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30-527: Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi was a military leader of the medieval Adal Sultanate in the northern Horn of Africa. Between 1529 and 1543, he embarked on a campaign referred to as the Futuh Al-Habash , bringing the three-quarters of Christian Abyssinia under the control of the Muslim empire. With an army composed of Afar, Harari (Harla), and Somalis, al-Ghazi's forces came close to extinguishing

60-598: A university . Battle of Wofla The Battle of Wofla was fought on August 28, 1542, near Lake Ashenge in Wofla (Ofla) between the Portuguese under Cristóvão da Gama and the forces of Imam Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi . Reinforced with a superiority not only in numbers but in firearms, Imam Ahmad was victorious and forced the Portuguese, along with Queen Seble Wongel and her retinue, to flee their fortified encampment and leave their weapons behind. Whilst fleeing

90-577: A larger Ethiopian contingent at the Battle of Shimbra Kure . The Harari cavalry was instrumental in this battle, as the Abyssinian troops were outmaneuvered. The victories that gave the followers of Imam Ahmad the upper hand came in 1531. The first was the Battle of Antukyah , where cannon fire at the start panicked the Ethiopian soldiers. The second was the Battle of Amba Sel , where troops under

120-444: A smaller number of Abyssinians soundly defeated the larger Adal-Ottoman army with the help of the Portuguese navy, which brought 400 musketeers led by Cristóvão da Gama via Massawa , a port in the province of Medri Bahri , an important port today in present-day Eritrea. However, Da Gama was captured in the Battle of Wofla and later killed. The 500 musketeers were led by Bahri Negassi Yeshaq , king of Medri Bahri. Yeshaq provided

150-680: Is called ismah . These leaders must be followed since they are appointed by God. Here follows a list of the Twelvers Shia imams: (splitting open knowledge) (the Trustworthy) Fatimah , also Fatimah al-Zahraa, daughter of Muhammed (615–632), is also considered infallible but not an Imam. The Shi'a believe that the last Imam, the 12th Imam Mahdi will one day emerge on the Day of Resurrection ( Qiyamah ). At times, imams have held both secular and religious authority. This

180-584: Is most commonly used as the title of a prayer leader of a mosque . In this context, imams may lead Islamic prayers , serve as community leaders, and provide religious guidance. Thus for Sunnis, anyone can study the basic Islamic sciences and become an Imam. For most Shia Muslims , the Imams are absolute infallible leaders of the Islamic community after the Prophet. Shias consider the term to be only applicable to

210-734: The Oromo people to conquer and migrate into the historically Gafat land of Welega south of the Blue Nile and eastward to the walls of Harar , establishing new territories. The war was devastating for the Harari people which resulted in massive casualties for them and the conflict is regarded as one of the reasons for their rapid population decline. According to historian El Amin Abdel Karim Ahmed: "The Muslim Semitic-speaking Harari once occupied more extensive territories as part of

240-455: The 20th century (See details under Zaidiyyah , History of Yemen , Imams of Yemen ). Saudi leaders were also referred to as "Imams", until that term was retired by Ibn Saud to be replaced by "king". Ruhollah Khomeini is officially referred to as Imam in Iran . Several Iranian places and institutions are named "Imam Khomeini", including a city , an international airport , a hospital , and

270-622: The Imam not only defeated but dispersed the Ethiopian army and captured items of the Imperial regalia. These victories allowed the Adalites to enter the Ethiopian highlands , where they began to sack and burn numerous churches, including Atronsa Maryam , where the remains of several Emperors had been interred. He defeated the armies of Agame and Tembien and marched towards Aksum to capture

300-453: The Portuguese with not only provisions and places to camp in his realm but also information about the land. The Bahri Negassi also joined Emperor Gelawdewos and the Portuguese in the decisive Battle of Wayna Daga , where tradition states that Imam Ahmad was shot in the chest by a Portuguese musketeer named João de Castilho, who had charged alone into the Muslim lines and died. The wounded Imam

330-540: The ancient Ethiopian kingdom, slaughtering any Ethiopian who refused to convert to Islam. Within the span of fourteen years the Imam was able to conquer the heartland of the country, wreaking havoc on the Christian nation. However, the Abyssinians managed to secure the assistance of Cristóvão da Gama 's Portuguese troops, and maintained their domain's autonomy. Both polities exhausted their resources and manpower in

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360-520: The battlefield with 14 soldiers, da Gama, whose arm was broken from a bullet wound, was captured that night by followers of Imam Ahmad, who had been guided into the bush in which they had taken refuge by an old woman. However, Makkham claims that Gama had stayed behind to look for a woman he had captured at the Battle of the Hill of the Jews with whom he became infatuated. Nonetheless, he was then brought into

390-470: The care of Yemeni provincial officials. However, Ahmed Gragn turned down this request and killed da Gama with his own hands just hours after capturing him. Furious, the Ottoman commander deserted Ahmed and headed back to Yemen with the majority of his forces. Following the death of da Gama and the majority of his soldiers being either captured or slain, the Portuguese were hesitant to make any investments in

420-456: The congregational prayers—even though it may sometimes just be a member from the gathered congregation rather than an officially appointed, salaried person. Women cannot be imams when men are present but are allowed to be when no men are present. An imam should be chosen, according to Hadith , based on his knowledge of the Quran and Sunnah and his moral character. Another well-known use of

450-538: The heads of Muhammad 's family in their generational times due to their scholarly authority. Imams are appointed by the state to work at mosques and they are required to be graduates of an İmam Hatip high school or have a university degree in theology. This is an official position regulated by the Presidency of Religious Affairs in Turkey and only males are appointed to this position, whilst female officials under

