Islam in Uttar Pradesh is the second largest religion in the state with 38,483,967 adherents in 2011, forming 19.26% of the total population. Muslims of Uttar Pradesh have also been referred to asHindustani Musalman (Urdu:ہندوستانی مسلمان).^[1] They do not form a unified ethnic community, but are differentiated by sectarian andBaradari divisions, as well as by language and geography. Nevertheless, the community shares some unifying cultural factors.Uttar Pradesh has more Muslims than any Muslim-majority country in the world except Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Iraq and Afghanistan.^[2]

Muslims of Uttar Pradesh

ہندوستانی مسلمان

Eid al-Fitr in Uttar Pradesh
Total population
38,483,967 (2011) 19.26% of the Uttar Pradesh population
Regions with significant populations
Rampur	50.6%
Moradabad	45.12%
Bijnor	43.0%
Saharanpur	42.0%
Muzaffarnagar	41.3%
Amroha	40.8%
Balrampur	37.5%
Bareilly	34.5%
Bahraich	33.53%
Shravasti	30.79%
Religions
Islam MajoritySunni Islam • MinorityShia islam
Languages
Hindustani (Urdu-Hindi) •Bhojpuri •Awadhi •Braj Bhasha

The earliest traces of Islam in Uttar Pradesh can be traced back to the early 11th century (1000-1030CE), when the religion was introduced to the region through variousGhurid andGhaznavid attacks and incursions.^[4]

However, the first consolidated Muslim rule over much ofUttar Pradesh began after 1205 CE, when the region formed part of the varioussultanates and was ruled from their capital, Delhi; as a result there arose a community in what is now Uttar Pradesh, referred to as HindustaniMusalmans. The termHindustani Musalman was applied to Muslims who either converted toIslam or who had settled for a long time inIndia. They did not form a unified community as they were divided by ethnic, linguistic, and economic differences. When theMongols rose to power underGenghis Khan, there was an influx of Muslim refugees intoNorth India, many of whom settled in the provincial kasbahs and brought administrators fromIran; painters from China; theologians fromSamarkand,Nishapur andBukhara. In Azamgharh, Mubarakpur, Mau, and Vanaras, a number of cultural norms arose over time which typified many Uttar Pradesh Muslim traditions.^[5] TheTurkicSultans of Delhi and their Mughal successors patronized the émigré Muslim culture: Islamic jurists of theSunniHanafi school, Persian literati who wereShiaIthnā‘ashariyyah, andSufis of several orders, including theChishti,Qadiri andNaqshbandi.^[6]

Many Sufi missionaries from the Middle East and Central Asia migrated and settled in South Asia. Many natives converted toIslam due to themissionary Sufi saints whosedargahs populate South Asia. The Muslims from various Northern provinces such asHyderabad Deccan,Balochistan,Sindh,Punjab, Gujarat,Kashmir and other parts of South Asia also moved to capitals of the Muslim empire in Delhi andAgra. Millions of natives converted toIslam during the Muslim rule. TheLodi dynasty was dominated by thePashtuns soldiers fromKhyber Pakhtunkhwa andAfghanistan who settled in northern India. After theFirst Battle of Panipat, Mughal EmperorBabur defeated the Lodi dynasty withChagatai or Gurkani Türks,Uzbek,Turkmen andUyghur soldiers and nobility. These soldiers and nobles were awarded estates and they settled with their families in northern India. These diverse ethnic, cultural, and linguistic groups merged with the Muslims of Uttar Pradesh over the centuries to form theUrdu speaking Muslim community ofSouth Asia.

