Religion is one factor among many, not the defining one, in Muslim-majority societies

Evidence

Most challenging from an analytic point of view is the analysis of the intersection of identities. It is easy to visit a Muslim country or study an immigrant community, and present all in terms of religion. But this is to miss the other identities – of work, location, ethnicity – and, not least, the ways in which different Muslims relate to each other. … The analytic challenge is to identify how the tradition and religion are shaped, how the modern is presented as the traditional, and how other factors of ethnicity, class and sect play a role. — Fred Halliday, ‘Islamophobia’ Reconsidered, 43 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

As far as “Islam” as a social and political system - it should become evident that I do not believe there is much to be gained by regarding the many sociopolitical realities that the term applies to as part of a single phenomenon. As an object of social and political analysis, or as a force in international affairs, there is little that can be explained, praised or denounced by reference to a unitary “Islam.” — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 3514 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Religion rather than nationality has been the primary basis of identity in Islam; Concrete data show Muslim-majority nations integrating modernization and pluralism — Arsalan Iftikhar, Fear of a Muslim Planet_ Global…, 691; Pre-modern Muslim identity centered on religion rather than geography or nation (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Muslim identity cannot be reduced to religion alone #corroborates (0.88) — Fred Halliday, ‘Islamophobia’ Reconsidered, 43
• Religion rather than nationality has been the primary basis of identity in Islam #contradicts (0.85)
• Unitary Islam as an analytical category explains little about diverse Muslim societies #corroborates (0.85) — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 3514
• The reified notion of Islam has hindered rather than helped understanding of Muslim societies #corroborates (0.82) — Edward W. Said, Covering Islam, 83
• Concrete data show Muslim-majority nations integrating modernization and pluralism #corroborates (0.80) — Arsalan Iftikhar, Fear of a Muslim Planet_ Global…, 691
• Pre-modern Muslim identity centered on religion rather than geography or nation #contradicts (0.80)
• Religion, not nationality, anchored identity for Muslims and medieval Christians #contradicts (0.80) — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1056
• The term Islam misrepresents most diverse Muslim life #corroborates (0.80) — Edward W. Said, Covering Islam, 202