Derived from the Persiankhwajah, a term of honour, the wordKhojareferred to those converted toNizari IsmailiIslam in the Indian sub-continent from about the thirteenth century onward.
More particularly, it included certain groups, predominantly from Gujarat and Kutch, who retained strong Indian ethnic roots and caste customs while sustaining their Muslim religious identity under continual threats of persecution.
In the nineteen century, the梆莽鳥硃勳梭勳泭勳鳥硃鳥硃喧(office of theimamIn general usage, a leader of prayers or religious leader. The Shi’i restrict the term to their spiritual leaders descended from 尪Al蘋 b. Ab蘋 廜珀lib and the Prophet’s daughter, Fatima.) became established in India and a programme of consolidation and reorganisation of the community and its institutions began. These changes led to differences of opinion amongKhojasA term probably derived from the Persian khwja (lord, master). The Khojas are one of the Ismaili communities originating from the Indian subcontinent and now living in many countries of…. While the majority ofKhojasremained Ismaili, one group becameIthna ashariand a smaller group adopted Sunnism.
In the context of the overall policy of the Ismailiimamof the time,泭Aga KhanIII, of consolidating theShiaIsmaili identity of his followers, the ethnic connotation of being Khoja became diluted over time and a wider sense of self-identification as Ismaili Muslims began to emerge. With the increasing recognition of the diversity of the worldwide Ismaili community itself and the positive value of the pluralist heritage represented within each of the traditions, theKhojasnow regard themselves as an integral part of the larger Nizari Ismaili community, to whose development they make a strong contribution.
啦堯梗泭Khoja Ithna asharis, while seeking to develop relationship with the larger啦滄梗梭措梗娶泭釦堯勳a泭community, retain their own organisational framework.
啦堯梗泭Khojaslive today in East Africa, the Indian sub-continent, Europe and North America, and show a strong commitment to values of Muslim philanthropy in their entrepreneurship and contribution to societies in which they live.
This is an edited version of an article that was originally published in theEncyclopaedia of Islam and Muslim World, Vol. II, p. 393, ed. Richard C. Martin, MacMillan Reference Books, New York, 2003
Authors
Professor Azim Nanji
Azim Nanji is currently Special Advisor to the Provost of the, and a member of the Board of Directors of thein Ottawa, a joint partnership between His Highness the Aga KhanA title granted by the Shah of Persia to the then Ismaili Imam in 1818 and inherited by each of his successors to the Imamate. and the Government of Canada. He has held many prestigious academic and administrative appointments, most recently as Senior Associate Director of the Abbasi Program in Islamic Studies at, where he was also lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies. From 1998 to 2008, Professor Nanji served as Director of the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London.
Professor Nanji has published numerous books and articles on religion, Islam and Ismailism, including:The Nizari Ismaili Tradition泭(1976),泭The Muslim Almanac泭(1996),泭Mapping Islamic Studies(1997) andThe Historical Atlas of Islam(with M. Ruthven) (2004) andThe Dictionary of Islam(with Razia Nanji), Penguin 2008. In addition, he has contributed numerous shorter studies and articles in journals and collective volumes includingThe Encyclopaedia of Islam,泭Encyclopaedia Iranica,泭Oxford Encyclopaedia of the Modern Islamic World, andA Companion to Ethics. He was the Associate Editor for the revised Second Edition ofThe Encyclopaedia of Religion.
Within the, he has served as a member of the task force for the(AKU-ISMC) and Vice Chair of the Madrasa-based Early Childhood Education Programme in East Africa. He served as a member of the Steering Committee of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture in 1998, 2001 and 2016.