Focusing on Turkey and Malaysia, this book examines the problems of identity experienced in these countries because of their position on the Islamic periphery.

Turkey and Malaysia, two countries on the Islamic periphery, are often not included in discussions of Islamic reassertion and identity. Yet both have been at the forefront of modernization and development, and are exposed to a rising trend of Islamic revival which discloses a deep, psychological identity crisis. In Islamic Identity and Development, Ozay Mehmet examines this identity crisis in the wider context of the Islamic dilemma of reconciling nationalism with Islam. He sees the Islamic revival primarily as a protest movement, concentrated among urban migrant settlements where uneven post-war growth has upset the traditional Islamic order. He argues that Islamic societies must move towards greater openness and an organic relationship between rulers and ruled. In particular, Mehmet suggests the need for a public policy that is not only responsive to material human needs but which also satisfies the ethical preconditions of the Islamic social contract.

`The book contains scores of interesting observations, drawn from a wide variety of sources... And it offers an eclectic mix of policy recommendations, all worthy of discussion.' - International Journal of Middle East Studies