Islamic law classified abandoned and church lands as fay’ community booty

Evidence

If the ownership of the land passed, through either transfer or conversion, into Muslim hands, the Muslim owner was liable to pay only the tithe (ushr). Former state lands and church lands inherited by the Muslim state, as well as lands abandoned through the death or flight of their former owners, were classified as fay’, a term meaning booty, more partic­ ularly that which was taken without fighting from the unbelievers. This category also included “dead lands” i.e., uncultivated lands and large estates from which the previous (Byzantine or Persian) owners had fled but on which the peasants remained. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 348

Categorization

• DEFINE: Defines fay’ and ‘dead lands’ — uncultivated land acquired without combat.