title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The Charter of Arkhangelsk Oblast is the fundamental law of the region. The Legislative Assembly of Arkhangelsk Oblast is the province's standing legislative (representative) body. The Legislative Assembly exercises its authority by passing laws, resolutions, and other legal acts and by supervising the implementation and observance of the laws and other legal acts passed by it. The highest executive body is the Oblast Government, which includes territorial executive bodies such as district administrations, committees, and commissions that facilitate development and run the day to day matters of the province. The Oblast administration supports the activities of the Governor who is the highest official and acts as guarantor of the observance of the oblast Charter in accordance with the Constitution of Russia.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: In the period when they were the most important authority in the oblast (1937 to 1991), the following first secretaries were appointed


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The oblast is administratively divided into six cities and towns under the oblast's jurisdiction (Arkhangelsk, Koryazhma, Kotlas, Novodvinsk, Onega, and Severodvinsk), one city under the federal jurisdiction (Mirny), twenty-one districts (one of which is Novaya Zemlya), and two island territories (Franz Josef Land and Victoria Island). Another six towns (Kargopol, Mezen, Nyandoma, Shenkursk, Solvychegodsk, and Velsk) have the status of the towns of district significance.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Nenets Autonomous Okrug, which is administratively subordinated to the oblast, is administratively divided into one district (Zapolyarny District) and one town of okrug significance (Naryan-Mar).


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Huge areas within the limits of the oblast are included in the border security zone, intended to protect the borders of the Russian Federation from unwanted activity. These restricted areas include all islands in the Arctic Ocean and in Barents Sea, Morzhovets Island, and most of the White Sea coast in Mezensky District. In particular, the area includes the town of Mezen and the urban type settlement of Kamenka. In order to visit the zone, a permit issued by the local FSB department is required.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Arkhangelsk Oblast is one of the industrial regions of Russia. The region has a developed fishery, forestry, woodworking, cellulose, and paper industry. There are large reserves of natural resources: Lumber, oil, bauxite, titanium, gold, manganese, and basalt. In 2011, the paper production and related industries were responsible for 55% of all industrial production of the Oblast, food production – 11%, timber processing (excluding paper production) and furniture production – 12%.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The principal industrial enterprises in Arkhangelsk Oblast are shipyards in Arkhangelsk and Severodvinsk (including Sevmash), pulp and paper mills in Koryazhma and Novodvinsk, and bauxite extraction plant in Severoonezhsk. Almost any town has some timber works.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Fishery traditionally was the main means of subsistence in the Pomor villages at the White Sea coast. During the Soviet times, the fishermen were organized into collective and state farms (Sovkhoz's) and the fishery was heavily subsidized. In the 1990s the subsidies were stopped, and the fishery went into a serious crisis, some of the villages were deserted.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: In the valleys of the main rivers, there is some cattle breeding and crop and potato growing, which is, however, difficult because of the cold climate. Ustyansky District is notable for bee-keeping. Two notable breeds originate from Arkhangelsk Oblast. The Kholmogory cattle, from Kholmogory and Arkhangelsk countryside, mostly black and white, was particularly stable against cold climate in Northern Russia and eventually spread well beyond the Arkhangelsk Region. The Mezen horses, bred in the Mezen River valley, are rather small but suitable for difficult work and easily survive cold winters.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The area of current Arkhangelsk Oblast has always been located on the trading routes connecting central Russia to the White Sea, and, in fact, in the 17th century the White Sea was the main sea export route for Russia. The whole course of the Northern Dvina is navigable, as well as the lower course of some of its tributaries, most notably the Vychegda, the Vaga, and the Pinega. The Mezen is also navigable in the lower course. The Onega is not navigable except for the two relatively short stretches because of the rapids. However, except for the lower course of the Vychegda and some parts of the Northern Dvina, there is currently very little or no regular passenger navigation on these rivers. They are used for cargo traffic though.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: In 1765, a road was built between Saint-Petersburg and Arkhangelsk, mainly for postal service. The road still exists and passes Kargopol and Plesetsk, and it was paved in 2011. One of the principal highways in Russia, M8, connects Moscow and Arkhangelsk, and passes Velsk. This highway is paved and heavily used. In general, the road network is grossly underdeveloped. Only several all-season highways, in addition to M8, cross the oblast boundaries: the one (partially unpaved) connecting Kotlas with Syktyvkar; the one (paved) connecting Kotlas to Veliky Ustyug and eventually with Vologda and Nikolsk, the one (paved) from Konosha southwards, and two (unpaved) from Kargopol to Pudozh and to Solza and Belozersk. Most of the local roads are unpaved. Until 2008, there were no all-season roads connecting the main road network with the north-east of the oblast, including the town of Mezen and the selo of Leshukonskoye, and there are still no roads into the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, on the left bank of the Onega downstream from Severoonezhsk, and very few roads on the right bank of the Northern Dvina. Many rivers can be crossed only by ferry boats, which means they cannot be crossed during the ice melting period. There is regular bus service on the main roads.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The principal railway line in the oblast is the railroad connecting Moscow and Arkhangelsk. The piece between Vologda and Arkhangelsk was constructed in 1890s and passed through previously uninhabited areas between the valleys of the Northern Dvina and the Onega. The railroad construction gave the momentum to the population and exploitation of these areas. A branch from Konosha eastwards to Kotlas and further to Vorkuta was constructed in the 1940s to facilitate the transport of coal from the Komi Republic. From Kotlas, another branch continues south to Kirov. A branch from Obozersky to the west, to Onega and further to Belomorsk, was built during World War II to secure the transport of goods from the harbour of Murmansk to central Russia. A piece of railroad between Arkhangelsk and Karpogory was also built in the 1970s and is expected to become part of the Belkomur project — a railway line connecting Arkhangelsk via the Komi Republic with the Perm Krai and the Ural mountains. Almost the entire rail network belongs to the Northern Railway, which west of Onega connects to the Oktyabrskaya Railway. There is also a railway line from Severoonezhsk west to Yangory (an extension of the line from Puksa to Navolok), which belongs to the Department of Corrections. A big number of narrow gauge railways were built in the 1950s and 1960s to facilitate the transport of timber, but since then most of these became unprofitable and have been destroyed.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: In the 1970s and 1980s the aviation was active, with all district centers connected to Arkhangelsk with regular flights, Kotlas being the second important hub. Currently, it has almost disappeared. There are two airports in Arkhangelsk, but regular local flights are only carried out to the destinations which do not have rail or road connections, such as Novaya Zemlya, Solovetsky Islands, the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the Onega Peninsula, and the north of the oblast. The exceptions with functioning airports are Mezen, Leshukonskoye, and Onega.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The oil transport system, Baltic Pipeline System, runs through the oblast, with two oil-pumping station located at Urdoma and Privodino.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The Kudemskaya narrow-gauge railway in 2010 has appeared in Forbes ranking, of 10 most beautiful railway routes of the world.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Vital statistics for 2007 (see Total fertility rates by federal subjects of Russia#Natural Growth by Federal Subjects in 2007):