The Rohilla leader Daud Khan was awarded theKatehar (later calledRohilkhand) region in the then-northern India by Mughal emperorAurangzeb Alamgir (ruled 1658–1707) to suppress theRajput uprisings. Originally, some 20,000 soldiers from various Pashtun tribes (Yusafzai, Ghori, Osmani,Ghilzai, Barech,Marwat,Durrani,Tareen,Kakar,Naghar,Afridi andKhattak) were hired by Mughals to provide soldiers to the Mughal armies. Their performance was appreciated by Mughal emperorAurangzeb Alamgir, and an additional force of 25,000 Pashtuns were recruited from modernKhyber Pakhtunkhwa andAfghanistan and were given respected positions in Mughal Army. Nearly all ofPashtuns settled in theKatehar region and also brought their families from modernKhyber Pakhtunkhwa andAfghanistan. DuringNadir Shah's invasion of northern India in 1739, the new wave of Pashtuns settled increasing their population to over one 1 million. Due to the large settlement of Rohilla Afghans, the Katehar region became known as Rohilkhand.Bareilly was made the capital of the Rohilkhand state and it became a major Pashtun city withGali Nawaban as the main royal street. Other important cities includedMoradabad,Rampur,Shahjahanpur, andBadaun.^[7][8]

TheKayastha andManihar community were historically involved in landrecord keeping and accounting. Many Hindu Kayasth found favour withMuslim rulers for whom they acted asQanungos. This close association led to the conversion of many members of theKayastha community toIslam. TheMuslim Kayasths speakUrdu andHindi.^[9] The Kayasth sometimes useSiddiqui,Quraishi,Khan,Shaikh,Usmani andFarooqi as their surnames, and consider themselves to belong to theShaikh community.^[10] Many of the converts belonged to theHindu artisancastes, who were drawn to the new kasbahs. Over time, many of the artisan groups evolved into caste-like groupings, such as theMomin, who were weavers. Many of these new converts continued to speak their original dialects, such asAwadhi andKhari boli. Over time a fourfold division arose among the Ashraf, with theSayyids (the actual or claimed descendants of the Islamic prophet,Mohammad), theShaikh, communities signifiesArab descent and comes under highBaradari of society, however majority are the nativeBrahmin,Kshatriya andVaishya clans who used the title of Sheikh after conversion toIslam, theMughals, descendants of Central AsianTurks andMongols and thePathans, descendants ofPashtun tribesmen fromPakistan andAfghanistan.^[11] Occasionally, important convert communities such as theKayastha Muslim andmanihar of eastern Uttar Pradesh, were also grantedAshraf status.

In western Uttar Pradesh, there was conversion toIslam of a number of agrariancastes such as theTyagi,Ranghar andMuley Jat. Many of these convert communities kept many of their pre-Islamic customs, such asclanexogamy. According to some scholars, this also led to the creeping intoBaradari system.^[13] With the collapse of theSultanate of Delhi, theMughal established control and Uttar Pradesh became the heartland of their vast empire; the region was known as Hindustan, which is used to this day as the name for India in several languages.Agra andFatehpur Sikri were the capital cities ofAkbar, the Mughal emperor of India. At their zenith, during the rule ofAurangzeb, the Mughal Empire covered almost all of South Asia (including present dayAfghanistan,Pakistan,India andBangladesh), which was ruled at different times from Delhi,Agra, andAllahabad.

When theMughal Empire disintegrated, their territory remained confined to theDoab region and Delhi. Other areas of Hindustan (Uttar Pradesh) were ruled by different rulers:Oudh was ruled by theShia Nawabs of Oudh,Rohilkhand by theRohillas. The state's capital city ofLucknow was established by the MuslimNawabs of Oudh in the 18th century. It became an important centre ofMuslim culture and the development ofUrdu literature.^[14][15]

Of all the Muslim states and dependencies of the Mughal Empire,Awadh had the newest royal family. They were descended from aPersian adventurer calledSa'adat Khan, who was originally fromKhurasan inPersia, one of many Khurasanis in the service of the Mughals, mostly soldiers, who hoped for rich rewards if successful. These Khurasanis wereShia, andLucknow became a centre ofShia culture inUttar Pradesh.

