Book excerpt: The Shorter Encyclopaedia of Islam is an unequalled reference work of all subjects which concern, or touch on, the religion and law of Islam. As to its geographical and historical scope, the work embraces the old Arabo-Islamic Empire, the Islamic states of Iran, Central Asia, the Indian sub-continent and Indonesia, the Ottoman Empire, and the various Muslim states and communities in Africa, Europe and the former U.S.S.R. The Shorter Encyclopaedia of Islam contains an extensive index and bibliography. This publication has also been published in paperback, please click here for details.