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: A notable subgroup of Russian population are the Pomors, who reside along the White Sea coast and in the valleys of major rivers, speak Pomor dialects and are in fact the descendants of the Novgorod population who colonized the Russian North in 12th–13th centuries. In 2002 Census, approximately 6,500 residents of Arkhangelsk Oblast indicated their ethnicity as Pomors.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: According to a 2012 survey 29.1% of the population of Arkhangelsk Oblast adheres to the Russian Orthodox Church, 6% are unaffiliated generic Christians, 1% are Orthodox Christian believers without belonging to any church or members of other Orthodox churches, 1% adheres to the Slavic native faith (Rodnovery). In addition, 32% of the population declared to be "spiritual but not religious", 16% is atheist, and 17.9% follows other religions or did not give an answer to the question.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Arkhangelsk Oblast is famous for its wooden buildings which include churches, chapels, peasant houses and farms, and city houses. The choice of wood as the construction material is natural for a region almost exclusively covered by taiga and still being one of the biggest timber producers. Some of these buildings date from the 17th century. Churches and chapels are considered particularly fine, and almost all of these constructed prior to 1920s have been declared the cultural heritage at the federal or local levels. More than 600 buildings (both of timber and stone) are protected on the federal level. An open-air ethnographic museum was open in the village of Malye Korely close to Arkhangelsk, with the purpose of preserving this heritage.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The most notable wooden churches are triple church ensembles, which consist of two churches (a bigger, not heated, church used in the summer, and a smaller, heated church used in the winter) and a bell-tower. Not more than a dozen of these triple wooden ensembles survived, the best known being the one located in the Kizhi Pogost in the Republic of Karelia and is classified as World Heritage. Most of these ensembles are located in the Arkhangelsk Oblast, in particular, in the villages of Varzogory and Abramovskaya (Onezhsky District). Other notable wooden churches are located in Kargopolsky (Oshevenskoye, Krasnaya Lyaga, Saunino and others), Verkhnetoyemsky (Soyezerskaya Pustyn), Onezhsky, Primorsky, and Plesetsky (Porzhensky Pogost) districts.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Despite being listed as cultural heritage, most of these buildings are neglected and regularly burn down. As a matter of fact, the majority of the churches considered as masterpieces has been lost. For instance, Verkhnemudyugsky Pogost in Onezhsky District, a triple church ensemble, burned down in 1997. A church and the bell-tower of the triple ensemble in Lyadiny (Kargopolsky District) burned down on May 6, 2013.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The oblast preserves some of the best stone architectural ensembles in Russia. The ensemble of the Solovetsky Monastery (founded 1436, the earliest surviving buildings stem from the 16th century) has been designated as the World Heritage. The town of Kargopol contains a number of white-stone churches, the earliest of which, the Cathedral of the Nativity of Christ, originates from 1552. The Presentation Church (1688–1712) in Solvychegodsk is an acclaimed baroque masterpiece and one of the five surviving Stroganov baroque churches.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Two of the towns in the oblast – Kargopol and Solvychegodsk – are classified as historical towns by the Ministry of Culture of Russian Federation, which implies certain restrictions on construction in their historical centers.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The monasteries facilitated the development of icon painting which existed in the area well until the 19th century. No single unified icon style arose, and icons produced in current Arkhangelsk and Vologda Oblasts are commonly known as Northern icon painting ("Северные письма"). Icons were produced in Solovetsky, Antoniev Siysky, Kozheozersky and other monasteries, as well as in the towns of Kholmogory and Solvychegodsk. Solvychegodsk icon painting was sponsored by Stroganovs and generated the Stroganov icon painting school, which in the end of the 17th century was principally active in Moscow.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: The icon-painting techniques were transferred to the traditional wood painting known since the 17th century in the valleys of the Northern Dvina (Nizhnyaya Toyma, Borok, Puchuga, Permogorye), the Pinega, and the Mezen. It was used to decorate various wooden surfaces such as, for example, spinning distaffs or chests, and employed geometrical figures as well as images of plants, animals, and humans. The Arkhangelsk traditional wooden painting is special since the surface was prepared in a particular way before the painting started, similar to icons.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Despite the fact that several notable Russian artists including Vasily Vereshchagin traveled into the region in the 19th century, professional (non-icon) painting did not develop in Arkhangelsk until the 1890s. Aleksandr Borisov, Stepan Pisakhov, and Tyko Vylka, all of them landscape painters interested in Northern and Arctic landscapes, are considered as the founders of Arkhangelsk painting.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Various handicrafts were developed in the area. The most notable ones are the Kholmogory bone carving, existing since the 17th century, and Kargopol toys, moulded painted clay figures of people and animals.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Like other areas of Northern Russia, Arkhangelsk Oblast is notable for its folklore. Until the mid-20th century, fairy tales and bylinas were still performed on a daily basis by professional performers, some of whom, like Mariya Krivopolenova, achieved prominence in Moscow and St. Petersburg. One of the first Arkhangelsk folklore collectors was Alexander Hilferding, who actually died in Kargopol during his journey. Starting from the 1890s, folkloric expeditions were organized to the White Sea area, and later to other areas of the Arkhangelsk Governorate, in order to write down the tales and the bylinas, in particular, in Pomor dialects. In the 1920s, mostly due to the efforts of Anna Astakhova, these expeditions became systematic. The results have been published. By the 1960s, the performing art was basically extinct. However, these folkloric motives and fairy tales inspired the literary works of Stepan Pisakhov and Boris Shergin, who were both natives of Arkhangelsk.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Protopope Avvakum, a 17th-century monk, who led the opposition ("raskol") against the reforms of the Russian Orthodox Church, was exiled to Mezen for two years in 1664, and in 1667 was imprisoned in Pustozyorsk, currently in Nenets Autonomous Okrug, for 14 years before being burned alive. Avvakum is an author of about sixty literary works, including the "Life of Avvakum", most of which were written in Pustozyorsk and are considered among the most notable Russian literary pieces of the 17th century.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Mikhail Lomonosov, a polymath and poet who created the basis of the modern Russian literary language, was born in 1711 in the village of Denisovka, close to Kholmogory, though he left the area to pursue his studies at the age of 18 and spent most of his career in Moscow and Saint-Petersburg. Denisovka was later renamed into Lomonosovo in his honour.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Aleksey Chapygin, a historical novelist, was born in what is now Kargopol District. His first novels describe the peasant life of the Arkhangelsk Governorate.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: In the 20th century, two of the authors of the Village prose movement in Soviet literature, which predominantly described rural life, were tightly connected with Arkhangelsk Region: Fyodor Abramov was born in the peasant family in the village of Verkola in Pinezhsky Uyezd, and Aleksander Yashin lived in Arkhangelsk for some time. In their literary works, as well as in the works of Yury Kazakov, a short story writer who traveled extensively in the Russian North, the life of Arkhangelsk peasants features prominently. The name of one of the Kazakov's books of short stories is "Poedemte v Lopshengu" — Let us go to Lopshenga; Lopshenga is a selo on the White Sea coast.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Some of the Nenets authors lived in Nenets Autonomous Okrug. In particular, Tyko Vylka was born in Novaya Zemlya and was even the chairman of the Novaya Zemlya Island Soviet. Vasily Ledkov lived in Naryan Mar.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: One sport in which the oblast achieved prominence is bandy. The Vodnik Bandy Club from Arkhangelsk has become the Russian champion nine times (1996–2000 and 2002–2005) and won the Bandy World Cup in 2003 and 2004. Arkhangelsk hosted the 1999 Bandy World Championship and the same in 2003.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: In 1998, the Arkhangelsk Regional Rescue Service was established by the governor. The responsibility of the Rescue Service is to handle emergency situations, such as forest fires.


title: Arkhangelsk Oblast

text: Polar bears are entering into human-occupied areas more frequently than in the past due to climate change effects. Global warming reduces sea-ice, forcing bears to come in to land to find food. An invasion of polar bears took place in February 2019 in northeastern Novaya Zemlya, with dozens of polar bears seen entering homes, public buildings, and inhabited areas. Arkhangelsk regional authorities declared a state of emergency.


title: Ulama

text: In Islam, the ulama (; ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ulema; feminine: "alimah" [singular] and "aalimath" [plural]) are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious knowledge in Islam, including Islamic doctrine and law.


title: Ulama

text: By longstanding tradition, ulama are educated in religious institutions "(madrasas)". The Quran and sunnah (authentic hadith) are the scriptural sources of traditional Islamic law.


title: Ulama

text: Students do not associate themselves with a specific educational institution, but rather seek to join renowned teachers. By tradition, a scholar who has completed his studies is approved by his teacher. At the teacher's individual discretion, the student is given the permission for teaching and for the issuing of legal opinions "(fatwa)". The official approval is known as the "ijazat at-tadris wa 'l-ifta" ("license to teach and issue legal opinions"). Through time, this practice has established a chain of teachers and pupils who have become teachers in their own time.


title: Ulama

text: The traditional place of higher education is the madrasa. The institution likely came up in Khurasan during the 10th century AD, and spread to other parts of the Islamic world from the late 11th century onwards. The most famous early madrasas are the Sunni Niẓāmiyya, founded by the Seljuk vizir Nizam al-Mulk (1018–1092) in Iran and Iraq in the 11th century. The Mustansiriya, established by the Abbasid caliph Al-Mustansir in Baghdad in 1234 AD, was the first to be founded by a caliph, and also the first known to host teachers of all four major madhhab known at that time. From the time of the Persian Ilkhanate (1260–1335 AD) and the Timurid dynasty (1370–1507 AD) onwards, madrasas have often become part of an architectural complex which also includes a mosque, a Sufi ṭarīqa, and other buildings of socio-cultural function, like baths or a hospital.


title: Ulama

text: Madrasas are sacred places of learning. They may provide boarding and salaries to a limited number of teachers, and boarding for a number of students out of the revenue from religious endowments "(waqf)", allocated to a specific institution by the donor. In later times, the deeds of endowment were issued in elaborate Islamic calligraphy, as is the case for Ottoman endowment books "(vakıf-name)". The donor could also specify the subjects to be taught, the qualification of the teachers, or which madhhab the teaching should follow. Moreover, the donor is free to specify in detail the curriculum, as was shown by Ahmed and Filipovic (2004) for the Ottoman imperial madrasas founded by Suleiman the Magnificent.


title: Ulama

text: As Berkey (1992) has described in detail for the education in medieval Cairo, unlike medieval Western universities, in general madrasas have no distinct curriculum, and do not issue diplomas. The educational activities of the madrasas focuses on the law, but also includes what Zaman (2010) called "Sharia sciences" "(al-ʿulūm al-naqliyya)" as well as the rational sciences like philosophy, astronomy, mathematics or medicine. The inclusion of these sciences sometimes reflects the personal interests of their donors, but also indicates that scholars often study various different sciences.


title: Ulama

text: Early on in Islamic history, a line of thought developed around the idea of mysticism, striving for the perfection "(Ihsan)" of worship. During the first Islamic century, Ḥasan al-Baṣrī (642–728 AD) was one of the first Muslim scholars to describe, according to Albert Hourani (1991) "the sense of the distance and nearness of God ... in the language of love". During the 7th century, the ritual of Dhikr evolved as a "way of freeing the soul from the distractions of the world". Important early scholars who further elaborated on mysticism were Harith al-Muhasibi (781–857 AD) and Junayd al-Baghdadi (835–910 AD).


title: Ulama

text: The early Muslim conquests brought about Arab Muslim rule over large parts of the Hellenistic world. During the time of the Umayyad Caliphate, at latest, the scholars of the emerging Islamic society had become familiar with the classical philosophical and scientific traditions of the world they had conquered. The collection of classical works and their translation into the Arabian language initiated a period which is known today as the Islamic Golden Age. According to Hourani (1991), the works of the classical scholars of antiquity were met with considerable intellectual curiosity by Islamic scholars. Hourani quotes al-Kindi (c. 801–873 AD), "the father of Islamic philosophy", as follows:


title: Ulama

text: We should not be ashamed to acknowledge truth from whatever source it comes to us, even if it is brought to us by former generations and foreign peoples. For him who seeks the truth there is nothing of higher value than truth itself.


title: Ulama

text: The works of Aristotle, in particular his "Nicomachean Ethics", had a profound influence on the Islamic scholars of the Golden Age like Al-Farabi (870–950 AD), Abu al-Hassan al-Amiri (d. 992 AD) and Ibn Sīnā (ca. 980–1037 AD). In general, the Islamic philosophers saw no contradiction between philosophy and the religion of Islam. However, according to Hourani, al-Farabi also wrote that philosophy in its pure form was reserved for an intellectual elite, and that ordinary people should rely for guidance on the "sharia". The distinction between a scholarly elite and the less educated masses "was to become a commonplace of Islamic thought". As exemplified by the works of al-Razi ( 865–925 AD), during later times, philosophy "was carried on as a private activity, largely by medical men, pursued with discretion, and often met with suspicion".


title: Ulama

text: The founder of Islamic philosophical ethics is Ibn Miskawayh (932–1030 AD) He combined Aristotelian and Islamic ethics, explicitly mentioning the Nicomachean Ethics and its interpretation by Porphyry of Gaza as the foundation of his philosophical thoughts.


title: Ulama

text: In the 12th century, the early Islamic Neoplatonism which had developed out of Hellenistic philosophy was effectively criticised by al-Ghazali, one of the most influential scholars of Islam. In his works "Ahāfut al-Falāsifa" (The Incoherence of the Philosophers), "Mizan al-'amal" (Criterion of Action) and "Kimiya-yi sa'ādat" (The Alchemy of Happiness), he refuted the Philosophy of Ibn Sīnā, and demonstrated that the Aristotelian ethics is incompatible with Islamic ethics: The latter is based on the belief in God and in life after death, which together provide the foundation of action in the pursuit of "sa'āda" (Happiness).


title: Ulama

text: According to Shia Islam, the authority to interpret the messages of the Quran and the Hadith lies with the Imamah, a line of infallible interpreters of the truth. The Sunni majority, however, reject this concept and maintain that God's will has been completely revealed in the Quran and "sunnah" of the Prophet. The capacity of its interpretation lies with the ulama.