480-482: The historical Ethiopian city to solidify his rule in Ethiopia, echoing Mehmed II conquest of Constantinople , but the locals of Tigray had all assembled to defend their holy city. The Imam defeated and killed a large number of them as Arab Faqīh states, "Not a single one managed to slip away. They killed them in the forts, in the valleys and in the gorges. The ground was so thickly covered with their corpses, that it

510-461: The medieval Muslim state of Adal with the town of Harar as its metropolitan centre. Politically weakened by the internal disputes and militarily exhausted by the jihad wars of the sixteenth century the Harari became an easy prey for the invading Oromo who battered and harassed them relentlessly. As a result they were constantly pushed back and managed to survive only as an isolated people confined within

540-593: The members and descendants of the Ahl al-Bayt , the family of the Islamic prophet Muhammad . In Twelver Shīʿīsm there are 14 infallibles , 12 of which are Imams, the final being Imam Mahdi who will return at the end of times. The title was also used by the Zaidi Shia Imams of Yemen , who eventually founded the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen (1918–1970). Sunni Islam does not conceive of

570-422: The names, attributes, and acts that theology usually reserves for God alone. Imams have a meaning more central to belief, referring to leaders of the community. Twelver and Ismaili Shi'a believe that these imams are chosen by God to be perfect examples for the faithful and to lead all humanity in all aspects of life. They also believe that all the imams chosen are free from committing any sin, impeccability which

600-473: The presence of the Imam Ahmad , who tortured and executed his captured opponent. A quarrel now broke out between Ahmed Gragn and his Ottoman musketeers after their victory over the handling of the Portuguese captured in the battle. The Ottomans wanted to use these prisoners as a negotiating tool in their ongoing talks with Lisbon , therefore they made the demand that they should be delivered unharmed into

630-445: The process, resulting in the contraction of the two powers and altering regional dynamics for centuries to come. Many historians trace the origin of hostile Ethiopia–Somalia relations to this war. Some scholars also argue that this conflict proved the value, through their use on both sides, of firearms such as the matchlock musket , cannons , and the arquebus over traditional weapons. In 1529, Imam Ahmad's Adal troops defeated

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660-478: The role of imams in the same sense as Shia Islam : an important distinction often overlooked by non-Muslims. In everyday terms, an imam for Sunni Muslims is the person charged with leading formal Islamic prayers ( Fard )—even in locations besides the mosque—whenever prayer is performed in a group of two or more. The imam leads the worship and the congregation copies his actions. Friday sermons are most often given by an appointed imam. All mosques have an imam to lead

690-605: The same state organisation work as preachers and Qur'an course tutors, religious services experts, etc. These officials are supposed to belong to the Hanafi school of the Sunni sect. A central figure in an Islamic movement is also called an imam, like Imam Nawawi in Syria. In the Shi'a context, an imam is not only presented as the man of God par excellence , but as participating fully in

720-461: The stone-walled town of Harar and its immediate environs, while the Oromo occupied the regions all around them. Nevertheless Harar survived and continued its precarious existence as the capital of an emirate of the same name." Imam Imam ( / ɪ ˈ m ɑː m / , Arabic : إمام , imām ; pl. : أئمة , a'immah ) is an Islamic leadership position. For Sunni Muslims , Imam

750-567: The term is as an honorary title for a recognized religious scholarly authority in Islam. It is especially used for a jurist ( faqīh ) and often for the founders of the four Sunni madhhab s or schools of jurisprudence ( fiqh ) , as well as an authority on Quranic exegesis ( tafsīr ) , such as Al-Tabari or Ibn Kathir . It may also refer to the Muhaddithūn or scholars who created the analytical sciences related to Hadith and sometimes refer to

780-579: Was a Fulani state in West Africa where secular power alternated between two lines of hereditary Imams, or almami . In the Zaidi Shiite sect, imams were secular as well as spiritual leaders who held power in Yemen for more than a thousand years. In 897, a Zaidi ruler, al-Hadi ila'l-Haqq Yahya , founded a line of such imams, a theocratic form of government which survived until the second half of

810-578: Was captured by the forces of Imam Ahmad; the Empress was unable to react as she was besieged in the capital. The first Adalite encounter with Portuguese forces occurred in 1541, when the latter were marooned in Massawa following their defeat at the hands of the Ottomans at the 1541 Battle of Suez . The Portuguese forces would be ambushed by the Adalites at the Battle of Massawa in the same year. In 1543,

840-680: Was impossible to walk in that place because of the dead bodies." he estimates that over 10,000 Christians were killed. The Imam reached Aksum he besieged the city in the siege of Axum where upon he destroyed the Church of Our Lady Mary of Zion . During his invasion of the Tigray region Ahmad ibn Ibrahim al-Ghazi visited the tomb of Najashi in Negash to pay his respects. Dawit II died in September 2nd, 1540. and his son and future emperor Prince Menas

870-676: Was the case in Oman among the Kharijite or Ibadi sects. At times, the imams were elected. At other times the position was inherited, as with the Yaruba dynasty from 1624 and 1742. See List of rulers of Oman , the Rustamid dynasty : 776–909, Nabhani dynasty : 1154–1624, the Yaruba dynasty : 1624–1742, the Al Said : 1744–present for further information. The Imamate of Futa Jallon (1727–1896)

900-414: Was then beheaded by an Ethiopian cavalry commander, Azmach Calite. Once the Imam's soldiers learned of his death, they fled the battlefield. The death of Imam Ahmad and the victory at Wayna Daga caused a collapse of Ahmad's forces and forced an Adalite retreat from Ethiopia. Mohammed Hassen has plausibly argued that because this conflict severely weakened both participants, it provided an opportunity for

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