By the early 19th century, the British had established their control over what is now Uttar Pradesh. This led to an end of almost six centuries of Muslim rule over Uttar Pradesh.

The British began to hire indigenous cavalry in their conquered provinces. The end of Muslim rule saw a large number of unemployed Muslim horsemen, who were employed in the British army.^[16] In early British India, the cavalry was almost entirely composed of Muslims, as Hindus were "not so much disposed as the Mahomedans to the duties of a trooper".^[17][18] These cavalry regiments were primarily recruited among Hindustani Musalmanbiradaris, such as theRanghar(Rajput Muslims),Sheikhs,Sayyids,Mughals, andlocalized Pathans, who made up three-fourths of the cavalry branch of the British army.^[19][20] Irregular cavalry regiments such asSkinner's Horse,Gardner, Hearsay's Horse and Tait's Horse preserved the traditions of cavalry under the former Mughal empire, which had a political purpose because it absorbed pockets of cavalrymen who might otherwise become disaffected plunderers.^[21]

The British rulers created a class of feudal landowners who were generally referred to aszamindars, and inAwadh astaluqdars. Many of these large landowners provided patronage to the arts and funded many of the early Muslim educational institutions. A major educational institution was theAligarh Muslim University, which gave its name to theAligarh movement. Under the guidance of SirSayyid Ahmed Khan, the Urdu speaking Muslim elite sought to retain their position of political and administrative importance by reconciling their Mughal and Islamic culture with English education. A somewhat different educational movement was led by theUlema ofDeoband, who founded a religious school or Dar-ul-Uloom designed to revitalize Islamic learning. The aim of theDeobandis, as the movement became known as was to purge the Muslims of all strata of traditions and customs that were claimed to beHindu. Most of the earlyproselytization was concentrated in theDoab region whereDeoband is located, which was home to a number of peasant castes, such as theRajput Muslim,Gujjar,Tyagi andJat, who had maintained a number of pre-Islamic customs. A reaction to the growth of theDeobandi movement was the rise of theBarelvi sub-sect, which was much more tolerant of the customs and traditions of the local population.^[6] However, the Barelvis underAhmed Raza Khan Barelvi opposed Hindu-Muslim unity, declaring that the Quran forbade friendship with disbelievers, warning that this could result in Muslims losing their identity.^[22] He opposed the Deobandi leaders for their political cooperation with Hindu figures, such as Gandhi. According toAshraf Ali Thanwi the Shari'a norms mandate "distinguishing the Muslim community[qawm], the maintenance of difference in our clothing, our manners, our way of speaking, and our behavior." He forbade the wearing of the English coat and pants, tying aDhoti[worn by Hindu men], Gurgabi shoes andLehenga, which were "things that are purely characteristics of other communities[aqwam]".^[23]

The role of theUrdu language played an important role in the development of Muslim self-consciousness in the early twentieth century. Uttar Pradesh Muslims set upAnjumans or associations for the protection and promotion ofUrdu. These earlyMuslim associations formed the core of theAll India Muslim League inDhaka in 1905. Many of the leaders belonged to the Ashraf category. Uttar Pradesh Muslims created the movement for a separate Muslim state, later known as Pakistan. The eventual effect of this movement led to thepartition of India, and creation of Pakistan. This led to an exodus of many Muslim professionals to Pakistan, and the division of the Uttar Pradesh Muslims, with the formation of theMuhajir ethnic group of Pakistan. The role of theAligarh Muslim University was extremely important in the creation ofPakistan.^[24]

