Muslims in Britain: questioning Islamic and national identity
Fuad, Ai Fatimah Nur
Islamic identity has been a central issue since the emergence of Islam in the seventh century. Muslims have been interacted with many symbols of religious identity since this early time of Islam. Every generation of Muslims has their own way to show their religious identity. Muslims in Britain are also still continuing to search for religious identity. They seek to re-evaluate their identity and construct a sense of what it means to be a Muslim in Britain today. This article would like to elaborate several discussions on Muslims’ identities in Britain. There are two different opinions on this issue. The first opinion comes from Muslims who believe that a Muslim individual should choose to be either a Muslim or a British. They argue that national values differ from religious norms. The second, however, states that one Muslim can be both a Muslim and a British at the same time. For them, there is no contradiction between being a Muslim and being a British citizen. They argue that nationality and faith can be combined in Muslim individuals who live in Britain.
