View source for Ayatollah

{{Short description|High-ranking title given to Usuli Twelver Shī'a Muslim clerics}}
{{About|the Shia Islamic title}}
{{Usul al-fiqh}}
'''Ayatollah''' ({{IPAc-en|UK|ˌ|aɪ|ə|ˈ|t|ɒ|l|ə}}, {{IPAc-en|alsoUS|ˌ|aɪ|ə|ˈ|t|oʊ|l|ə}}; {{langx|ar|آية الله|ʾāyatu llāh}}; {{langx|fa|آیت‌الله|âyatollâh}} {{IPA|fa|ɒːjjætˌolˈlɒːh|}}) is a [[Title of honor|title]] for high-ranking [[Twelver]] [[Shia clergy]]. It came into widespread usage in the 20th century.<ref name="Algar">{{harvnb|Algar|1987}}</ref><ref name="Glassé">{{harvnb|Glassé|2003}}</ref>

Originally used as a title bestowed by popular/clerical acclaim for a small number of the most distinguished  ''[[marja']] at-taqlid'' ''[[mujtahid]]'', it suffered from "inflation"  following the 1979 [[Iranian Revolution]] when it came to be used for "any established mujtahid".<ref name="Momen, ''Introduction'', 1985, p.205-6">Momen, ''An Introduction to Shi'i Islam'', 1985, p.205-6</ref> By 2015 it was further expanded to include any student who had passed their Mujtahid final exam,<ref name="Golkar2017219">{{harvnb|Golkar|2017|pages=219}}</ref> leading to "thousands" of Ayatollahs.<ref name="Momen178"/>

The title is not used by the [[Sunni Islam|Sunni]] community of Iran.<ref name="Algar"/>

In the [[Western world]] – especially after the [[Iranian Revolution]] – it was associated with [[Ruhollah Khomeini]], who was so well known as to often be referred to as "The Ayatollah".
[[File:Grand Ayatollahs Qom فتوکلاژ، آیت الله های ایران-قم 02.jpg|thumb|220px|upright|[[Marja'|Grand Ayatollah]]s of [[Qom]], Iran; Religious leaders who have the authority to interpret sharia sources in [[Shiism|Shia Islam]]<ref>Sociology of religions: perspectives of Ali Shariati (2008) Mir Mohammed Ibrahim</ref> used assertive titles such as [[Hujjat al-Islam]], Ayatollah, Ayatollah Al-Uzma and gained [[walayah|tutelage over people and the administration]].<ref name="Newman in Meri 2006 734">{{harvnb|Newman|2006|p=734}}</ref><ref name="al-Shaykh al-Saduq 1982 151-152">{{harvnb|al-Shaykh al-Saduq|1982|pp=151–152}}</ref>]]

==Etymology==
The title is originally derived from the Arabic word {{transliteration|ar|[[Āyah]]}} [[Grammatical modifier#Premodifiers and postmodifiers|post-modified]] with the word ''[[Allah]]'', making {{transliteration|ar|ʾāyatu llāh}} ({{langx|ar|آية الله}}).<ref name="Leaman">{{harvnb|Leaman|2006|pages=85–86}}</ref> The combination has been translated to English as 'Sign of God',<ref name="Algar"/> 'Divine Sign'<ref name="Glassé"/> or 'Reflection of God'.<ref>{{harvnb|Salkind|2006|loc=vol. 1|page=739}}</ref> It is a frequently used term in the [[Quran]], but its usage in this context is presumably a particular reference to the verse {{qref|41|53}} "We shall show them Our signs on the horizons and in their own selves",<ref name="Algar"/> while it has been also used to refer to [[The Twelve Imams]] by Shias.<ref>{{harvnb|Hughes|2013|page=126}}</ref>