The net result of partition and independence in 1947 was the division of theUrdu speaking Uttar Pradesh Muslims. It led to major social, political, and cultural changes; for example,Urdu lost its status. The abolishment of thezamindari system also had a profound impact on culture as these large landowners provided patronage to local artisans; this was especially true in theAwadh region. Muslim artisan communities persevered with the growth of specialized industries such as lock manufacturing inAligarh. The Muslim peasantry in western Uttar Pradesh benefited from theGreen Revolution, while those in eastern Uttar Pradesh did poorly. The Muslim League eventually declined, with most Muslims initially supporting theIndian National Congress.^[25] The post partition period saw a reduction incommunal violence betweenHindus andMuslims. This was also a period where Muslims were led byAshraf leaders such asAbdul Majeed Khwaja inAligarh andRafi Ahmed Kidwai inBarabanki. However, from the late 1960s onwards, there was an increase in the number of communal riots, culminating in the destruction of theBabri Masjid inAyodhya in December 1992. This period has also seen the decline of Muslim support for theCongress Party.^[26]

From the 1990s there have been two issues confronting the Muslim community: theMandir andMandal. Mandir refers to the construction of aHindu temple supported by theBharatiya Janata Party in the town ofAyodhya in eastern Uttar Pradesh, on the site ofBabri Mosque. The project was poorly received and resulted incommunal violence.^[26] The other issue is commonly referred to as Mandal, a reference to theMandal Commission, which was set up to consider the question of seat reservations and quotas for people to address caste discrimination. Among the groups identified for reservation were a number of Ajlaf communities, which led to greater assertion ofAjlaf political power and a decline in the Ashraf leadership. A major controversy is a demand for the Muslim community to receive reservation as a whole, which is being opposed by many Ajlaf communities. There are also demands to extend thescheduled caste status, which the Indian Constitution restricts toHinducastes and Muslim Ajlaf groups like theHalalkhor andLal Begi.^[27]

Some South Asian Muslims stratify their society according toquoms.^[28]Quoms are further divided intobiradaris, which claim descent from an actual or putative common male ancestor. For example, an individual will belong to theShaikhquom andBehlimRangrez orFareedibiradari.^[29] This system of stratification, unlike the Hindu caste system, lacks any concept of ritual purity or pollution.^[30]

It is commonly believed^{[by whom?]} that Muslims in Uttar Pradesh are divided into the Ashraf and Ajlaf categories which are distinguished by ethnic origin and descent. However, students making empirical studies of Muslim communities in different parts of India found that this distinction is not really meaningful in understanding the existing pattern among the diverse social groups in any locality. Technically, the Ashraf are descendants of groups with foreign ancestry, while the Ajlaf are those whose ancestors are said to have converted toIslam. The Ashraf are further divided into four groups: theSayyid, the alleged descendants ofMohammed; theShaikh and Siddiqui Manihar claiming descent from earlyArab orPersian settlers; theTurks & theMughal descent from theMughal dynasty orGurkani Turks; and thePathan, who claim descents fromPashtun groups that have settled inIndia. Technically the first two groups intermarry with each other, while the latter two intermarry. Included sometimes in theAshraf category areMuslim Rajput groups such as theRangrez,manihar andKhanzada. A third category,arzaal are supposed to be converts fromHinduDalit communities, though the term is never used inUttar Pradesh. Groups that tend to fall in this category include theHalalkhor andLal Begi.^[31] Uttar Pradesh Muslims often identify themselves in smaller units called biradaris, which are localized lineage groupings; for example, theQidwai Shaikh.^[32]

Communities in the Ajlaf category were traditionally associated with the practice of a particular craft. For example, theAnsari were weavers, while theSaifi were blacksmiths. These artisan communities call themselvesbiradaries and each is characterised by strict endogamy. In the older parts of town and cities in Uttar Pradesh, they are also characterised by residential segregation.^[33] Among other traditional artisan biradaris in UP are theMansoori,Bhatiara,Bhisti,Dhobi,Muslim Halwai,Teli andRaj, which were at one time associated with a particular craft or trade.^[34]

In addition to occupational specialization, biradaris are also concentrated in a particular geographic area. For example, theDoab region is home some cultivation biradaris, such as theBaloch,Dogar,Garha,Gujjar,Turks,Kamboh,Rajput, andMuslim Tyagi. They often live in their own villages and follow distinct customs.

