Constructing Bangladesh : Religion, Ethnicity, and Language in an Islamic
Nation/Sufia M. Uddin. New Delhi, Vistaar Pub., 2006, xxvi, 226 p., ills,
maps, tables, ISBN 81-7829-715-9.
Constructing Bangladesh : Religion, Ethnicity, and Language in an Islamic
Nation/Sufia M. Uddin. New Delhi, Vistaar Pub., 2006, xxvi, 226 p., ills,
maps, tables, ISBN 81-7829-715-9.
Contents: Foreword. Preface. Acknowledgements. Note on transliteration. Introduction. 1. Islamic themes in premodern Bengali literature and life. 2. Nineteenth-century religious reform movements. 3. Breaking new ground and transgressing boundaries. 4. Bengali or Bangladeshi?: The conflict between religious and ethnic nationalisms. 5. The contested place of nation in Umma and globalizing efforts. Epilogue. Competing visions of community. Appendix. Notes. Bibliography. Index.
"Highlighting the dynamic, pluralistic nature of Islamic civilization, Sufia Uddin examines the complex history of Islamic state formation in Bangladesh. Uddin focuses on significant moments in the region's history from medieval to modern times, examining the interplay of language, popular and scholarly religious literature, and the colonial experience as they contributed to the creation of a unique Bengali-Islamic identity.
During the precolonial era, Bengali, the dominant regional language, infused the richly diverse traditions of the region, including Hinduism, Buddhism, and eventually, the Islamic religion and literature brought by Urdu-speaking Muslim conquerors from North India. Islam was not simply imported into the region by the ruling elite, Uddin explains, but was incorporated into local tradition over hundreds of years of interactions between Bengalis and non-Bengali Muslims. Constantly contested and negotiated, the Bengali vision of Islamic orthodoxy and community was reflected in both language and politics, which ultimately produced a specifically Bengali-Muslim culture. Uddin argues that this process in Bangladesh is representative of what happens elsewhere in the Muslim world and is therefore an instructive example of the complex and fluid relations between local heritage and the greater Islamic global community, or Umma.
This engrossing and lucidly written book will be of interest to those in the fields of philosophy, history, sociology, Islamic studies, cultural studies, linguistics, and political and social theory." (jacket)