title: Ulama

text: By the eleventh century, the major schools of Sunni and Shia law "(madhhab)" had emerged. Whilst, historically, the schools were at times engaged in mutual conflicts, the differences became less controversial over time, and merely represent regional predominances today. The four most important Sunni schools are:


title: Ulama

text: Shia madhhab include the Ja'fari and Zaidi schools. Minor madhhab also mentioned in the Amman message are the Ibadi and the Zahiri schools.


title: Ulama

text: All Sunni "madhhabs" recognize four sources of "sharia" (divine law): the Quran, "sunnah" (authentic hadith), "qiyas" (analogical reasoning), and "ijma" (juridical consensus). However, the "madhhabs" differ from each other in their conception of the Principles of Islamic jurisprudence, or "uṣūl al-fiqh", as briefly summarised by Hourani (1991). The Hanbalis only accepted the consensus of the Companions of the Prophet "(aṣ-ṣaḥābah)", which gave more leeway to independent reasoning "(ijtihad)" within the boundaries of the rules of "qiyās". The Hanafis hold that strict analogy may at times be supported by a limited use of juristic preference "(istihsan)", whereas the Maliki school also allows pragmatic considerations in the interest of public welfare "(istislah)" are also acceptable. Instead of the Sunni concept of analogy "(qiyās)", Shia ulama prefer "dialectical reasoning" "('Aql)" to deduce law.


title: Ulama

text: The body of substantive jurisprudence "(fiqh") defines the proper way of life through interpretation of "sharia", which Muslims should follow if they want to live according to God's will. Over time, the "madhhabs" established "codes of conduct", examining human actions in the light of the Quran and Hadith. Supplementing the sharia were customs "(ʿurf)" within a given society. Islamic law and regional customs were not opposed to each other: In 15th century Morocco, qadis were allowed to use a process called "ʻamal" in order to choose from different juridical opinions one which applied best to the local customs, even if they were not supported by the consensus of the majority. More often, the use of sharia led to changes in local customs.


title: Ulama

text: ʿIlm al-Kalām, the "science of discourse", also termed "Islamic theology", serves to explain and defend the doctrine of the Quran and Hadith. The concept of "kalām" was introduced during the first Islamic centuries by the Muʿtazila school. One of the most prominent scholars of the Muʿtazila was Abd al-Jabbar ibn Ahmad (935–1025 AD). From the 11th century on, the Muʿtazila was suppressed by the Sunni Abbasid Caliphate and the Seljuk Empire, but it continued playing an important role in the formation of Shia theology. The Ash'ari school encouraged the use of Kalām as the basis of fiqh, and was followed in this approach by parts of the Shafi'i madhhab. In contrast, the Hanbali and Maliki madhhabs discouraged theological speculation. Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (853–944 AD) developed his own form of Kalām, differing from the Ash'ari view in the question of Man's free will and God's omnipotence. Maturidi Kalām was often used in combination with Hanafi fiqh in the northwestern parts of the Islamic world.


title: Ulama

text: A distinct school of theology often called traditionalist theology emerged under the leadership of Ahmad ibn Hanbal in the early centuries of Islam among hadith scholars who rejected rationalistic argumentation. In the wake of the Ash'arite synthesis between Mu'tazilite rationalism and Hanbalite literalism, its original form survived among a minority of mostly Hanbalite scholars. While Ash'arism and Maturidism are often called the Sunni "orthodoxy", traditionalist theology has thrived alongside it, laying rival claims to be the orthodox Sunni faith.


title: Ulama

text: The study of, and commentaries on Quran and hadith, debates about "ijtihad" and "taqlid" and the issuing of "fatwa" as well as the use of Arabic, and later also Persian as common languages of discourse constituted the religious authority of the ulama throughout the entire Islamic world. Zaman (2010) has demonstrated that, as personal contacts were key to acquiring knowledge, Islamic scholars sometimes travel far in search of knowledge "(ṭalab al-ʿilm)". Due to their common training and language, any scholars travelling from one region of the Islamic world to another can easily integrate themselves into the local Muslim community and hold offices there: The traveller Ibn Baṭūṭah (1304–1368 or 1369), born in Tangiers, Morocco, to a family of ulema, was appointed qadi by Sultan Muhammad bin Tughluq of Delhi. Nuruddin ar-Raniri (d. 1658), born to a Gujarati Muslim family, travelled to, and worked as Shaykh ul-Islam in modern-day Indonesia under the protection of Iskandar Thani, Sultan of Aceh. Both scholars were able to move freely in an "interconnected world of fellow scholars". According to Zaman, their offices and positions as respected scholars were only questioned if they proved themselves unfamiliar with local customs (as happened to Ibn Baṭūṭah]), or met resistance from opponents with stronger local roots (ar-Raniri).


title: Ulama

text: Through their travels and teachings, ulama are able to transmit new knowledge and ideas over considerable distances. However, according to Zaman (2010), scholars have often been required to rely on commonly known texts which could support their "fatwas". A text which might be widely known within the intellectual circles of one region could be unknown in another. The ability of scholars from one region to support their argument in another might therefore be limited by the familiarity with the respective texts of the community they are working in. In an era without book print or mass communication media, a scholar's reputation might have remain limited if he was unfamiliar with the local canon of texts. As the "ijazah", the scholar's approval by another master, is key to the scholar's reputation, the latter would be greater in regions where the approving masters is more widely known.


title: Ulama

text: The second caliph, ʻUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, funded a group of Muslims to study the revelations, stories of Muhammed's life, "and other pertinent data, so that when he needed expert advise" he could draw it from these "people of the bench". According to Tamim Ansary, this group evolved into the "Ulama"


title: Ulama

text: The formative period of Islamic jurisprudence stretches back to the time of the early Muslim communities. In this period, jurists were more concerned with pragmatic issues of authority and teaching than with theory. Progress in theory began to develop with the coming of the early Muslim jurist Muhammad ibn Idris ash-Shafi'i (767–820), who codified the basic principles of Islamic jurisprudence in his book "ar-Risālah". The book details the four roots of law (Qur'an, Sunnah, "ijma", and "qiyas") while specifying that the primary Islamic texts (the Qur'an and the hadith) must be understood according to objective rules of interpretation derived from scientific study of the Arabic language.


title: Ulama

text: According to Feldman (2008), under many Muslim caliphate states and later states ruled by sultans, the ulama were regarded as the guardians of Islamic law and prevented the Caliph from dictating legal results, with the ruler and ulama forming a sort of "separation of powers" in government. Laws were decided based on the "Ijma" (consensus) of the Ummah (community), which was most often represented by the legal scholars.


title: Ulama

text: The Sunni Ottoman, and the Shi'a Safavid Persian dynasties, rulers of the two opponent early modern Islamic empires, both relied on ulama in order to legitimise their power. In both empires, ulama patronised by the royal courts created "official" religious doctrines which supported the dynastic rule. At the high points of their political power, respectively, the development took different paths: The Ottoman Sultan Süleyman I successfully integrated the imperial ulama into the imperial bureaucracy, and Ottoman secular law into Islamic law. In contrast, Shah Abbas I of Persia was unable to gain similar support by the Shi'a ulama, who retained a more independent position. During the late Safavid empire, the Shi'a ulama developed into one of the warrantors of continuity in a period of instability of the central government, thus securing a relative independency which they retained during the reign of subsequent dynasties.


title: Ulama

text: After the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, the leaders and subjects of the Ottoman Empire became increasingly aware of its role as a great power of its time. This new self-awareness was associated with the idea to legitimise the new political role by linking the religious scholarship to the political system: Ottoman historians of the 15th and 16th century like Ibn Zunbul or Eyyûbî, described the deeds of the Ottoman sultans in terms of idealised Islamic ghazi warriors. According to Burak (2015), the Ottoman literature genres of the "rank order" ( and the "biografic lexicon" () compiled the biographies of scholars in such ways as to create a concise and coherent tradition of the doctrine and structure of the Ottoman imperial scholarship. During the 16th century, scholars like the Shaykh al-Islām Kemālpaşazade (d. 1534), Aḥmād b. Muṣṭafā Taşköprüzāde (1494–1561), Kınalızāde ʿAli Çelebi (d. 1572) and Ali ben Bali (1527–1584) established a seamless chain of tradition from Abu Hanifa to their own time. Explicitly, some authors stated that their work must not only be understood as the historiography of the Hanafi madhhab, but that it should be consulted in case of eventual disagreements within the school of law. This exemplifies their purpose to establish a canon of Hanafi law within the Ottoman imperial scholarship. which modern Ottomanists termed the "Ottoman Islam".


title: Ulama

text: After 1453, Mehmed the Conqueror (1432–1481) had established eight madrasas in former Byzantine church buildings, and later founded the "sahn-ı şeman" or "Eight courtyards madrasa", adjacent to the Fatih mosque, where he brought together the most distinguished Islamic law scholars of his territory. In his 2015 study on the "second formation of Islamic law", Burak has shown in detail how the Ottoman state gradually imposed upon the traditional ulama a hierarchy of "official imperial scholars", appointed and paid by the central government. From the conquest of the Mamluk Sultanate of Cairo in 1517 onwards, the Ottoman ulama set up their own interpretation of the Sunni Hanafi doctrine which then served as the official religious doctrine of the empire. The formal acknowledgment by decree of the sultan became a prerequisite to issue fatwas. In the 17th century, the annalist al-Hamawi used the expression "sultanic mufti" "(al-ifta' al-sultani)" to delineate the difference between the officially appointed religious leaders and those who had followed the traditional way of education. Other authors at that time called the Ottoman law scholars "Hanafi of Rūm [i.e., the Ottoman Empire]" "(Rūmi ḫānāfi)", "Scholars of Rūm" "(ʿulamā'-ı rūm)" or "Scholars of the Ottoman Empire" "(ʿulamā' al-dawla al-ʿUthmaniyyā)". The Shaykh al-Islām "()" in Istanbul became the highest-ranking Islamic scholar within, and head of the ulama throughout the empire.


title: Ulama

text: The ulama in the Ottoman Empire had a significant influence over politics due to the belief that secular institutions were all subordinate to Islamic law, the Sharia "()". The ulama were responsible for interpreting the religious law, therefore they claimed that their power superseded that of the government. Within the Ottoman hierarchy of ulama, the Shaykh al-Islām held the highest rank. He exerted his influence by issuing fatwas, his written interpretations of the sharia had authority over the entire Ottoman population. In the 16th century, as the support by the ulama of the sultan and the central government was essential for shaping the still-growing empire, the importance of the office rose, and its power increased. As members of the "Ilmiye", the imperial scholars were part of the Ottoman elite class of the Askeri, and were exempt from any taxes.


