Abdul Qayum | |
|---|---|
আব্দুল কাইয়ুম | |
| Born | (1960-03-01)1 March 1960 (age 65) |
| Citizenship | British |
| Occupation(s) | Imam, lecturer, religious leader |
| Organization(s) | East London Mosque European Council for Fatwa and Research |
Abdul Qayum (Bengali:আব্দুল কাইয়ুম,Arabic:مُحَمَّد عَبْدُ الْقَيُّوم; born 1 March 1960) is aBritish Bangladeshi scholar and the chiefimam of theEast London Mosque.[1] A former lecturer at theInternational Islamic University Malaysia, Abdul Qayum also served as a presenter on Islamic programs onPeace TV Bangla andChannel 9.[2]
Abdul Qayum was born in theDistrict of Noakhali inEast Pakistan (nowBangladesh). He studied Islamic sciences andHadith at theGovernment Madrasah-e-Alia inDhaka and then continued his studies of Islamic sciences under several scholars inRiyadh, Saudi Arabia. At theImam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University, he completed a Bachelor of Arts in Arabic language and literature and a Master of Arts inapplied linguistics. He then became a lecturer ofQuranic Arabic at theInternational Islamic University of Malaysia.[3]
After moving to the United Kingdom with his family, he was elected as theKhatib of theEast London Mosque in 1993. In 2008, he was made aware of Richard House Children's Hospice and in 2010 he became a patron.[4] He is a member ofEuropean Council for Fatwa and Research and National Council of Imams and Rabbis, which is a registered operating name of the Joseph Interfaith Foundation.[5] He is also a signatory toIstanbul's Environmental Declaration.
Abdul Qayum studiedhadith and otherIslamic sciences alongsideMohammad Akram Nadwi[6] and attendedSOAS, University of London.[7]
In early January 2021,[8] he and some of his family members had tested positive forCOVID-19 amid thepandemic,[9] and were admitted to theRoyal London Hospital for care.[10]