The population is further divided by linguistic division. Muslims in Uttar Pradesh speakUrdu, as well as also local Hindi dialects, such asBhojpuri,Awadhi, Kauravi, andBraj Bhasha.

Both Muslim men and women wore theshalwar kameez,^[35] while men also wore thesherwani.^[36] Indian Muslim women in urban areas historically also wore a whitepurdah, which hung around the figure around a small skull-cap.^[37]

TheMughal andIndo-Iranian heritage influenced their cuisine, having tastes vary from mild to spicy and is often associated witharoma. It tends to use stronger spices and flavors. Most of adastarkhawan dining table includeschapatti, rice,dal, vegetable and meat (beef,lamb,chicken,fish) dishes. Special dishes includebiryani,qorma,kofta,seekh kabab,Nihari andHaleem,Nargisi Koftay,Shashlik,Kata-Kat,Roghani Naan,Naan,Sheer khurma (sweet), qourma,chai (sweet, milky tea),paan, and other delicacies associated withNorth Indian Muslim culture.

Sufis (Islamic mystics) played an important role in the spread of Islam in India. They were successful in spreading Islam, as many aspects of Sufi belief systems and practices had their parallels in Indian philosophical literature, in particular nonviolence andmonism. The Sufis' orthodox approach towards Islam made it easier for Hindus to practice.Hazrat Khawaja Muin-ud-din Chishti,Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki, syed jalaluddin surkh posh bukhariNizam-ud-din Auliya,Shah Jalal, nasiruddin chirag Dehlvi, makhdoom jahaniya jahangasht, syed sadruddin raju qattalAmir Khusro,Sarkar Sabir Pak, Shekh Alla-ul-Haq Pandwi,Hazrat Qutabuddin Dehlvi,Hazrat Nasiruddin kaaly,Hazrat Jamal Shah Khurma Waly,Hazrat Shah Ahmad Shah Pir Ji Sarkar,Hazrat Syed Chishti Miyan (Muradabad),Hazrat Imam Shah Chishti,Ashraf Jahangir Semnani,Sarkar Waris Pak, andAta Hussain Fani Chishti trained Sufis to propagate Islam in different parts of India. When the Islamic Empire was established in India, the Sufi movement attracted followers from theartisan anduntouchable communities; they assisted in bridging the distance between Islam and the indigenous traditions.Ahmad Sirhindi, a prominent member of theNaqshbandiSufi, advocated the peaceful conversion of Hindus to Islam.Ahmed Rida Khan contributed a lot by defending traditional and orthodox Islam in India through his workFatawa Razvia.^{[citation needed]}

The following table gives the proportion of Muslims in the population of every district in Uttar Pradesh according to the 2011 Census. Excluded are the districts ofHapur,Sambhal andShamli which did not exist at the time of the census.

Urdu has much in common with theHindustani language and is mutually intelligible withStandard Hindi. The grammatical description in this article concerns standard Urdu. During theMughal Empire, the development of Urdu was further strengthened and started to emerge as a new language.^[39] The official language of theGhurids,Delhi Sultanate, the Mughal Empire, and their successor states, as well as the cultured language of poetry and literature, wasPersian, while the language of religion wasArabic. Gradually, the need to communicate with local inhabitants led to a composition of Sanskrit-derived languages, written in thePerso-Arabic script with literary conventions and specialized vocabulary being retained from Persian, Arabic, and Turkic; the new standard was eventually calledUrdu.^[40]

According to the Tashih Gharaib-ul-Lughat by Khan-i Arzu, the "zaban-e Urdu-e Shahi [the Imperial Urdu] had attained special importance in the time ofAlamgir"(1658-1707).^[41] During this time period, Urdu was referred to as"Moors" by European writers,^[42] such as the English priestJohn Ovington in 1689 after his visit to India:^[43]

The language of the Moors is different from that of the ancient original inhabitants of India, but is oblig'd to these Gentiles for its characters. For though theMoors dialect is peculiar to themselves, yet it is destitute of Letters to express it; and therefore in all their Writings in their Mother Tongue, they borrow their letters from the Heathens, or from the Persians, or other Nations.