title: Ulama

text: However, by approving scholars and appointing them to offices, over time the sultan's influence increased over the religious scholars, although, as a Muslim, he still stood under the Islamic law. Even the Shaykh al-Islām was subordinate to the sultan; his position, like the ranks of the muftis, was described as a "service" () or "rank" ( or "paye-ı Sahn"), to which a candidate was appointed or elevated. Sometimes, the sultans made use of their power: In 1633, Murad IV gave order to execute the Shaykh al-Islām Ahīzāde Ḥüseyin Efendi. In 1656, Shaykh al-Islām Ḥocazāde Mesʿud Efendi was sentenced to death by sultan Mehmed IV.


title: Ulama

text: The use of the Sunni Islam as a legitimisation of the Ottoman dynastic rule is closely linked to Sultan Süleyman I and his kazasker and later Schaykh al-Islām Ebussuud Efendi. Ebussuud compiled an imperial book of law "(ḳānūn-nāme)", which combined religious law "(sharīʿah)" with secular dynastic law "(ḳānūn)" in the person of the sultan. For example, Ebussuud provided a reason why the government could own land, or could levy and increase taxes, as the government was responsible for the protection of the common good of all Muslims.


title: Ulama

text: Shaikh Ṣāfī ad-Dīn Isḥāq Ardabīlī (1252–1334) was the founder of the Safaviyya tariqa. Safi ad-Din's great-great grandson Ismail, who from 1501 onwards ruled over the Persian Empire, was the founder of the Safavid dynasty. Shah Ismail I proclaimed the Twelver Shi'a as the new Persian state religion. To propagate the Safavid faith, he invited ulama from Qom, Jabal 'Āmil in southern Lebanon and Syria to travel around Iran and promote the Shi'a doctrine. In 1533, Shah Tahmasp I commissioned a new edition of the Safvat as-safa, Shaikh Ṣāfī's genealogy. It was rewritten in order to support the royal family's claim at descendency from Musa al-Kadhim, the Seventh Imam, and thus to legitimise the Safavid rule.


title: Ulama

text: During the reign of Shah Abbas I (1571 – 1629 AD), the argument of the theocratic unity of religious and political power was no longer sufficient to legitimise the Shah's authority: Shi'a ulama renounced the monarch's claim to represent the hidden Imam by teaching that descendancy did not necessarily mean representation. Likewise, as the influence of Sufi mysticism weakened, the Shah's role as the head of the Safaviyya lost its significance as a justification for his political role. Abbas I thus sought to associate himself with eminent ulama like Shaykh Bahāʾi (1574–1621 AD), whom he made Shaykh al-Islām in his new capital, Isfahan. Other famous ulama working under Abbas's patronage were Mir Damad (d. 1631 or 1632 AD), one of the founders of the School of Isfahan, and Ahmad ibn Muhammad Ardabili (d. 1585). By their teachings, they further developed the Shi'a Islamic teachings and religious practice. However, as religion did no longer suffice to support political power in Persia, Abbas I had to develop independent concepts to legitimise his rule. He did so by creating a new ""ghulam"" army, thus evoking the Turco-Mongol tradition of Timur and his reign.


title: Ulama

text: By the beginning of the 19th century, the Ottoman ulama still retained their political influence. When sultan Selim III tried to reform the Ottoman army, the ulama opposed his plans, which they rejected as an apostasy from Islam. Consequently, his reform failed. However, Selims successor Mahmud II (r. 1808–1839) was more successful: He called the new troops, organised according to European models, by the name "Victorious army of Muhammad" "(Asâkir-i Mansure-i Muhammediye)". By doing so, he was able to overcome the accusation of apostasy and secure the ulama's support. Mahmuds reforms created a new imperial elite class who spoke Western European languages and were knowledgeable of the Western European societies and their political systems. As the political and economic pressure increased on the Ottoman Empire in the course of the 19th century, this new elite carried on the Sultan's reforms and helped initiating a new era of reform, the Tanzimat. In parallel, the political influence of the ulama was circumvented and reduced step by step. A ministry for religious endowments was created in order to control the finances of the vakıf. Thus, the ulama lost direct control over their finances, which significantly reduced their capacity to exert political influence.


title: Ulama

text: In Iran, a period of political instability began with the collapse of the Safavid reign after shah Sultan Husayns death in 1722. In the light of the discontinuity and fragmentation of the central government, two social groups maintained continuity and, consequently, rose in power: Tribal chieftains established, amongst others, the Khanates of the Caucasus, the Afsharid and Zand dynasties. The second group who benefitted from the weakness of the central authority was the Shi'a ulama. According to Garthwaite (2010), "the ulama constituted one institution that not only provided continuity, but gradually asserted its role over and against royal authority." A process of change began which continued throughout the 19th century and into the present.


title: Ulama

text: Already some of the last Safavids, Sulayman Shah (r. 1666–1694) and Tahmasp II (r. 1722–1732) had sought the ulama's support in an attempt to strengthen their authority. Particularly, they associated themselves with a group of ulama who supported the "official" Twelver Shi'a doctrine, established by the Iranian Shaykh al-Islām Mohammad-Baqer Majlesi (1627–1699) during the later decades of Safavid rule. The dispute between the Twelver Shi'a and Mir Damad's (d. 1631 or 1632) and Ṣadr ad-Dīn Muḥammad Shīrāzī's (c. 1571/2 – 1640) School of Isfahan, who promoted Sufi mysticism and Islamic philosophy, continued throughout the 18th century, and shaped the relationship between ulama and government during the reigns of the subsequent dynasties.


title: Ulama

text: With the accession of Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar to the Iranian throne, the Qajar dynasty consolidated the central power. However, the Qajar Shahs, in particular Naser al-Din Shah Qajar (r. 1848–1896), whose reign paralleled that of the Ottoman Sultans of the Tanzimat time, failed at obtaining central control over the ulama. The Shiite scholars retained their political influence on the Persian society. They also maintained unrestricted access to the financial resources from the religious endowments. In addition, the Islamic Zakat tax was paid to individual imams and not to state-sponsored tax collectors. Both their religious influence and their financial means allowed the Shiite ulama to act, at times, against the Shah. Thus, under the Qajar dynasty, the ulama provided a source of religious legitimacy and served as interpreters of religious law in a dual legal system where the state administered law based on custom "(ʻurf)".


title: Ulama

text: Starting in the first half of the 19th century, direct contacts began and gradually increased between members of the ulama and modern Western Europe. The Egyptian alim Rifa'a al-Tahtawi (1801–1873) was amongst the first members of the ulama who travelled to Europe. As a religious counsellor to a delegation by the Egyptian khedive Muhammad Ali Pasha he stayed in Paris from 1826 to 1831. His report "The Extraction of Gold or an Overview of Paris" "(Taḫlīṣ al-ibrīz fī talḫīṣ Bārīz)" (1849) included some outlines of future reforms and potential improvements in his native country. Although al-Tahtawi had gone through the traditional education of an alim, his interest focused on modern French concepts of administration and economy. He only referred to Islam in order to emphasize that Muslims can adopt practical knowledge and insights from Europe. As such, at-Tahtawis report reflects the political efforts of Muhammad Ali Pasha, who did not intend to reform al-Azhar university, but aimed at building an independent educational system sponsored by his government.


title: Ulama

text: Hayreddin Pasha (1822/3–1890) was an Ottoman Tunisian alim and statesman who reformed the administration and jurisdiction of the province. He was able to explain his ideas in French ("Réformes nécessaires aux États musulmans" – Necessary reforms of the Muslim states. Paris, 1868), which he had learned whilst representing his sovereign Ahmad Bey at the court of Napoleon III from 1852 to 1855. In contrast to al-Tahtawi, Hayreddin Pasha used the religious concept of the Muslim collective interest "(maṣlaḥa)" to make his point, thereby applying the idea of ijtihad to public affairs.


title: Ulama

text: Positions comparable to the Western Islamic ulama were also taken in the Eastern parts of the Islamic world by Syed Ahmad Khan, the pioneering Muslim modernist in South Asia, and Jamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī. The latter is regarded as the mentor of Pan-Islamism, but also as one of the founders of the political Islam and of the late 19th and 20th century Salafi movement.


title: Ulama

text: The Egyptian Grand Mufti Muḥammad ʿAbduh (1849–1905), who was granted the degree of 'Alim by al-Azhar university in 1877, was the first who used the term Islāh in order to denote political and religious reforms. Until 1887 he edited together with al-Afghānī the newspaper "al-ʿUrwa al-Wuthqā" ("The firm bond"). The gazette widely spread the pan-islamistic concept of Islam representing a religious bond which was believed to be stronger than nationality or language. From 1876 on, ʿAbduh edited the newspaper "al-Ahrām". Since 1898, he also edited, together with Rashīd Ridā (1865–1935), the newspaper "al-Manār" ("The Beacon"), in which he further developed his ideas. "al-Manār" appeared in print for almost 40 years and was read throughout the Islamic world.


title: Ulama

text: ʿAbduh understood Islah as a concept of "reform of mankind" "(iṣlāḥ nauʿ al-insān)". In his works, he emphasized the special importance of a reform of the traditional madrasa system, which was taken to disadvantage by the parallel establishment of the secular, state-sponsored educational system in Egypt. He strove at reconciling the traditional and modern educational systems, thereby justifying from the point of view of Islam the introduction of modern institutions by the national state. He referred to the Islamic concept of the collective interest or common good of the Muslim community "(maṣlaḥa)", to which he accorded overarching importance "(al-maṣlaḥa shar)" in the interest of his fellow Muslims. The concept of "islāh" gained special relevance for the future, as it strives at understanding and justifying all aspects of modern life from the Islamic doctrine.


title: Ulama

text: After ʿAbduhs death in 1905, Rashīd Ridā continued editing ""al-Manār"" on his own. In 1924, he published a collection of writings by some ulama of Najd: "Maǧmūʿat al-ḥadiṭ an-naǧdīya". Thus, the teachings of the Yemeni alim Muhammad ash-Shawkani (1759–1839), which had already been discussed since the 1880s, gained greater publicity. Likewise, the writings of the Hanbali scholar Ibn Taymiyyah (1263–1328) came to attention again. Ibn Taymiyyah's doctrine provided a link between the "wahhabiyya" and parts of the "salafiyya" movements. The theological differences between the two movements were altogether too large for a complete union of the two doctrines. However, the opening of the Salafi movement towards Wahhabism helped to reconcile the latter with the Islamic public after king Ibn Saud's invasion of the Hijaz in 1924. Central Arabian militia ("Iḫwān") had occupied and looted the holy towns of Mecca and Medina, thereby destroying monuments which they considered pagan "("shirk")". Starting with the Pan-Islamic Congress in Mecca in 1926, the pro-Saudi movement developed into one of the most relevant currents of Islamic thought.