Variants used are {{transliteration|ar|ʾāyatu llāhi fī [[Al-An'am|l-ʾanʿām]]}} ({{langx|ar|آية الله في الأنعام|lit=Sign of God among mankind}}),<ref name="Calmard"/> {{transliteration|ar|ʾāyatu llāhi fī l-ʿālamayn}} ({{langx|ar|آية الله في العالمَین|lit=Sign of God in the two worlds}}, [[Dual (grammatical number)|dual form]])<ref name="Calmard"/> or {{transliteration|ar|fī l-ʿālamīn}} ({{langx|ar|في العالمین|lit=in the worlds}}, [[Plural|plural form]])<ref name="Nasr, Nasr and Dabashi"/> and {{transliteration|ar|ʾāyatu llāhi fī l-warā}} ({{langx|ar|آية الله في الورى|lit=Sign of God among mortals}}).<ref name="Calmard"/>

==Qualifications==
{{See also|Taqlid|Ijtihad|Fiqh}}
Though no formal hierarchical structure exists among Shia clerics, a "hierarchy of difference" can be elaborated to describe the situation.<ref>{{harvnb|Momen|1985|page=204}}</ref> Traditionally, the title Ayatollah was awarded by popular usage only to the very few highest ranking,<ref name="Momen178"/> prominent ''[[Mujtahid]]''.<ref name="Algar"/> Qualifications included 
*being a definite ''Mujtahid'', 
*being regarded among peers as superior in ''aʿlamīyat'' ({{literal translation|superiority in learning}}) and 
*being superior in ''riyāsat'' ({{literal translation|leadership}}), which is determined by popular acclamation, as well as collecting a huge amount of ''[[Khums]]'' (religious taxes).<ref name="Calmard"/> 
Consequently, by the 1960s a cleric addressed as an Ayatollah was expected to be a ''[[Marja']]''.<ref name="Calmard"/>
{{Twelvers|collapsed=1}}

===Devaluation trend===
The title of Ayatollah (and other Iranian Shi'i titles) has been "cheapened" since then.<ref name="Algar"/><ref name="Momen205/206"/><ref name="Momen178"/>

[[Roy Mottahedeh]] describes how the title  of ayatollah was determined in the mid to late 20th century.{{blockquote| Only the titles 'jurisconsult' (''[[faqih]]'') and 'model for imitation' (''marja' al-taqlid'') had fixed meaning. Otherwise titles ... really expressed the informal consensus of mullahs as to the degree of deference they wished to show one another. A teacher in madreseh might be greatly offended if a letter from a layman failed to call him 'ayatollah', but he would vigorously reject the title if addressed as an ayatollah in public - vigorously, that is, until he sensed that other mullahs of his level would tolerate hearing him so addressed, at which point he would quietly let his students impose the title on him.<ref>{{cite book | first=Roy | last= Mottahedeh| title= The Mantle of the Prophet : Religion and Politics in Iran |publisher=One World |location= Oxford |orig-year=1985 |year=2000 |page=241}}</ref>}}

According to [[Michael M. J. Fischer]], the [[Iranian Revolution]] led to "rapid inflation of religious titles", so that almost every senior cleric began to be called an Ayatollah.<ref>{{cite book|last=Fischer|first=Michael M. J.|title=Iran: From Religious Dispute to Revolution|publisher=Harvard University Press]|year=1980|page=2016 |isbn= 9780674466159}}</ref>  raising the number of individuals who call themselves an Ayatollah dramatically.<ref name="Momen205/206">{{harvnb|Momen|1985|page=205–206}}</ref>

