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'''Shi‘ites''' (or '' | '''Shi‘ites''' (or ''Shi‘is'') are adherents of ''Shi‘ite Islam'' (also referred to as ''Shi‘a Islam'' or ''Shi‘ism''), and make up the second largest sect of [[Islam]] with an estimated 10-20% of the total Muslim population worldwide.<ref>[http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/comparison_charts/islamic_sects.htm Comparison of Sunni and Shia Islam] - ReligionFacts</ref><ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/540503/Shiite Shīʿite] - Encyclopædia Britannica Online (2010)</ref><ref>[http://pewforum.org/Muslim/Mapping-the-Global-Muslim-Population%286%29.aspx Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World’s Muslim Population] - Pew Research Center, October 7, 2009</ref><ref>Tracy Miller - [http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/Muslimpopulation/Muslimpopulation.pdf Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population] - Pew Research Center, October 2009</ref><ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2122.html The World Factbook]</ref> | ||
The historic background of the [[Sunni]]–Shi'ite split lies in the schism that occurred when the Islamic prophet [[Muhammad]] died in the year 632 AD, leading to a dispute over succession to Muhammad as a [[caliph]] of the Islamic community spread across various parts of the world which led to the Battle of Siffin. | The historic background of the [[Sunni]]–Shi'ite split lies in the schism that occurred when the Islamic prophet [[Muhammad]] died in the year 632 AD, leading to a dispute over succession to Muhammad as a [[caliph]] of the Islamic community spread across various parts of the world which led to the Battle of Siffin. |