Secularisation in Muslim majority societies: An overview of the main determinants

This paper reviews secularisation within Muslim-majority societies, emphasising the main determinants that shape the process and comparing it to the Occident, better known as the West. There are four sections. The first section comparatively analyses secularisation in the Muslim world and the Occident, emphasising the unique characteristics of the Muslim-majority countries where religion is still important despite socio-economic development. The second section elaborates on the determinants of secularisation, which include the role of urbanisation, economic development, education, democracy, science, technology and rentierism. Rentiersim is argued to allow Muslim societies to maintain their devotion to religion, unlike in the Occident. The final section discusses the persistence of religion in Muslim societies despite the interaction between these determinants and secularism. The conclusion for this paper is that although secularisation is inevitably present in Muslim societies, it does not follow the same trajectory as in the Occident, with religion continuing to play an important role in both the social and individual spheres. Contribution: This paper contributes to a nuanced understanding of secularisation in Muslim-majority societies, emphasising its unique divergence from the Western narrative. Secularisation will continue to diverge, albeit uniquely Muslim, as opposed to the predominantly Christian West. The study aligns with the journal’s focus on contemporary Islamic issues and their global implications.