The world’s 500 most influential Muslims
Georgetown's new list
Georgetown University’s Prince al-Waleed bin Talal Center just put out a list of the world’s 500 most influential Muslims. The project was completed in conjunction with Jordan’s Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Center. For those who are unfamiliar with the bin Talal Center, it is an academic center funded by a $20 million gift from the Saudi royal. Bin Talal’s donation was also the largest single gift in the history of Georgetown University.
Unsurprisingly for a list compiled by a Saudi-funded thinktank and a Jordanian government-affiliated group, their respective royals rank quite well.
According to a team led by John Esposito and Ibrahim Kalin, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia is the most influential man in Islam. The fourth most influential man in Islam? King Abdullah II of Jordan.
However, the Jordanian king is regularly mocked for his reputed video game addiction. While it’s fair to say that the Saudi Abdullah is be one of the world’s most influential Muslims, the top ten is heavily slanted towards his fellow heads of state and government:
1. King Abdullah, Saudi Arabia
2. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Iran
3. King Mohammed VI, Morocco
4. King Abdullah II, Jordan
5. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey
6. Sultan Qaboos bin Said al-Said, Oman
7. Ali Husaini Sistani, Grand Ayatollah of Iraq
8. Sheikh Muhammad Sayyid Tantawi, head of al-Azhar University
9. Dr. Yusuf Qaradawi, head of the International Union of Muslim Scholars
10. Sheikh Ali Goma’a, Grand Mufti of Egypt
As Foreign Policy mag’s Marc Lynch states, Esposito and Kalin’s methodology seems strange. Any list in which the Sultan of Oman outranks, say, Turkish preacher Fethullah Gulen or the Aga Khan seems odd to this observer. That is to say nothing of the fact that the third world’s top t-shirt seller, Osama bin Laden, does not even crack the top fifty.
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This list is rather absurd, most of the political figures derive their power as clients of larger powers. They really dont have much ability to manuever on their own. How the Kings of Morocco and Jordan made it so high, it makes no sense. Found this hilarious take on the list, well worth the read: King Abdullah “Overjoyed” About Being Named Most Influential Muslim in the World: http://wp.me/pIP1s-6
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