Crescent Moon
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The crescent moon and star, as with the Cross for Christianity and the Star of David for Judaism, is today a common and almost universal symbol for Islam.
It is used on countless mosques and minarets, by charities,[1] and as part of the flags for various Muslim nations, including, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Comoros Islands, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Pakistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Uzbekistan, and Western Sahara.[2]
Origins and adoption
The Crescent moon was originally the symbol of Hubal, the moon god worshiped by Pagans at the Ka'aba.[3]
It has been claimed that it was not until the Ottoman Empire that the crescent moon and star became affiliated with the Muslim world. When the Turks conquered Constantinople (Istanbul) in 1453, they "adopted the city's existing flag and symbol".[4] However, in 1453 the crescent and star symbols were not a part of any known Byzantine flags,[5] and they were already widely used in different parts of the Muslim world, long before the fall of Constantinople.
A few examples include; Islamic coins from as early as the 7th century,[6] Egyptian and Syrian jewellery from the 11th century,[7][8] Persian armor of the 10th-12th century, and paintings and drawings depicting Islamic mosques from areas, which then were not covered by the Ottoman Empire and from the times before the fall of Constantinople.[9]
Admissibility in Islam
Many scholars of Islam have raised objection to the use of the crescent moon and star as a "symbol of Islam", citing Islam's strict position against iconography.[10][11]
See Also
- Moon - A hub page that leads to other articles related to the Moon
- Paganism - A hub page that leads to other articles related to Islam and Paganism
Translations
- A version of this page is also available in the following languages: Bulgarian. For additional languages, see the sidebar on the left.
External Links
- Yahweh or Hubal - Australian Islamist Monitor, December 13, 2006 (archived from the original), http://www.webcitation.org/query?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.australianislamistmonitor.org%2Findex.php%3Foption%3Dcom_content%26view%3Darticle%26id%3D16%3Ayahweh-or-hubal%26catid%3D177%26Itemid%3D63&date=2011-05-09
References
- ↑ International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
- ↑ Islamic flags - Flags Of The World, October 18, 2008
- ↑ Karen Armstrong (2000, 2002) - Islam: A Short History - p. 11. ISBN 0-8129-6618-x.
- ↑ Christine Huda Dodge - Crescent Moon - Symbol of Islam? - About.com, accessed May 9, 2011
- ↑ Byzantine Empire - Flags Of The World, April 24, 2010
- ↑ S. Album & T. Goodwin - Syllogue Of Islamic Coins In The Ashmolean - The Pre-Reform Coinage Of The Early Islamic Period - 2002, Volume I, Ashmolean Museum: Oxford (UK), pp. 6-7
- ↑ "Pendant (Egypt) (30.95.37)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. (October 2006)
- ↑ "Pair of earrings (Greater Syria) (1979.278.2ab)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. (October 2006)
- ↑ "Possibly Mir Khalil and Ja'far: Laila and Majnun at School: Page from the Khamsa of Nizami (Quintet of Nizami) (1994.232.4)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. (October 2008)
- ↑ https://islamqa.info/en/answers/1528/taking-the-crescent-as-a-symbol (salafi/hanbali)
- ↑ https://islamqa.org/hanafi/askimam/13035 (hanafi)