title: Ulama

text: In his Egyptian exile, the Syrian alim ʿAbd ar-Rahmān al-Kawākibī (1854–1902) met al-Afghānī, ʿAbduh and Ridā. In his books "Ṭabāʾiʿ al-istibdād" ("The nature of despotism") and "Umm al-Qurā" ("Mother of villages [i.e., Mecca]", 1899) he accused the Ottoman sultan Abdülhamid II of corrupting the Islamic community. The Ottoman despotism "encroaches on the rights of its citizens, keeps them ignorant to keep them passive, [and] denies their right to take an active part in human life". Therefore, the law must be reformed. By the use of "ijtihad", a "modern and unified system of law" must be created, and "proper religious education" must be provided. Because of the central position of the Arabic peoples in the "ummah" and the Arabic language in the intellectual discourse, but also because "Arabian Islam is ... free from modern corruptions and the bedouin are free from the moral decay and passivity of despotism", the balance of power must shift from the Turks towards the Arabs. The Ottoman dynasty must give up their claim to the caliphate, and a new caliph of Quraysh descent must be elected by representatives of the "ummah". His temporal authority would be set up in the Hejaz, whilst he would hold religious authority over the entire Muslim community, "assisted ... by a consultative council nominated by the Muslim rulers".


title: Ulama

text: Al-Kawākibīs idea that the Arabian doctrine represented a more puristic form of the Islam, according to Cleveland and Bunton (2016), prepared the ground for the 20th century Arab nationalism as well as the Islamic renewal movement of the Nahda.


title: Ulama

text: In 1912, the Muhammadiyah organization was founded in Yogyakarta, which, together with Nahdlatul Ulama ("Reawakening of the ulama"), founded in 1926, form the two largest Muslim organizations in the world. Since the 1930s, their religious boarding schools "("pesantren")" also taught mathematics, natural sciences, English and history. Since the 1980, the Nahdlatul Ulama schools also offered degrees in economy, jurisdiction, paedagogical and medical sciences. In the 1990s, under their leader Abdurrahman Wahid, the organization adopted an anti-fundamentalistic doctrine, teaching democracy and pluralism.


title: Ulama

text: Darul Uloom Deoband, next to al-Azhar one of the most influential madrasas, was founded in the city of Deoband, Uttar Pradesh, in 1867. Initially, the intention of the school was to help Indian Muslims, who had become subjects of the British Empire after 1857, to lead their lives according to Islamic law. The Deobandi propagate a Sunni Islam of the Hanafi school, which was the most prevalent madhhab in South Asia. Still today, they aim at a revival of the Islamic society and education. Following the example of Deoband, thousands of madrasas were founded during the late 19th century which adopted the Deobandi way of studying fundamental texts of Islam and commenting on Quran and Hadith. By referring back to traditional Islamic scholars, the Deobandi School aims at defending the traditional Islamic madhhab, especially the Hanafi, against criticism which arose from other Islamic schools like the Ahl-i Hadith. During the 1990s, the Afghan "taliban" also referred to the Deoband School. Ashraf Ali Thanwi (1863–1943) is one of the most prominent teachers of Darul Uloom Deoband. Thanwi initiated and edited multi-volume encyclopedic commentaries on the Quran. However, he was also able to reach out to a larger audience: His book Bahishti Zewar, which is still widely read in South Asia, as it details, amongst other topics, the proper conduct and beliefs for Muslim women.


title: Ulama

text: Ahl-i Hadith is a movement which emerged in North India in the mid-19th century. By rejecting "taqlid" (following legal precedent) and favoring "ijtihad" (independent legal reasoning) based on the foundational scriptures of Islam, they oppose the traditional madhhab and criticize their reliance on legal authorities other than the traditional texts. The Ahl-i Hadith was the first organization which printed and spread the works of Muhammad ash-Shawkani, whose writings did also influence the doctrine of the Salafi movement in the Arab Middle East and worldwide.


title: Ulama

text: Muslim World League is an international non-governmental Islamic organization based in Mecca, Saudi Arabia that is a member of UNICEF, UNESCO and OIC. It aims to resolve the issues faced by the Islamic community by organizing scholarly conferences with the Ulama around the world in order to form public Islamic opinions based on principles of moderation, peace and harmony.


title: Ulama

text: In most countries, the classical institution of the madrasa as a place of teaching remained largely intact until the beginning of the 20th century. In the Western parts of the Islamic world, national states arose from the disintegration and partition of the Ottoman Empire after the First World War. The government of Kemalist Turkey sought to distance the nation from the religious traditions and institutions of the Ottoman past.


title: Ulama

text: In Egypt, the establishment of a state-controlled educational system had already begun in the 1820s. From 1961 onwards, Gamal Abdel Nasser tried to increase the state control over ancient Islamic institutions like al-Azhar university. The head of al-Azhar was – and still is – appointed directly by the president, and new faculties were created in this ancient Islamic institution.


title: Ulama

text: Initially giving rise to modernist reforms, up to a certain degree the state-sponsored faculties were able to retain their independence from government control. However, as Pierret has pointed out in detail for Syria, in some countries the orthodox madrasa system remained largely intact, its decentralised organisation protecting it from state control. In fact, the government's attempt at controlling the religious education focussed largely on the academic institutions and neglected the traditional madrasas. By their continuing ability to provide social support and access to an educational alternative which was propagated as being more orthodox according to Islamic faith, the traditional ulama not only maintained their influence on large parts of the population, but actually increased their political influence and power.


title: Ulama

text: In the Kemalist Republic of Turkey, traditional Ottoman religious institutions were abolished like the Ottoman Caliphate, the office of the Shaykh ul-Islam, as well as the dervish brotherhoods. The Presidency of Religious Affairs (, or Diyanet) was created in 1924 by article 136 of the Constitution of Turkey by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey as a successor to the office of the Shaykh ul-Islam. From 1925 onwards, the traditional dervish tekkes and Islamic schools were dissolved. Famous convents like the Tekke of the Mevlevi order in Konya were secularized and turned into museums.


title: Ulama

text: In Iran, contrary to many other Islamic countries, the Shi'a ulama have maintained their religious authority together by Khums tax. Thus, they maintained their ability to exert political pressure.


title: Ulama

text: Between 1905 and 1911, a coalition of ulama, bazaari, and some radical reformers incited the Persian Constitutional Revolution, which led to the establishment of the parliament (majlis) of Iran during the Qajar dynasty.


title: Ulama

text: The Islamic Revolution in Iran was led by a senior Shia cleric—the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini—who then established the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist.


title: Ulama

text: In his study on "Religion and state in Syria" (2013), Pierret pointed out how the training of Syria's ulama gradually became more institutionalised, based upon the traditional madrasa system: In 1920, the madrasa of the Khusruwiyah Mosque complex (which was to be destroyed in 2014 during the Syrian Civil War) introduced an entrance exam and a stable curriculum for its Islamic seminary. Graduates were issued a diploma carrying the name of the institution, which bore the signatures of all teachers, signifying individual "ijazah". In 1947, courses also included natural sciences and foreign languages. In 1947, the state-run "Faculty of Sharia" was initiated in Damascus by Kamal al-Qassab (1853–1954), a former student of Muḥammad ʿAbduh (1849–1905) in Cairo. Until 1954, all Syrian ulama aiming at higher degrees had to join Al-Azhar University in Cairo. In 1954, however, Syria's first higher faculty of sharia was founded by members of the modernist wing of the Muslim Brotherhood. Its curriculum, which included economy and the "current situation of the Muslim world", according to Pierret, "anticipated the 1961 modernist reform of al-Azhar by Nasser". In 1972, the curriculum of the state-run "Sharia high schools" was reformed again, thus providing access for their students to all faculties of Syrian high schools.


title: Ulama

text: According to Pierret (2015), the Ba'ath Party coup of 1963 brought about a weakening of the state-controlled sharia high schools by the secular government. Many teachers of the Damascus faculty of sharia were forced into exile during the 1960s. Attempts of the regime during the 1980s at changing the curricula of the faculty and create a new "Ba'athist ulama" failed. The faculty, maintaining their ability to recruit competent teachers, was able to resist the political pressure. Consequently, the Syrian government prohibited the faculty to grant doctorates until 1998, and delayed the establishment of another faculty in Aleppo until 2006.


title: Ulama

text: In 1961, Gamal Abdel Nasser put the Al-Azhar University under the direct control of the state. "Azharis were given military uniforms and found themselves marching in step under the orders of army officers." After the independence of Algeria, President Ahmed Ben Bella also deprived the Algerian ulama of their power. repression in Iraq led to a drop of enrollment in the Shia holy cities of Iraq from 12,000 students in the early 1900s to only 600 scholars and students in 1977.


title: Ulama

text: In the 1980s and 1990s, competition arose between Sunni and Shia interests in Pakistan, with Saudi Arabian humanitarian organizations using the sponsorship of madrasas to spread their wahhabitic doctrine, while the Islamic Republic of Iran used Shiite madrasas to similarly peddle influence. For poorer communities in Pakistan, internationally sponsored madrasas could be the only accessible form of education.


title: Ulama

text: This influence from institutions which were financially independent from the state led to a resurgence of the social and political influence of the traditional ulama, while the insufficient state control over the educational institutions, insufficient qualification of the teachers and ideologic indoctrination of such institutions all become considerable issues. Graduates "(talib)" from North Pakistani madrasas like "Mullah" Mohammed Omar subsequently played a role in the establishment of the Afghan Taliban regime as well as in the development of the radical Islamic terrorism. Under the pressure of Islamic terrorism, the traditional Islamic educational system together with their ulama came into general disregard within the Western world.


title: Ulama

text: Some opinions from within the Muslim world have criticized the lack of scientific training of the ulama, and argued that those proficient in the sciences should qualify for this title. In Egypt, the Al-Azhar University has begun to introduce scientific and practical subjects in its traditional theological colleges to help the ulama face the challenges of the modern world. Sudanese politician Hassan Al-Turabi argued, in his work The Islamic State, that the Ulama should not be limited to those versed in religious affairs but include experts in fields such as engineering, science, politics, and education because all knowledge is divine and God-given.


