COLLECTIVE IDENTITY IN THE VIRTUAL ISLAMIC PUBLIC SPHERE Contemporary Discourses in Two Islamic Websites Mohammed el-Nawawy and Sahar Khamis Abstract / This study utilizes a textual analysis of selected threads from the Arabic discussion forums of two of the most popular Islamic websites – Islamonline.net and Islamway.com – to explore the potential impact of the new Islamic virtual public sphere, and the reconfiguration of the ‘virtual umma’ (Islamic community) online, on the creation of collective identities. The study also assesses whether the discourses and deliberations taking place in these two sites’ discussion forums exem- plify an ideal Habermasian public sphere, through shura (consultation), ijtihad (interpretation) and ijma (consensus), as defined within the Islamic context. Findings indicate that there is an uncritical, unquestioning type of emotional consensus among posters who did not exemplify a truly rational- critical debate, particularly when it came to issues of political salience. Discussions among the posters show that they consider being a ‘Muslim’ as the most important ‘identity signifier’ in their lives. However, in some cases, especially while discussing political issues of a ‘pan-Arab’ nature, a parallel ‘Arab’ identity also emerged, confirming the parallelism and interrelatedness of ‘Arab’ and ‘Muslim’ identities, and the overlap between mediated ‘Arab’ and ‘Islamic’ public spheres. Keywords / collective identity / contemporary Islamic discourses / Islamic websites / public Islam / public sphere / rational-critical deliberations / virtual umma Introduction There are numerous Islamic websites that have had a great impact on mainstream Islamic discourses in recent years. Some of these sites were launched by authorita- tive religious clerics as virtual extensions of conventional Islamic institutions, while others are simply attempts by ordinary individuals, with no formal religious education or training, to create an online public space for discourse about Islam. The current trends in online Islamic websites pose several pressing and foundational questions: What are the general patterns and trends of these sites’ discourses? How far do these sites act as a platform for the display of collective identities within the realm of the ‘virtual umma’ (Islamic community) in the digital age? How do these sites contribute to the creation of an Islamic public sphere(s)? This study attempts to address these questions, which deserve further investiga- tion in the academic literature, through analyzing the discourses and deliberations The International Communication Gazette © The Author(s), 2010. Reprints and permissions: http://www.sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav the International Communication Gazette, 1748-0485; Vol. 72(3): 229–250; DOI: 10.1177/1748048509356949 http://gaz.sagepub.com 02 GAZ356949 29/1/10 4:18 pm Page 229