Imam
An imam (Arabic: إمام; Persian: امام) is an Islamic leader, often the leader of a mosque and/or community. Similarly to spiritual leaders, the imam is the person who leads the prayer during Islamic gatherings. More often the community turn to the mosque imam, if they have an Islamic question. In smaller communities an imam could be the community leader based on the community setting.
Shia Islam uses the term differently. Shiites give the title to only the one true leader of all the faithful.
Imam Media
Prayer in Cairo, painting by Jean-Léon Gérôme, 1865.
An Imam reads verses from the Quran after Isha' (night prayers) in the Mughal Empire
Crimean Tatar imams teach the Quran. Lithograph by Carlo Bossoli
Imam presiding over prayer, North Africa
Shamil with a Bodyguard. Oil on oil-cloth, 112x90 cm. The State Museum of Fine Arts of Georgia, Tbilisi
Imam in Bosnia, c. 1906
Imam Khomeini, leader of the Iranian revolution
An Imam in Omdurman, Sudan
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Other websites
- Detailed description of the Shiite belief
- Graphical illustration of the Shia sects Archived 2004-10-25 at the Wayback Machine
- List of Sunni Imams
- The Imam Movie Archived 2021-12-26 at the Wayback Machine