title: Dabigatran

text: Dabigatran, sold under the brand name Pradaxa among others, is an anticoagulant used to treat and prevent blood clots and to prevent stroke in people with atrial fibrillation. Specifically it is used to prevent blood clots following hip or knee replacement and in those with a history of prior clots. It is used as an alternative to warfarin and does not require monitoring by blood tests. It is taken by mouth.


title: Dabigatran

text: Common side effects include bleeding and gastritis. Other side effects may include bleeding around the spine and allergic reactions such as anaphylaxis. In cases of severe bleeding, it can be reversed with the antidote, idarucizumab. Use is not recommended during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Compared to warfarin it has fewer interactions with other medications. It is a direct thrombin inhibitor.


title: Dabigatran

text: Dabigatran was approved for medical use in the United States in 2010. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. In 2020, it was the 306th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 1million prescriptions. Dabigatran etexilate was approved as a generic medication in the United States in 2020.


title: Dabigatran

text: Dabigatran is used to prevent strokes in those with atrial fibrillation not caused by heart valve issues, as well as deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in persons who have been treated for 5–10 days with parenteral anticoagulant (usually low molecular weight heparin), and to prevent deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in some circumstances.


title: Dabigatran

text: It appears to be as effective as warfarin in preventing non-hemorrhagic strokes and embolic events in those with atrial fibrillation not due to valve problems.


title: Dabigatran

text: Dabigatran is contraindicated in patients who have active pathological bleeding, since dabigatran can increase bleeding risk and can also cause serious and potentially life-threatening bleeds. Dabigatran is also contraindicated in patients who have a history of serious hypersensitivity reaction to dabigatran (e.g. anaphylaxis or anaphylactic shock). The use of dabigatran should also be avoided in patients with mechanical prosthetic heart valves due to the increased risk of thromboembolic events (e.g. valve thrombosis, stroke, and myocardial infarction) and major bleeding associated with dabigatran in this population.


title: Dabigatran

text: The most commonly reported side effect of dabigatran is gastrointestinal upset. When compared with people anticoagulated with warfarin, patients taking dabigatran had fewer life-threatening bleeds, fewer minor and major bleeds, including intracranial bleeds, but the rate of gastrointestinal bleeding was significantly higher. Dabigatran capsules contain tartaric acid, which lowers the gastric pH and is required for adequate absorption. The lower pH has previously been associated with dyspepsia; some hypothesize that this plays a role in the increased risk of gastrointestinal bleeding.


title: Dabigatran

text: A small but significantly increased risk of myocardial infarctions (heart attacks) has been noted when combining the safety outcome data from multiple trials.


title: Dabigatran

text: Dabigatran reversibly binds to the active site on the thrombin molecule, preventing thrombin-mediated activation of coagulation factors. Furthermore, dabigatran can inactivate thrombin even when thrombin is fibrin-bound; it reduces thrombin-mediated inhibition of fibrinolysis and, therefore, may enhance fibrinolysis.


title: Dabigatran

text: Dabigatran has a half-life of approximately 12–14 h and exerts a maximum anticoagulation effect within 2–3 hours after ingestion. Fatty foods delay the intestinal absorption of dabigatran, although the bioavailability of the drug is unaffected. One study showed that absorption may be moderately decreased if taken with a proton pump inhibitor. Dabigatran excretion through P-glycoprotein pumps is slowed in patients taking strong p-glycoprotein pump inhibitors such as quinidine, verapamil, and amiodarone, thus raising plasma levels of dabigatran.


title: Dabigatran

text: Dabigatran (then compound BIBR 953) was discovered from a panel of chemicals with similar structure to benzamidine-based thrombin inhibitor α-NAPAP ("N"-alpha-(2-naphthylsulfonylglycyl)-4-amidinophenylalanine piperidide), which had been known since the 1980s as a powerful inhibitor of various serine proteases, specifically thrombin, but also trypsin. Addition of ethyl ester and hexyloxycarbonyl carbamide hydrophobic side chains led to the orally absorbed prodrug, BIBR 1048 (dabigatran etexilate).


title: Dabigatran

text: On 18 March 2008, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) granted marketing authorization for Pradaxa for the prevention of thromboembolic disease following hip or knee replacement surgery and for non-valvular atrial fibrillation.


title: Dabigatran

text: The National Health Service (NHS) in Britain authorized dabigatran for use in preventing blood clots in hip and knee replacement surgery patients. According to a BBC article in 2008, Dabigatran was expected to cost the NHS £4.20 per day, which was similar to several other anticoagulants.


title: Dabigatran

text: Initially, there was no specific way to reverse the anticoagulant effect of dabigatran in the event of a major bleeding event, unlike for warfarin. Since then, the dabigatran-specific antidote idarucizumab, a humanized monoclonal antibody for intravenous administration, was developed, and received Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in 2015.


title: Dabigatran

text: Pradaxa received a Notice of Compliance (NOC) from Health Canada on 10 June 2008, for the prevention of blood clots in patients who have undergone total hip or total knee replacement surgery. Approval for atrial fibrillation patients at risk of stroke came in October 2010.


title: Dabigatran

text: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Pradaxa on 19 October 2010, for prevention of stroke in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. The approval came after an advisory committee recommended the drug for approval on 20 September 2010 although caution is still urged by some outside experts.


title: Dabigatran

text: On 14 February 2011, the American College of Cardiology Foundation and the American Heart Association added dabigatran to their guidelines for management of non-valvular atrial fibrillation with a class I recommendation.


title: Dabigatran

text: In May 2014, the FDA reported the results of a large study comparing dabigatran with warfarin in 134,000 Medicare patients. The agency concluded that dabigatran is associated with a lower risk of overall mortality, ischemic stroke, and bleeding in the brain than warfarin. Gastrointestinal bleeding was more common in those treated with dabigatran than in those treated with warfarin. The risk of heart attack was similar between the two drugs. The FDA reiterated its opinion that dabigatran's overall risk/benefit ratio is favorable.


title: Dabigatran

text: On 26 July 2014, the "British Medical Journal" (BMJ) published a series of investigations that accused the privately held Boehringer Ingelheim pharmaceutical group of withholding critical information about the need for monitoring to protect patients from severe bleeding, particularly in the elderly. Review of internal communications between Boehringer researchers and employees by the FDA and the EMA revealed that Boehringer researchers had found evidence that serum levels of dabigatran vary widely. The BMJ investigation suggested that Boehringer had a financial motive to withhold this concern from regulatory health agencies because the data conflicted with their extensive marketing of dabigatran as an anticoagulant that does not require monitoring. In August 2012, Pradaxa claims filed in U.S. federal courts were consolidated into a multi-district litigation in the Southern District of Illinois before Chief Judge David R. Herndon. On 28 May 2014, a $650 million settlement was announced on behalf of approximately 3,900 claimants who were injured by the drug Pradaxa made by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. The drug was alleged to cause severe bleeding events and/or hemorrhaging to those who were taking the drug.


title: Richard

text: Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic "*rīk-" 'ruler, leader, king' and "*hardu-" 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong in rule'. Nicknames include "Richie", "Dick", "Dickon", "Dickie", "Rich", "Rick", "Rico", "Ricky", and more.


title: Richard

text: Richard is a common English, German and French male name. It's also used in many more languages, particularly Germanic, such as Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Icelandic, and Dutch, as well as other languages including Irish, Scottish, Welsh and Finnish. Richard is cognate with variants of the name in other European languages, such as the Swedish "Rickard", the Catalan "Ricard" and the Italian "Riccardo", among others (see comprehensive variant list below).


title: Makita

text: In March 1915, Mosaburo Makita (b. 1893) founded Makita Electric Works in Nagoya, Aichi, Japan and began selling and repairing lighting equipment, motors and transformers. In 1958, Makita marketed a portable electrical planer in Japan and became a manufacturer of power tools the following year. In April 1969, they introduced the 6500D battery-powered drill (the first rechargeable power tool). In December 1978, they launched the 6010D rechargeable drill (the first nickel cadmium battery tool). In August 1997, the 6213D rechargeable driver-drill was exhibited at the Chicago Hardware Show (the first nickel hydride battery tool). In February 2005, the TD130D (the first lithium-ion battery tool) was made available.


title: Makita

text: Makita ships many of its power tools in Systainer-compatible stacking boxes. In 2011 Makita registered a design for its own "Makpac" variant in the names of Yuji Yamamoto and Kiyozumi Kokawa.


title: Makita

text: Makita offers many products in this area. In addition to cordless screwdrivers, cordless impact wrenches, cordless rotary hammers drills and cordless jigsaws, Makita offers various other tools such as battery saws, cordless angle grinders, cordless planers, cordless metal shears, battery-powered screwdrivers, cordless slot mills and even a coffee maker.


title: Makita

text: In the field of power tools, Makita offers classic tools (drilling and stemming hammers, drills, planers, saws, cutting and angle grinders), gardening equipment (electric lawnmowers, high-pressure cleaners, blowers), and measuring tools (rangefinders, rotating lasers).


title: Makita

text: Makita develops cutters, power generators, chainsaws, scythes, lawnmowers , blowers and grass trimmers in this division.


title: Makita

text: Makita manufactures many accessories for their tools like batteries and chargers for cordless tools. Blades and tables are manufactured for sawing tools. Moreover, carrying cases are also manufactured by Makita to easily carry tools to the worksite.


title: Minissha Lamba

text: Minissha Lamba (born 18 January 1985) is an Indian actress and poker player who appeared in Hindi films. She made her debut with "Yahaan" (2005). Her other notable films include "Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd." (2007), "Bachna Ae Haseeno" (2008), "Well Done Abba" (2010), and "Bheja Fry 2" (2011).


title: Minissha Lamba

text: Minisha Lamba was born into a Punjabi Sikh family, to Kawel Lamba and Manju Lamba in New Delhi in 1985.


title: Minissha Lamba

text: She studied at Chettinad Vidyashram School, Chennai for a year and then shifted to Army Public School, Srinagar where she completed her schooling. She majored in English (Hons.) from Miranda House, University of Delhi.


title: Minissha Lamba

text: While studying at Delhi University, Lamba began to model for ad campaigns like LG, Sony, Cadbury, Hajmola, Airtel, Sunsilk etc. She was also a part of the Femina's Generation "W" ad. During an ad shoot for Cadbury she was approached by Bollywood director, Shoojit Sircar, who signed her to act in his film "Yahaan" (2005). She had begun filming for Yahaan while still in Miranda House college. She subsequently began to play supporting and then leading roles in films such as "Corporate", "", "Anthony Kaun Hai", "Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd.", "Anamika", "Shaurya" and "Dus Kahaniyaan".


title: Minissha Lamba

text: In 2008, she acted in "Bachna Ae Haseeno", her biggest success so far, which was produced by Yash Raj Films. Same year, she was noticed for her role in Sanjay Gadhvi's "Kidnap". Her next major role was in the critically acclaimed director Shyam Benegal's film "Well Done Abba" (2010). "Well Done Abba" was awarded the National Film Award for Best Film on Social Issues for the year 2010 and Minissha's performance as Muskaan Ali was appreciated. In 2014, she participated in Colors TV's "Bigg Boss 8". She got evicted after 6 weeks on 2 November 2014 (Day 42). One of her last appearances was a role in "Double Di Trouble", alongside Dharmendra, Gippy Grewal, Gurpreet Ghuggi, Kulraj Randhawa, and Poonam Dhillon. She has also appeared in the music video for Himesh Reshammiya's song "Tera Surroor" from the album "Aap Kaa Surroor", which became very popular.


title: Minissha Lamba

text: Lamba married Ryan Tham - a restaurateur, owner of Juhu nightclub "Trilogy", and cousin to actress Pooja Bedi, on 6 July 2015. They announced the finalisation of their divorce proceedings in August 2020. In July 2021, she made her relationship with businessman Akash Malik public.


