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Sunnite

 
Dictionary: Sun·nite   (sʊn'īt') pronunciation
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n.
A Sunni Muslim.

[From SUNNI.]


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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: Sunnite
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Larger of the two major divisions of Islam, comprising 90% of the world's Muslims. Sunnites regard theirs as the mainstream and traditionalist branch of Islam, as distinguished from the minority branch, the Shi'ites. Sunnites recognize the first four Umayyad caliphs (see Umayyad dynasty) as Muhammad's rightful successors. Because the Sunnites understood Muhammad's theocratic state to have been an earthly, temporal dominion, they were willing to accept unexceptional and even foreign caliphs, provided order and religious orthodoxy were maintained. Sunnite orthodoxy emphasizes consensus based on the views and customs of the majority of the community, thereby enabling them to incorporate various customs and usages that arose historically but that had no roots in the Qur'an. Sunnites recognize the six authentic books of the Hadith and accept the four major schools of Islamic law. In the early 21st century, Sunnite Muslims numbered about one billion.

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WordNet: Sunnite
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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: a member of the branch of Islam that accepts the first four caliphs as rightful successors to Mohammed
  Synonym: Sunni

 
 
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sonnite
soonee
Ali (Muslim caliph)

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.  Read more