THE ISMAILIS: A MISREPRESENTED SHI͑I MUSLIM COMMUNITY

Abstract

The Ismailis represent the second largest Shi͑i Muslim community, after the Twelver or Ithna͑ashari Shi͑is. They have had an eventful and complex history dating back to the formative period of Islam. In the course of their long history, the Ismailis became subdivided into a number of major branches and minor groupings. However, since the end of the 5th/11th century, they have existed in terms of two main branches, the Nizaris and the Musta͑li-Tayyibis, designated respectively as Khojas and Bohras in South Asia. Currently, the Ismailis are scattered as religious minorities in some thirty countries of Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and North America. Numbering several millions, they also represent a diversity of ethnic groups, cultural and literary traditions, and speak a variety of languages. The Nizari Ismailis, who have had a continuous line of Imams or spiritual leaders, now acknowledge Prince Karim Aga Khan IV as their 49th Imam while the Imams of the Musta͑liTayyibi Ismailis have remained in concealment since 524/1130, and in their absence lines of da is or representatives with supreme authority have led that community.