Sunni–Shia Split
The fundamental division in Islam arising from the dispute over the Prophet's succession after his death in 632 CE, splitting the community into Sunni and Shia branches.
Read in context →At a glance
- Origin
- Dispute over succession, 632 CE
- Pivotal event
- Karbala, 680 CE
- Core difference
- Imamate/succession
Detail
The Sunni–Shia split originates in the dispute over succession to the Prophet Muhammad after his death in 632 CE. One group (later called Sunnis) accepted the caliphate of Abu Bakr and the elected caliphs that followed, while another (the partisans of Ali, shi'at Ali) held that leadership rightfully belonged to Ali ibn Abi Talib and the Prophet's household. This political dispute hardened into a deep religious and theological rift through events such as the early Islamic civil wars and especially the killing of Imam Husayn at Karbala in 680 CE. Sunnis and Shia share core beliefs but differ over the Imamate, jurisprudence, hadith sources, and ritual. The split remains, to this day, one of the principal lines of identity and at times conflict in the Muslim world.
Related entities
Also appears in
Sources
- Britannica — 'Sunni and Shiʿi: The Question of Succession'
- Encyclopaedia Iranica — 'Shiʿite Islam'
- BBC — 'Sunni and Shia: Islam's ancient schism'