Zakat: Islam’s missed opportunity to limit predatory taxation
Journal Article (Journal Article)
One of Islam’s five canonical pillars is a predictable, fixed, and mildly progressive tax system called zakat. It was meant to finance various causes typical of a pre-modern government. Implicit in the entire transfer system was personal property rights as well as constraints on government—two key elements of a liberal order. Those features could have provided the starting point for broadening political liberties under a state with explicitly restricted functions. Instead, just a few decades after the rise of Islam, zakat opened the door to arbitrary political rule and material insecurity. A major reason is that the Quran does not make explicit the underlying principles of governance. It simply outlines the specifics of zakat as they related to conditions in seventh-century Arabia.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Kuran, T
Published Date
- March 1, 2020
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 182 / 3-4
Start / End Page
- 395 - 416
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1573-7101
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0048-5829
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1007/s11127-019-00663-x
Citation Source
- Scopus