'Islamism' and 'Political Islam'?

Political Islam and Islamism are frequently treated as interchangeable terms. Muslims, when using the term Islamists, usually mean those who have a particular understanding of the Islamic sources as applied to politics and political activity. There are differences in how the sources are interpreted, in the form of government they desire, and in attitudes towards 'the West'.

Islamism emerged as a reaction to colonialism and imperialism. The advocacy of pan-Islamic unity was given prominence by the emergence of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. It has replaced Arab nationalism as the main anti-imperial force in the Middle East and the Muslim world in large.

As with other areas of Muslim thinking, 'Islamists' come in many shades of opinion. Some favour a more exclusivist approach; others something more resembling a democratic and parliamentarian approach. They are united however in their common recourse to the sources of Islam as the ultimate reference point for political systems, and reviving Muslim leadership in the international system.