An unwritten rule of [[Style (form of address)|addressing]] for Shia clerics has been developed after the 1980s as a result of Iranian Revolution,<ref name="Calmard"/> despite the fact no official institutional way of conferring titles is available.<ref name="Momen178">{{harvnb|Momen|2015|page=178}}</ref>  At first the title that had been reserved for a Marja', was gradually applied to an established Mujtahid.<ref name="Momen, ''Introduction'', 1985, p.205-6"/> With the post-revolutionary bureaucratization of [[Hawza|Shia seminaries]] under the [[Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran|Islamic Republic]], four levels of studies were introduced and those clerics who end the fourth level, also known as ''Dars-e-Kharej'' ({{literal translation|beyond the text}}) and pass the final exam, were called Ayatollahs.<ref name="Golkar2017219"/> [[Moojan Momen]] wrote in 2015 that every cleric who finished his training calls himself an Ayatollah and this trend has led to emergence of "thousands of Ayatollahs".<ref name="Momen178"/>

This inflation led to invention of a new title, ''Ayatollah al-Uzma'' ({{literal translation|Great Sign of God}}).<ref name="Momen178"/> Originally, about half a dozen people were addressed as al-Uzma, but as of 2015, the number of people who claimed that title was reportedly over 50.<ref name="Momen178"/>

===Political connotations===
Another post-[[Iranian Revolution|revolutionary]] change in what makes an ayatollah has been the falling away (at least in many important situations), of purely religious credentials and informal acclamation, and its replacement by political criteria.<ref name="Mohd Don & May"/>

[[Ali Khamenei]]—who was addressed with mid-level title of ''[[Hujjat al-Islam]]'' when he was in office as [[President of Iran]]—was bestowed the title Ayatollah immediately after he [[1989 Iranian Supreme Leader election|was elected]] [[Supreme Leader of Iran]] in 1989, without meeting regular unwritten criteria (such as authoring a ''[[Risalah (fiqh)|Risalah]]'').<ref>{{cite book|last=Amuzegar|first=Jahangir|title=The Islamic Republic of Iran: Reflections on an Emerging Economy |publisher =Routledge| date=2014|isbn=978-1-85743-748-5|page=210}}</ref> Since the 2010s, sources under government control tend to give him more distinguished titles like ''Grand Ayatollah'' and ''Imam''.<ref name="Mohd Don & May">{{citation|first1=Mohd Don |last1= Zuraidah|first2=Alan|last2=May|title=The discursive representation of Iran's supreme leader in online media|journal=Discourse & Society| volume=24| number=6| date=2013| pages= 743–762 |jstor=24441464 |doi= 10.1177/0957926513486222 |s2cid= 146360568}}</ref>

Certain clerics, such as [[Mohammad Kazem Shariatmadari]]<ref name="Glassé"/> and [[Hussein-Ali Montazeri]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Daryaee|first=Touraj|year=2012| series= Oxford Handbooks in History|title=The Oxford Handbook of Iranian History|isbn= 9780199732159|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=378}}</ref> who had fallen out of favor with the rulers were downgraded by not being addressed as an Ayatollah.

==Usage==
===Origins, early 20th century===
The earliest known address of this title is for [[Allamah Al-Hilli|Ibn Mutahhar Al-Hilli]] (died 1374), however it was not in use as a title for those qualifying until the 20th century.<ref name="Algar"/> Glassé states that following domination of [[Twelver]] branch by followers of {{transliteration|ar|[[Usuli]]}} school and demise of {{transliteration|ar|[[Akhbari]]}} school, the title was popularized by {{transliteration|ar|Usuli}}s as an attempt to promote their status.<ref name="Glassé"/> [[Mirza Ali Aqa Tabrizi]] was the first one to use the term {{transliteration|ar|Ayatullah}} for the sources of emulation in Najaf, especially [[Muhammad Kazim Khurasani|Akhund Khurasani]] (1839–1911), to distinguish them from the clerics of lower rank in Tehran, during the 1905-1911 [[Persian Constitutional Revolution]].{{sfn|Hermann|2013|p=439}}  ([[Mirza Sayyed Mohammad Tabatabai]] and [[Seyyed Abdollah Behbahani]] were also given that honorific by constitutionalists according to ''[[Loghatnameh Dehkhoda]]''.)<ref>{{citation|first=James A.|last=Bill|title= Power and Religion in Revolutionary Iran|journal=Middle East Journal|volume=36|number=1|date=1982|pages=22–47|jstor=4326354}}</ref>

