On the sources for critical Muslim geographies: Rebellion and tradition

Abstract

This response to the seven further engagement commentaries on my original article, ‘Beyond the Decolonial: Critical Muslim Geographies’ (Sidaway, 2023a) builds on ‘A Manifesto for Critical Muslim Geographies’ (Sidaway, 2023b) that responded to six prior commentaries. The manifesto advocated for four intellectual vectors: (1) drawing on the vast corpus of critical geography; (2) being informed by the rich field of Critical Muslim Studies; (3) minding and thinking with traditions of ilm (knowledge and learning) and; (4) giving voice to a committed and visible community of Muslim scholars in Geography. Reflecting here on the seven further engagements enables me to reaffirm and clarify positions and sources. My response begins, however, by revisiting the 1909 student strike at Al Azhar University (founded 970-972 CE/359-361 AH) in Cairo.