lims, even though the qUran declares, “Complete
the umra and the hajj for God” (Q 2:196). It
is thought that the umra was celebrated before
Islamic times during the spring month of Rajab,
the seventh month, as a local Meccan ritual
that involved animal sacrifice. During the early
Islamic era, it was changed. Thus, in contrast to
the hajj, it can be done at any time of the year,
and consists of ritual practices that are confined
to the Sacred Mosque area only. The journey to
Mina and araFat is not involved, nor is animal
sacrifice required. Islamic law, however, permits
combining the umra with the hajj. According
to the hadith, performing the umra temporarily
absolves one of any sins committed beforehand,
while performing the hajj earns one a place in
paradise.
The basic components of this pilgrimage are:
(1) declaration of intention (niyya); (2) ritual
purification and wearing two white seamless gar-
ments (ihram); seven circumambulations (tawaf)
of the kaaba; (3) touching the black stone; (4)
prayer at the Station of abraham; (5) running
seven times between the hills of Safa and Marwa
next to the Sacred Mosque; and (6) a ritual hair
cut or shaving of the head. Pilgrims also pro-
nounce the talbiyya (“At your service, O Lord,
at your service!”) and other invocations during
these rites. Many take a drink of water from the
zamzam well. For Women, the umra does not
require either the distinctive ihram garments or
the shaving of the head.
Since the last decades of the 20th century mil-
lions of pilgrims have participated in the umra
annually. Many prefer to do it during ramadan, an
especially holy month in the Islamic calendar.
See also ablUtion.
Further reading: Laleh Bakhtiar, Encyclopedia of Islamic
Law: A Compendium of the Major Schools (Chicago:
ABC International Group, 1996), 165–202; F. E. Peters,
The Hajj: The Muslim Pilgrimage to Mecca and the Holy
Places (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press,
1994), 129–134.
unbeliever See apostasy; kafir.
United Arab Emirates See gulf states.
United States
The history of Islam in the United States goes
back to the 18th century, but significant growth of
the community does not begin until the late 19th
century. Immigration increased throughout the
20th century, until the Muslim community became
the fastest growing religious community (both by
immigration and conversion) in the United States
today. Current census figures of Muslims in America
are difficult to estimate. Negative media exposure
to sectarian African-American Muslim communi-
ties since the civil rights era and to immigrant and
expatriate Muslim communities since September
11th have made many Muslims reluctant to reveal
religious information in census surveys. Census
figures assessing the size of the Muslim community
in the United States vary greatly, starting as low
as 3 to 4 million and others ranging as high as 6
million to 7 million. The greatest concentrations
(by virtue of the number of mosqUes) are located
in California, New York, and Michigan, followed
by Pennsylvania, Texas, Ohio, Illinois, and Florida.
In addition to those Muslims who are actively reli-
gious and practice to varying degrees, there are also
those who may best be identified as “cultural” or
“secular” Muslims, reflecting the modern evolution
of islam as an ethnic or cultural identity but not as
a belief or practice.
The earliest Muslim immigrants came to the
United States beginning in the late 19th century
from the predominantly Arabic-speaking Middle
East (lebanon, syria, Jordan, Palestinian Author-
ity, and israel), becoming small merchants and
factory laborers with the strongest settlement in
New York and the Midwest. Muslim immigra-
tion declined during the periods of World War
I and II (1914–18, 1939–45), but continued to
grow in between and afterward. Changes in U.S.United States 691 J