[[Hamid Algar]] maintains that this title entered general usage possibly because it was an "indirect result of the reform and strengthening of the religious institution in [[Qom]]".<ref name="Algar"/> [[Abdul-Karim Haeri Yazdi]] (1859–1937) who founded [[Qom Seminary]], may be the first to bear the title according to Algar.<ref name="Algar"/>

While the title Ayatollah was sporadically used during the 1930s,<ref name="Algar"/> it became widespread in the 1940s.<ref name="Glassé"/>

===Stages of contemporary titles for Shia clerics in Iran===
{| border="0" cellpadding="0" style="text-align:center;"
|-
| style="width:6em;" |
| style="width:6em;" |
| style="width:6em;" |
| style="width:6em;" |
| style="width:6em;" |
| 
| style="width:6em;" |
| style="width:6em;" |
| style="width:6em;" |
| colspan="4" style="background-color:#FFE6E6; padding:0.3em;" | Usually a ''[[Marja']]'' and issues ''[[fatwa]]''
|-
| 
| 
| 
| 
| 
| colspan="2" style="background-color:#FFE8D0; padding:0.3em; width:5em;"| Can be a lesser ''[[Mujtahid]]''
| colspan="1" style="background-color:#FFE8D0; padding:0.3em;" | Can be a greater ''[[Mujtahid]]''
| colspan="3" style="background-color:#FFE8D0; padding:0.3em;" | Usually a greater ''[[Mujtahid]]''
|-
| 
| 
| 
| colspan="8" style="background-color:#FFF8DC; padding:0.3em;" | Allowed to receive [[Charity (practice)#Zakat and Sadaqa in Islam|charity]]
|-
|
| colspan="14" style="background-color:#FFFFE0; padding:0.3em;" | Allowed to wear [[clerical clothing]]
|-
| colspan="2" style="width:12em; border:2px solid black; margin:1em; padding:1em;" | ''Talabah''<br>({{literal translation|Student}})
| colspan="2" style="width:12em; border:2px solid black; margin:1em; padding:1em;" | ''[[Seghatoleslam]]''<br>({{literal translation|Trust of Islam}})
| colspan="2" style="width:12em; border:2px solid black; margin:1em; padding:1em;" | ''[[Hujjat al-Islam]]''<br>({{literal translation|Proof of Islam}})
| colspan="2" style="width:12em; border:2px solid black; margin:1em; padding:1em;" | ''[[Hujjat al-Islam|Hujjat al-Islam wal-Muslimin]]''<br>({{literal translation|Proof of Islam and Muslims}})
| colspan="2" style="width:12em; border:4px solid black; margin:1em; padding:1em;" | ''Ayatollah''<br>({{literal translation|Sign of God}})
| style="width:12em; border:4px solid black; margin:1em; padding:1em;" | ''[[Ayatollah al-Uzma]]''<br>({{literal translation|Great Sign of God}})
|-
|Sources:<ref name="Calmard">{{harvnb|Calmard|2009}}</ref><ref name="Nasr, Nasr and Dabashi">{{harvnb|Nasr|Nasr|Dabashi|1989|page=265–266}}</ref><ref name="Golkar">{{harvnb|Golkar|2017|pages=219–223}}</ref>
|}