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: Parkwood Entertainment, LLC is an American management, production, entertainment company and record label founded by Beyoncé Knowles-Carter in 2010. The company began as a production unit for films and videos in 2008. It has offices located in New York City and Los Angeles. Its involvements include products for music production, motion pictures and television specials related to Beyoncé. The company's first release was the film "Cadillac Records" (2008).


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: Parkwood Entertainment was founded in 2010 as a production unit for videos and films by American singer, actress, producer, and director Beyoncé. Parkwood is named after a street in Houston, Texas where Beyoncé once lived. Parkwood Entertainment's first production was the musical biopic "Cadillac Records" (2008), in which Beyoncé starred and co-produced. In 2009, she starred in and executive produced the thriller "Obsessed". During a private screening held at New York's School of Visual Arts Theatre following the release of her fifth self-titled studio album, Beyoncé briefly discussed her decision to found Parkwood Entertainment in front of her fans and the press, saying:


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: "I started my own company when I decided to manage myself. It was important that I didn't go to some big management company, I felt like I wanted to follow the footsteps of Madonna and be a powerhouse and have my own empire, and show other women when you get to this point in your career you don't have to go sign with someone else and share your money and your success—you do it yourself."


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: In December 2013, Parkwood Entertainment released Beyoncé's fifth self-titled visual album. The surprising release caused "hilarious, honest and hysterical" reaction among Beyoncé's fans, and "shock" among other musicians. According to data provided by Twitter, the release generated over 1.2 million tweets in 12 hours. Peter Robinson of "The Guardian" hailed the shock release as "Beyoncégeddon", describing it as a "major triumph ... a masterclass in both exerting and relinquishing control." "Beyoncé" was released digitally to the iTunes Store without prior announcement or promotion. It debuted at number one on the US "Billboard" 200, earning Beyoncé her fifth consecutive number-one album in the country. The record sold 617,000 copies in the US, and 828,773 copies worldwide in its first three days of availability, becoming the fastest-selling album in the history of the iTunes Store at the time. It was reissued in November 2014 as part of a platinum edition, along with an extended play of new songs. It received acclaim from critics, who praised its production, exploration of sexuality, and Beyoncé's vocals. As of November 2016, Beyoncé has sold 8 million copies worldwide and has spawned the singles "XO", "Drunk in Love", "Partition" and "Pretty Hurts.


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: In October 2014, Beyoncé with Parkwood Entertainment formed a large collaboration with Topshop, creating the subsidiary Parkwood Topshop Athletic Ltd, to produce an athletic, streetwear brand. The company and collaboration is a 50/50 split, with both parent companies owning half of this new division. Beyoncé commented on the collaboration stating "I could not think of a better partner as I continue to grow the Parkwood business". In November 2018, Parkwood Entertainment confirmed that the company had acquired total ownership of the Ivy Park brand from co-founder Sir Philip Green following allegations of sexual harassment and racial abuse.


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: In 2015, Parkwood expanded into managing the careers of upcoming artists and signed Chloe x Halle, Sophie Beem and Ingrid.


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: In 2016, Steve Pamon, from JP Morgan Chase took office as the COO and President of the company. Within that same year, Parkwood entertainment released Beyoncé's critically acclaimed sixth studio album "Lemonade". The album was accompanied by the release of a 60-minute film of the same name, which premiered on HBO on April 23, 2016.


title: Parkwood Entertainment

text: Parkwood Entertainment has been listed twice by Fast Company as one of the Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Music (2015 and 2017).


title: Freak Out!

text: Freak Out! is the debut studio album by American rock band the Mothers of Invention, released on June 27, 1966, by Verve Records. Often cited as one of rock music's first concept albums, it is a satirical expression of frontman Frank Zappa's perception of American pop culture and the nascent freak scene of Los Angeles. It was also one of the earliest double albums in rock music, as well as the first two-record debut album. In the UK, the album was originally released as an edited single disc.


title: Freak Out!

text: The album was produced by Tom Wilson, who signed the Mothers, formerly a bar band called the Soul Giants. Zappa said many years later that Wilson signed the band to a record deal under the impression that they were a white blues band. The album features Zappa on vocals and guitar, along with lead vocalist/tambourine player Ray Collins, bass player/vocalist Roy Estrada, drummer/vocalist Jimmy Carl Black and guitar player Elliot Ingber (later of Captain Beefheart's Magic Band, performing there under the pseudonym "Winged Eel Fingerling").


title: Freak Out!

text: The band's original repertoire consisted of rhythm and blues covers, but after Zappa joined the band, he encouraged them to play his own original material, and their name was changed to the Mothers. The musical content of "Freak Out!" ranges from rhythm and blues, doo-wop, and standard blues-influenced rock to orchestral arrangements and avant-garde sound collages. Although the album was initially poorly received in the United States, it was a success in Europe. It gained a cult following in America, where it continued to sell in substantial quantities until it was discontinued in the early 1970s.


title: Freak Out!

text: In 1999, the album was honored with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award, and in 2003, "Rolling Stone" ranked it among the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". In 2006, "The MOFO Project/Object", an audio documentary on the making of the album, was released in honor of its 40th anniversary.


title: Freak Out!

text: In the early 1960s, Zappa met Ray Collins. Collins supported himself by working as a carpenter, and on weekends sang with a group called the Soul Giants. Collins got into a fight with their guitar player, who quit, leaving the band in need of a substitute, and Zappa filled in. The Soul Giants' repertoire originally consisted of R&B covers. After Zappa joined the band he encouraged them to play his own original material and try to get a record contract. While most of the band members liked the idea, then-leader and saxophone player Davy Coronado felt that performing original material would cost them bookings, and quit the band. The Soul Giants became the Mothers and Zappa took over leadership of the band.


title: Freak Out!

text: The group moved to Los Angeles in early 1965 after Zappa got them a management contract with Herb Cohen. They gained steady work at clubs along the Sunset Strip. MGM staff producer Tom Wilson offered the band a record deal with the Verve Records division in early 1966. He had heard of their growing reputation but had seen them perform only one song, "Trouble Every Day", which concerned the Watts riots. According to Zappa, this led Wilson to believe that they were a "white blues band".


title: Freak Out!

text: The first two songs recorded for the album were "Any Way the Wind Blows" and "Who Are the Brain Police?" When Tom Wilson heard the latter, he realized that the Mothers were not merely a blues band. Zappa remembered "I could see through the window that he was scrambling toward the phone to call his boss—probably saying: 'Well, uh, not exactly a "white blues band", but ... sort of.'" In a 1968 article written for "Hit Parader" magazine, Zappa wrote that when Wilson heard these songs, "he was so impressed he got on the phone and called New York, and as a result I got a more or less unlimited budget to do this monstrosity." "Freak Out!" is an early example of the concept album, a sardonic farce about rock music and America. "All the songs on it were about something", Zappa wrote in "The Real Frank Zappa Book". "It wasn't as if we had a hit single and we needed to build some filler around it. Each tune had a function within an overall satirical concept."


title: Freak Out!

text: The album was recorded at TTG Studios in Hollywood, California, between March 9 and March 12, 1966. Some songs, such as "Motherly Love" and "I Ain't Got No Heart", had already been recorded in earlier versions prior to the "Freak Out!" sessions. These recordings, said to have been made around 1965, were not officially released until 2004, when they appeared on the posthumous Zappa album "Joe's Corsage". An early version of the song "Any Way the Wind Blows", recorded in 1963, appears on another posthumous release, "The Lost Episodes", and was originally written when Zappa considered divorcing first wife Kay Sherman. In the liner notes for "Freak Out!", Zappa wrote, "If I had never gotten divorced, this piece of trivial nonsense would never have been recorded." "Hungry Freaks, Daddy" is an attack on the American school system that musically quotes a Rolling Stones song, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction", in its opening measures, and contains a guitar solo between the first and second verses that itself briefly quotes Richard Berry's 1959 song "Have Love, Will Travel".


title: Freak Out!

text: Tom Wilson became more enthusiastic as the sessions continued. In the middle of the week of recording, Zappa told him, "I would like to rent $500 worth of percussion equipment for a session that starts at midnight on Friday and I want to bring all the freaks from Sunset Boulevard into the studio to do something special." Wilson agreed. The material was worked into "Cream Cheese", a "ballet in two tableaux" that was eventually retitled "The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet". In a November 1967 radio interview (posthumously included as part of the 2006 "MOFO" album), Zappa is heard complaining that the version of "Monster Magnet" released on "Freak Out!" was in fact an unfinished piece; the percussion track was intended to serve as the foundation for an even more complex piece, but MGM refused to approve the studio time needed to record the intended overdubs that would have completed the composition, and so it was released (to Zappa's great dissatisfaction) in this unfinished form. In addition to the Mothers, some tracks featured a "Mothers' Auxiliary" that consisted of additional session players, including noted "Wrecking Crew" members Gene Estes, Carol Kaye and Mac Rebennack (aka Dr. John), guitarist Neil Levang, and jazz-soul pianists Eugene DiNovi and Les McCann, with vocal contributions by Paul Butterfield, Kim Fowley, Jeannie Vassoir and future Mother Jim Sherwood. Several orchestral musicians, who were also mostly credited as members of the Auxiliary (including their contractor, Benjamin Barrett), also made contributions to several songs at certain sessions, chiefly in the form of backing tracks on those songs.


