The Journey of Caliphate from 632 to 1924
Salih Pay

Abstract
Caliphate signifies maintenance of administrative affairs, led by Muhammad (a.s.) regarding the state and society, following his demise; while caliph is the person to carry out mentioned affairs. In Muslim societies, various terms have been used for caliph; besides, persons holding different offices have been called this way. In Quran, the words “khalifa,” “khilafat” and “khulafa” do not bear any sense of head of the state; nevertheless, hadith sources employed such nominations together with expression that relate with leadership. For accession to caliphate, election-like methods were put to use during Rashidun era; nevertheless, the method was abandoned in upcoming periods. Moreover, during time of Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, caliph represented all Muslims, while political dissolution began in Muslim society together with accession of Ali, and disputes became even more apparent in upcoming periods. Hereby study analyses transformations, accession methods, influence and abolition of caliphate, as well as the interest of Western colonialist powers in the institution, beginning from its appearance in 632 after decease of Muhammad (a.s.) until the abolition in 1924.

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