== Grand Ayatollah ==
{{Main|Marja'}}

Only a few of the most important ayatollahs are accorded the rank of Grand Ayatollah (''Ayatollah Uzma'', "Great Sign of God"). When an ayatollah gains a significant following and they are recognized for religiously correct views, he is considered a ''Marja'-e-Taqlid'', which in common parlance is "grand ayatollah".<ref>{{cite book
| title = The Oxford Handbook of Islam and Politics
| author = Emad El-Din Shahin
| author-link = Emad Shahin
| publisher = [[Oxford University Press]]
| year = 2016
| page = 400
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=wUcSDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA400
| isbn =  9780190631932 }}</ref> Usually as a prelude to such status, a ''mujtahid''{{NoteTag|Among the Shia, a ''mujtahid'' is a person generally accepted as an original authority in Islamic law.}} is asked to publish a juristic treatise in which he answers questions about the application of Islam to present-time daily affairs.<ref>{{cite book |last = Siddiqui |first = Kalim |year=1980 |title = The Islamic Revolution: Achievements, Obstacles & Goals |location=London |publisher=Open Press for [[The Muslim Institute]] |page=26 |isbn=978-0-905081-07-6 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=RRINAAAAIAAJ }}</ref> ''Risalah'' is the word for treatise, and such a juristic work is called a ''risalah-yi'amaliyyah'' or "practical law treatise",.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ḥairi |first=Abdul-Hadi |year=1977 |title = Shi-ism and Constitutionalism in Iran: A Study of the Role Played by the Persian Residents of Iraq in Iranian Politics |location = Leiden, South Holland |publisher=Brill |page=198 |isbn=978-90-04-04900-0 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gc0UAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA198 }}</ref> A Grand Ayatollah is often seen as a spiritual guide and mentor to millions of Shia Muslims. His influence extends beyond the mosque and into the social and political arenas. Unlike many religious leaders of other religions, a grand ayatollah is often involved in state affairs, especially in countries with large Shia populations such as Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Ayatollah Ali Khamenei: Central figure of Iran's Islamic Revolution |url=https://todayheadlinehub.com/ayatollah-ali-khamenei-islamic-revolution/ |work=Todayheadlinehub}}</ref>

== Use of the term as a pejorative ==
In the West, particularly the [[United States of America|United States]], the term "Ayatollah" may be used as a pejorative to describe religious fundamentalism. Sam Miller of ''[[London Review of Books]]'' states that following the Iranian Revolution, "ayatollah" became common use; Miller described the pejorative version of the term as "[evoking] an old, turbaned, bearded man, sitting in judgment, looking like a crow and ordering the execution of the impure."<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v08/n06/sam-miller/god-s-medium |title=God's Medium |last=Miller |first=Sam |website=London Review of Books |date=1986 |access-date=November 1, 2024 |archive-date=August 15, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815214303/https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v08/n06/sam-miller/god-s-medium |url-status=live }}</ref>

However, the term is generally used to describe any kind of fundamentalism, not just Islamism. For example, in the choice of title for the 1987 English translation of Raphael Mergui and Philippe Simonnot's book ''Israel's Ayatollahs: Meir Kahane and the Far Right in Israel'', or in the United States, where former jurist and lawyer [[Roy Moore]] has been called the "Ayatollah of Alabama" by his critics due to espousing [[Christian nationalism]], opposition to [[secularism]], and [[far-right]] politics.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jarvie |first=Jenny |url=https://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-roy-moore-suspended-alabama-20160930-snap-story.html |title='Not going to miss the Ayatollah of Alabama': State's chief justice ousted over anti-gay-marriage order |website=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=September 30, 2016 |access-date=November 1, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161227214653/https://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow/la-na-roy-moore-suspended-alabama-20160930-snap-story.html |archive-date=December 27, 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Iran|Islam|Shia Islam}}
* ''[[Akhoond]]''
* ''[[Allamah]]''
* ''[[Faqīh]]''
* ''[[Mullah]]''
* ''[[Sheikh]]''
* ''[[Ulama]]''
* [[Clericalism in Iran]]
* [[List of current maraji]]
* ''[[Seghatoleslam]]''
* [[Twelver Shia holy days]]

