[Tlc] Shia Comunities in Thailand (and research on Muslim Communities in General)

[Mitchell Bonner]

     I have seen a Muslim mosque in Vientiane, Lao PDR; it is near Nam Phu Square. I have been told there are about 2000 Muslims in Laos, mostly of Asian Indian ancestory.


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To: tlc at lists.ucr.edu
Date: Thu, 26 Feb 2009 20:15:41 -0500
From: zehner1234 at aol.com
Subject: [Tlc] Shia Comunities in Thailand (and research on Muslim Communities in General)

Alexander Horstmann wrote: 

Has anyone done research on Schi'ite communities in Thailand or on the
Shi'a? 

My Response:

Raymond Scupin's 1978 dissertation "Thai Muslims in Bangkok" makes brief references to Shias of Iranian/Persian origin on pp. 35-36, and to Shias of Indian origin on p. 43, including a few details on their overall place in the community, the term then commonly applied to them, and mention of at least one Bangkok mosque that was considered Shia. However, the Shias were not the primary focus of his dissertation, and this is all I remember him writing about it. There may be other references in the literature on Muslims in Thailand, but I cannot give details at the moment, as I was not paying attention to that issue in my recent reading of it.

As for individuals who are relatively well informed and who are likely to have useful contacts within the Thai Muslim community, I suggest Imtiyaz Yusuf, Raymond Scupin, and Chaiwat Satha-anand. If needed, I may have email contacts for the first two, and I would welcome information on how to contact the third.

Incidentally, I would welcome opportunities to converse with others who are working on Muslim communities, especially those outside the Malay-speaking areas of the southernmost provinces. In hopes of inspiring more work on these communities, I have very recently drafted a paper attempting to outline the current state of knowledge, including some suggestions on social and cultural issues worth pursuing. I would welcome a chance to exchange views on such matters, and would definitely welcome news of others working in these areas. As I say at the end of the paper, this is not a topic to be taken up by just one person, as there is a great deal that deserves to be done. So I will be interesting in hearing (off-list) from any others working in this area, regardless of how long or at what level. Thanks in advance.

Edwin Zehner, Visiting Fellow, Southeast Asia Program, Cornell University



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