim masters, acceptance of the assumptions underlying the dhimmah (about such things as the superiority of Islam), behaviour which sought to mollify and please the dhimmis' Muslim masters, and inter-dhimmi rivalry, bigotry and even bloodshed aimed at securing a more favored position vis-a-vis the Muslim ummah. | |||
==See Also== | ==See Also== | ||