== Explanatory notes ==
{{NoteFoot}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== General and cited sources ===
{{refbegin|indent=yes}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Hermann|first=Denis|date=1 May 2013|title=Akhund Khurasani and the Iranian Constitutional Movement|url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00263206.2013.783828|jstor=23471080|journal=Middle Eastern Studies|volume=49|issue=3|pages=430–453|doi=10.1080/00263206.2013.783828|s2cid=143672216|issn=0026-3206|access-date=4 May 2022|archive-date=5 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005080847/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00263206.2013.783828|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}
* {{cite book|last=al-Shaykh al-Saduq|author-link =Ibn Babawayh|others=Fyzee|title=A Shiite Creed|date=1982|publisher=WOFIS|edition=3rd|oclc=37509593}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Algar |first=Hamid |editor-last=Yarshater |editor-first=Ehsan |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Iranica |title=ĀyatallāH |url=http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/ayatallah |edition=Online |date=18 August 2011 |orig-year=15 December 1987 |series=Fasc. 2 |volume=III |page=133 |location=New York, NY |publisher=Bibliotheca Persica Press |ref={{harvid|Algar|1987}} |access-date=6 May 2020 |archive-date=17 May 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120517003912/http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/ayatallah |url-status=live }}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Glassé |first=Cyril |encyclopedia = The New Encyclopedia of Islam |entry=Ayatollah |year=2003 |page=71 |isbn=978-0759101890 |publisher = Rowman Altamira }}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Leaman |first=Oliver |title = The Qur'an: an Encyclopedia |year=2006 |publisher=Routledge|location = New York, NY |isbn=0-415-32639-7 |entry=Aya }}
* {{cite book|editor-last=Meri|editor-first=Josef W.|title=Medieval Islamic Civilization|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LaV-IGZ8VKIC|volume=2 L-Z, index|year=2006|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-0-415-96692-4}}
** {{harvc |last=Newman |first=Andrew J. |c=Shi'i Thought |in=Meri |year=2006}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |editor-last=Salkind |editor-first=Neil J. |title = Encyclopedia of Human Development|year=2006 |publisher=SAGE |isbn=9781412904759 |volume=1 |entry = Islamic Belief (Iman) and Practive (Ibadat) }}
* {{cite book |last=Hughes|first = Aaron W. |title = Encyclopedia of Human Development |year=2013 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=9780231531924 }}
* {{cite encyclopedia |first=Jean |last=Calmard |editor-last=Esposito |editor-first=John L. |title=The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World |year=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780199861255 |edition=Online |chapter-url=http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t236/e0088 |chapter=Ayatollah |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190716065535/http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t236/e0088 |archive-date=16 July 2019 |doi=10.1093/acref/9780195305135.001.0001 |doi-access= }}
* {{cite book |last1=Nasr |first1 = Seyyed Vali Reza |last2=Nasr |first2 = Seyyed Hossein |last3=Dabashi |first3=Hamid |title = Expectation of the Millennium: Shi'ism in History |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=1989 |isbn=978-0887068447 }}
* {{cite journal |first=Saeid |last=Golkar |year=2017|volume=11 |number=3| title = Clerical Militia and Securitization of Seminary Schools in Iran |journal=Contemporary Islam |pages=215–235 |doi = 10.1007/s11562-017-0384-8 |s2cid=151998952 }}
* {{citation |last=Momen |first=Moojan |title = An Introduction to Shiʻi Islam: The History and Doctrines of Twelver Shiʻism |publisher = Yale University Press |year=1985 |isbn = 9780300034998 }}
* {{citation |last=Momen |first = Moojan |title = Shi'I Islam: A Beginner's Guide |publisher=Oneworld Publications |year=2015 |isbn=9781780747880 }}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
* {{Wiktionary-inline}}

[[Category:Ayatollahs| ]]
[[Category:Hawza]]
[[Category:Islamic honorifics]]
[[Category:Islamic Persian honorifics]]
[[Category:Quranic words and phrases]]
[[Category:Religious titles]]
[[Category:Shia clerics]]