Mazhab
/ˈməz.həb/noun
A school or tradition of Islamic jurisprudence, especially one recognized within Sunni Islam.
Did you know?Mazhab comes from the Arabic root ذ-ه-ب, meaning “to go,” so choosing a mazhab was metaphorically choosing a path through religious life.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*ḏ-h-b
“A reconstructed verbal root associated with going or departing”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
ذهب (dhahaba)
“He went or departed”
Classical Arabic
Arabic
مَذْهَب (madhhab)
“A way, course, or manner of proceeding; literally, a place or route of going”
8th–9th Century
Arabic
مَذْهَب (madhhab)
“A recognized method or school of legal reasoning in Islamic jurisprudence”
Medieval Persian
Persian
مذهب (mazhab)
“Religious doctrine, creed, or legal school”
Modern English
English
mazhab
“A school or tradition of Islamic jurisprudence, chiefly used in scholarly and South Asian contexts”