“Islamic Apologetics” and Islamic Studies

Abstract This chapter highlights the notion of “Islamic Apologetics” in the Muslim academy and Islamic studies in Western academia. The goal of the chapter is to prepare readers to see how topics discussed in the Western academy are understood differently in the Muslim academy. In it, the chapter tries to unpack the motives and intentions behind the development of Islamic Apologetics in the Muslim academy. This, as author hopes, will enable readers to understand what “Islamic Apologetics” both is and is not. This chapter also tries to outline the development of an academic approach to the pertinent issues in the Western academy.