The Firanj Are Coming-Again.

CRUSADES (Middle Ages); JIHAD; ISLAM; RELIGION; WAR; HISTORY of the Islamic Empire, 750-1258; MEDIEVAL church, 600-1500; OTTOMAN Empire; ISLAM & state; INTERNATIONAL relations

The article traces the history of Western encounter with Islam. It centers round the twin concepts of crusade and jihad. In Western cultures the connotation of crusade extends from a specifically milittarized, devotional and penitential undertaking to recover and protect the Holy Land to a generalized and secularized moral struggle of good against evil. The Muslim writers first used the term Firanj for those crusaders in early 12th century. According to the Islamic historical thought, the crusaders or the Firanj were different from the Byzantine invaders. It states that in early twentieth century the things changed way when Ottoman rulers emphasized their Islamic identity proclaiming jihad when they sided Germany in World War I.