title: Freak Out!

text: Zappa later found out that when the material was recorded, Wilson had taken LSD. "I've tried to imagine what [Wilson] must have been thinking", Zappa recounted, "sitting in that control room, listening to all that weird shit coming out of the speakers, and being responsible for telling the engineer, Ami Hadani (who was not on acid), what to do." By the time "Freak Out!" was edited and shaped into an album, Wilson had spent $25–35,000 of MGM's money (US$ in dollars). In "Hit Parader" magazine, Zappa wrote that "Wilson was sticking his neck out. He laid his job on the line by producing the album. MGM felt that they had spent too much money on the album."


title: Freak Out!

text: An early version of the album was done in April, with a different track order from the final sequence completed two months later: for instance, "Wowie Zowie" (which would eventually begin side two of the finalized sequence instead, and was described by Zappa as "harmless", "cheerful" and apparently liked by Little Richard) was the original planned lead-off track rather than "Hungry Freaks, Daddy", "Trouble Comin' Every Day" (which was inspired by the Watts Riots that took place the previous year) was included on side one rather than side three, and "Who Are the Brain Police?" (acknowledged by Zappa himself as one of the scariest songs on the album) took up the middle of side two rather than the middle of side one, with only "Help, I'm a Rock" (a song dedicated to Elvis Presley) and "Cream Cheese" (later retitled "The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet") taking up the same concluding places on the early sequence that they eventually would on the finalized sequence. "Wowie Zowie" itself originally contained a "musique concrète" section between the bridge and third verse that would eventually be edited out of the song as it appeared on the finalized sequence, while the third section of "Help, I'm a Rock", called "It Can't Happen Here", contained two additional lines consisting of the word "psychedelic" during the self-pleasure sequence and of the words "...since you first took the shots" immediately following the "we've been very interested in your development" line. Tapes of the early sequence were eventually leaked to European collectors and bootlegged on vinyl as "The Alternate Freak Out!" in 2010, with long-time Zappa associate Scott Parker later describing the early sequence's track order as having more conceptual "integrat[ion]" and "a greater amount of weirdness sprinkled throughout" than that of the finalized sequence during a 2011 podcast.


title: Freak Out!

text: The label eventually requested that the two lines in question be removed from the "It Can't Happen Here" section of "Help, I'm a Rock", both of which had been interpreted by MGM executives to be drug references. However, the label either had no objections to, or else did not notice, a sped-up recording of Zappa shouting the word "fuck" after accidentally smashing his finger, occurring at 11 minutes and 36 seconds into "The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet". From the 1995 CD reissue of the album onwards, the formerly three-part "Help, I'm a Rock" was reindexed as two separate tracks, with only the first two parts ("Okay To Tap Dance" and "In Memoriam, Edgard Varèse") remaining under the "Help, I'm a Rock" title but with "It Can't Happen Here" becoming its own track, as "It Can't Happen Here" had been included by itself on the 1969 vinyl compilation "Mothermania", where the two normally censored lines were also reinstated.


title: Freak Out!

text: MGM also told Zappa that the band would have to change their name, claiming that no DJ would play a record on the air by a group called "the Mothers".


title: Freak Out!

text: "Freak Out!" was released, with its finalized track sequence, on June 27, 1966, with the band's name changed to the Mothers of Invention, a name Zappa chose in favor of MGM's original suggested name, "The Mothers Auxiliary". The album's back cover included a "letter" from Zappa-created fictional character Suzy Creamcheese (who also appears on the album itself), which read:


title: Freak Out!

text: Because the text was printed in a typeface resembling typewriter lettering, some people thought that Suzy Creamcheese was real, and many listeners expected to see her in concert performances. Because of this, it was decided that "it would be best to bring along a Suzy Creamcheese replica who would demonstrate once and for all the veracity of such a beast." Because the original voice of Suzy Creamcheese, Jeannie Vassoir, was unavailable, Pamela Zarubica took over the part.


title: Freak Out!

text: Early pressings of the album in the United States included a blurb for a "Freak Out Hot Spots!" map. Inside the gatefold jacket the small ad was aimed at people coming to visit Los Angeles and it listed several famous restaurants and clubs including Canter's and The Whiskey A Go-Go. The ad also claimed information concerning police arrests. It states: "Also shows where the heat has been busting frequently, with tips on safety in police terror situations". Those interested in the map were instructed to send $1.00 (US$ in dollars) to MGM Records c/o 1540 Broadway NY. NY. address. The map was only available for a limited time, since the blurb was not included on later pressings and the space was left blank. It was eventually reprinted and included with "The MOFO Project/Object", a four-disc audio documentary on the making of the album, released posthumously by the Zappa Family Trust in 2006.


title: Freak Out!

text: “Freak Out!” reached No. 130 on the "Billboard" chart, and was not a critical success when it was first released in the United States. Many listeners were convinced that the album was drug-inspired, and interpreted the album's title as slang for a bad LSD trip. The album made the Mothers of Invention immediate underground darlings with a strong counter-cultural following. In "The Real Frank Zappa Book", Zappa quotes a negative review of the album by Pete Johnson of the "Los Angeles Times", who wrote:


title: Freak Out!

text: The album developed a major cult following in the United States by the time MGM/Verve had been merged into a division of PolyGram in 1972. At that time many MGM/Verve releases including "Freak Out!" were prematurely deleted in an attempt to keep the struggling company financially solvent. Zappa had already moved on to his own companies Bizarre Records and Straight Records, which were distributed by Warner Bros. Records. "Freak Out!" was initially more successful in Europe and quickly influenced many English rock musicians. According to David Fricke, the album was a major influence on the Beatles' "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". Paul McCartney regarded "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" as the Beatles' "Freak Out! " Zappa criticized the Beatles, as he felt they were "only in it for the money".


title: Freak Out!

text: "Freak Out!" was honored with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 1999, ranked at number 243 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in 2003, and 246 in a 2012 revised list. It was also featured in the 2006 book "1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die". The album was named as one of "Classic Rock" magazine's "50 Albums That Built Prog Rock". It was voted number 315 in the third edition of Colin Larkin's "All Time Top 1000 Albums" (2000).


title: Freak Out!

text: On the 1995 and 2012 CD releases, "Help, I'm a Rock" is credited as two tracks: "Help, I'm a Rock" (4:43) and "It Can't Happen Here" (3:57). On the Side 3 label of original vinyl copies, "Trouble Every Day" is listed as "Trouble Comin' Every Day".


title: Squatting position

text: Squatting is a versatile posture where the weight of the body is on the feet but the knees and hips are bent. In contrast, sitting involves taking the weight of the body, at least in part, on the buttocks against the ground or a horizontal object. The angle between the legs when squatting can vary from zero to widely splayed out, flexibility permitting. Another variable may be the degree of forward tilt of the upper body from the hips. Squatting may be either full or partial.


title: Squatting position

text: Crouching is usually considered to be synonymous with squatting. It is common to squat with one leg and kneel with the other leg. One or both heels may be up when squatting. Young children often instinctively squat. Among Chinese, Southeast Asian and Eastern European adults, squatting often takes the place of sitting or standing.


title: Squatting position

text: Squatting comes from the Old French "esquatir/escatir", meaning to "compress/press down". The weight-lifting sense of squatting is from 1954.


title: Squatting position

text: Full squatting involves resting one's weight on the feet with the buttocks resting on the backs of the calves. It may be used as a posture for resting or working at ground level particularly where the ground is too dirty or wet to sit or kneel.


title: Squatting position

text: Most Western adults cannot place their heels flat on the ground when squatting because of shortened Achilles tendons maybe caused by habit:


title: Squatting position

text: For this reason the squatting position is usually not sustainable for them for more than a few minutes as heels-up squatting is a less stable position than heels-down squatting. See also dorsiflexion.


title: Squatting position

text: Desmond Morris distinguished seven variant forms of squat as: Squat-kneel; Flat-footed Squat; Tiptoe Squat; Squat-sit; Legs-fold; Lotus Position; and Legs Side-curl.


title: Squatting position

text: Equivalents to the Slav squat (see Gopnik) in Western culture, sometimes with the hands together in a prayer position, are the rap squat, prison pose, and jail pose. They are often used as photographic poses.


title: Squatting position

text: In strength training, the squat is a full body exercise that trains primarily the muscles of the thighs, hips and buttocks, as well as strengthening the bones, ligaments and insertion of the tendons throughout the lower body. Squats are considered a vital exercise for increasing the strength and size of the legs and buttocks.


title: Squatting position

text: The pistols squat is a one legged squat common in crossfit exercises in which the non-working leg is kept horizontal.


title: Squatting position

text: The burpee is a full body exercise used in strength training and as an aerobic exercise that involves a squat. The basic movement is performed in four steps and known as a "four-count burpee".


title: Squatting position

text: In Taoist Tai Chi, the "Dan Yu" (spine stretching) exercise involves squatting. It is intended to work primarily the pelvic region, the legs and the lower back. Fifty or more repetitions may be performed in advanced classes. The feet are placed in a stance wider than the shoulders. When squatting the knees move in the direction of the feet.


title: Squatting position

text: Various people have promoted the adoption of these alternative birthing positions, particularly squatting, for Western countries, such as Grantly Dick-Read, Janet Balaskas, Moysés Paciornik and Hugo Sabatino. The adoption of these alternative positions is also promoted by the natural childbirth movement.


title: Squatting position

text: The squatting position gives a greater increase of pressure in the pelvic cavity with minimal muscular effort. The birth canal will open 20 to 30% more in a squat than in any other position. It is recommended for the second stage of childbirth.


title: Squatting position

text: In ancient Egypt, women delivered babies while squatting on a pair of bricks, known as "birth bricks".


title: Squatting position

text: There are versions of the "cowgirl" sex position where a woman is squatting over a man, who is lying on his back, instead of kneeling over him. These are referred to by different names such as "Asian cowgirl", "frog squat position", and "froggystyle". The woman can face forwards or backwards (reverse).


title: Squatting position

text: The squatting defecation posture involves squatting by standing with the knees and hips sharply bent and the bare buttocks suspended near the ground. Squat toilets are designed to facilitate this posture and are common in various parts of the world.


title: Squatting position

text: When not urinating into a toilet, squatting is the easiest way for a female to direct the urine stream. If done this way, the urine will go forward. Some women use one or both hands to focus the direction of the urine stream, which is more easily achieved while in the squatting position.