EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS
This article examines the relationship between educational institutions and the formation of sectarian identities in the medieval Islamic world through a comparative analysis of al-Azhar Mosque and the Nizamiyya madrasas. Although previous scholarship has generally examined the educational functions of these institutions separately, their roles in the construction of sectarian identities and the legitimization of political authority have not been sufficiently evaluated within a comprehensive comparative framework. The study argues that al-Azhar functioned as the institutional and intellectual center of the Ismaʿili daʿwa under the Fatimid caliphate, whereas the Nizamiyya madrasas, established under Seljuk patronage, served as instruments for the systematic institutionalization of Sunni legal and theological traditions. Employing a historical-comparative methodology, the article analyzes the foundations, educational philosophies, curricula, and political functions of both institutions on the basis of classical and modern sources. The findings demonstrate that educational institutions were not merely centers of learning but also institutional mechanisms through which sectarian discourses were produced, religious authority was constructed, and political legitimacy was reinforced. Accordingly, the study reconsiders the relationship between education, political authority, and sectarian competition through the cases of al-Azhar and the Nizamiyya madrasas, while offering a comparative contribution to the existing scholarship on medieval Islamic educational history.
@article{2026,title={EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS},abstractNode={
This article examines the relationship between educational institutions and the formation of sectarian identities in the medieval Islamic world through a comparative analysis of al-Azhar Mosque and the Nizamiyya madrasas. Although previous scholarship has generally examined the educational functions of these institutions separately, their roles in the construction of sectarian identities and the legitimization of political authority have not been sufficiently evaluated within a comprehensive comparative framework. The study argues that al-Azhar functioned as the institutional and intellectual center of the Ismaʿili daʿwa under the Fatimid caliphate, whereas the Nizamiyya madrasas, established under Seljuk patronage, served as instruments for the systematic institutionalization of Sunni legal and theological traditions. Employing a historical-comparative methodology, the article analyzes the foundations, educational philosophies, curricula, and political functions of both institutions on the basis of classical and modern sources. The findings demonstrate that educational institutions were not merely centers of learning but also institutional mechanisms through which sectarian discourses were produced, religious authority was constructed, and political legitimacy was reinforced. Accordingly, the study reconsiders the relationship between education, political authority, and sectarian competition through the cases of al-Azhar and the Nizamiyya madrasas, while offering a comparative contribution to the existing scholarship on medieval Islamic educational history.
},author={Cihat KULLAY},year={2026},journal={Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi}}
Cihat KULLAY . 2026 . EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS . Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi.DOI:10.29228/isorej.90284
Cihat KULLAY.(2026).EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS.Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi
Cihat KULLAY,"EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS" , Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi (2026)
Cihat KULLAY . 2026 . EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS . Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi . 2026. DOI:10.29228/isorej.90284
Cihat KULLAY .EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS. Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi (2026)
Cihat KULLAY .EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS. Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi (2026)
Format:
Cihat KULLAY. (2026) .EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi
Cihat KULLAY . EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS . Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi . 2026 doi:10.29228/isorej.90284
Cihat KULLAY."EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND SECTARIAN IDENTITY IN THE MEDIEVAL ISLAMIC WORLD: A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AL-AZHAR AND THE NIZAMIYYA MADRASAS",Uluslararası Sosyal Araştırmalar ve Ulusal Eğitim Dergisi(2026)
