IL CONCETTO DI UMMA E NAZIONE NEL MONDO ISLAMICO CONTEMPORANEO: Una sfida tra pensiero politico e istituzioni moderne

The comparison between the concept of umma and that of the nation has given rise, for two centuries, to various interpretations and reflections within the Islamic world and consequently have occupied an important part of Islamic studies. First, this article focuses on the meaning of umma with its various interpretations within Islam. Then it will examine how the birth of the modern state and the concept of the nation in the West have influenced the Islamic world on various levels. From this influence, it was found that various reactions and reflections were born both on an intellectual level, in the dimension of Islamic thought, and on a more political level. The latter, as mentioned in the paper, was one the main elements which gave rise to a nation-building process in the Islamic world in particular, starting from the end of the First World War. Some historical examples such as the birth of Ataturk’s modern Turkey and Reza Shah’s modern Iran are cited in the article. The final part of the research focuses on the various currents of thought within the Islamic world that have dealt with Western modernity, dividing them into three main groups: radicals, reformists and modernists. Their discussion around modernity, including the relationship between umma and nation, highlights the variety and richness of Islamic thought, a discourse that is still continuing and, according to this article, could significantly mark the future of the political modernization of various states with an Islamic majority in the twenty-first century.