Urdu is oftencontrasted with Hindi, another standardised form of Hindustani. The main differences between the two are that Standard Urdu is conventionally written in theNastaliq calligraphy style of thePerso-Arabic script and draws vocabulary from Persian, Arabic, Turkish and local languages^[44] while Standard Hindi is conventionally written inDevanāgarī and draws vocabulary fromSanskrit more heavily.^[45] Most linguists consider Urdu and Hindi to be two standardized forms of the same language;^[46][47] others classify them separately,^[48] while some consider any differences to besociolinguistic.^[49] Mutual intelligibility decreases in literary and specialized contexts. Due to religiousnationalism since the partition ofBritish India and consequent continued communal tensions, native speakers of both Hindi and Urdu increasingly assert them to be completely distinct languages.

Urdu's vocabulary remains heavily influenced by the Persian language.^[50] Since the 1800s, English started to replace Persian as the official language in India and it also contributed to influence the Urdu language. As of today, Urdu's vocabulary is strongly influenced by the English language.

Studies including theSachar Report have claimed that theMuslim community in Uttar Pradesh lags behind in terms of economics, educational attainment and political representation. The general political consensus in India has been, for a number of historic reasons, that the Muslim community as whole should not be subject to anyaffirmative action policies, such as other socially deprived groupings like theScheduled Castes. However, the state has conceded that certainbaradaris within the larger Muslim community of Uttar Pradesh deserve reservations in jobs and quotas in educational institutions. This principle has been established by theMandal Commission.^[51]

Many of these baradaris that have been traditionally associated with a particular craft have been grantedOther Backward Class (OBC) status, which in theory makes them eligible for a number of affirmative action schemes.^[52] There has been some criticism as the selection of criteria, which many disadvantaged MuslimBaradaris excluded from the lists drawn up by theGovernment of India. For example, certain Baradaris whoseHindu counterparts were lists as Scheduled Castes were omitted from the first Uttar Pradesh list. This was part dealt with by includingMuslim Nats,Muslim Mochis andMuslim Dhobis, whoseHindu counterparts have Scheduled Caste status as backward communities.^[53] However, a number of extremely marginalized Muslim communities such as theMuslim Dabgar.Muslim Bandhmatis. Muslim Dom andMuslim Bansphor remain excluded despite the fact that there Hindu counterparts are on the Scheduled Caste list. Other economically deprived groups such as theKankali,Kanmailia andKingharia have also been excluded, while groups like theKayastha Muslims andMuslim Kamboh have been included. Approximately 44 communities have been included in the Uttar Pradesh OBC list.^[54]

TheGovernment of India made an announcement to establish a sub-quota of 4.5% for minorities within the existing 27% reservation meant for the OBC. This decision was said to be made to address Muslim communities that have been granted OBC status are unable to compete with wealthier section of the Hindu OBC community.^[55] However, Justice Sachar who headed theSachar Committee criticized the government decision saying, "Such promises will not help the backward section of minorities. It is like befooling them. These people are making tall claims just to win elections"^[56]

Notable Muslims from Uttar Pradesh include actress Shabana Azami, Vice President of IndiaMohammad Hamid Ansari, Vice President of Muslim Personal Law Board Dr. Kalbe Sadiq, actor and directorMuzaffar Ali, journalistSaeed Naqvi, Persian scholarDr. Naiyer Masud Rizvi, linguist Masud Husain Khan, GovernorSyed Sibtey Razi, historianIrfan Habib, politicianSalman Khursheed, and cricketerMohammad Kaif.

• Islam in India
• States of India by Urdu speakers