fatwa

American  

[faht-wah] / ˈfɑt wɑ /

noun

1. an Islamic religious decree issued by the ʿulama.

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fatwa British  

/ ˈfætwɑː /

noun

1. a non-binding judgment on a point of Islamic law given by a recognized religious authority

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Etymology

Origin of fatwa

First recorded in 1985–90, fatwa is from the Arabic word fatwā

Example Sentences

But while many celebrated Mirza's rise, a group of Muslim clerics issued a fatwa, denouncing her tennis clothes as "indecent", "un-Islamic" and "corrupting".

From BBC

Rushdie lived in hiding for years after Iran’s Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989 issued a fatwa calling for his death because of the alleged blasphemy in his novel “The Satanic Verses.”

From Seattle Times

Rushdie, 75, lived in hiding for years after Iran’s Grand Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa in 1989 calling for his death because of the alleged blasphemy of the novel “The Satanic Verses.”

From Seattle Times

After Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, then Iran's supreme leader, pronounced a fatwa, or religious edict, calling for Rushdie's death, the writer spent years in hiding under the protection of British police.

From Reuters

Salman Rushdie, the author and free speech icon, was stabbed onstage last summer after years of living under the threat of a fatwa.

From New York Times