The Islamic Intellectual Field in Turkey

Foundations of civilizationist thought and the predicament of Islamic decoloniality

Bibliographic Data

ID12696751
AuthorsAlev Çınar (TED University), Alev Noyaner Çınar (0000-0002-3426-2987, TED University, corresponding author)
Year2026
Volume27
Issue3
Pages1-33
Publication date2026-01-09
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueTurkish Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1468-3849 • E-ISSN: 1743-9663
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/14683849.2025.2607704
OpenAlexW7119969056
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited21

This article introduces the Islamic Intellectual Field (IIF) as a heretofore unexplored site of political theorizing that emerged outside academia in the 1940s, evolving into a diverse network of journals and associations. It develops the concept ‘Islamic decoloniality’ to describe movements seeking to replace European epistemic paradigms with Islam-based systems of knowledge. It argues that Islamic decoloniality began in Turkey in the 1940s, producing diverse movements and schools of thought, including AKP’s civilizationist ideology. It further argues that this decolonial discourse runs into a predicament by sustaining the Islam–West binary, which ultimately reproduces the same colonial hierarchies it contests.

Decoloniality · Field (mathematics · Islam · Islamic studies · Modernity · Islamic Studies and History · Islamic Thought and Society Studies · Turkey's Politics and Society

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