Twelver Shia
Twelve-imam denomination
Twelver Shia refers to the largest branch of Shia Islam, whose followers believe in a succession of twelve divinely appointed leaders, or imams, beginning with Ali and ending with Muhammad al-Mahdi, who is believed to be in occultation and will return as a messianic figure.
The name distinguishes this branch from other Shia groups who recognize different numbers of imams.
Twelver Shia Islam is the dominant religion in Iran and Iraq and has significant populations in Lebanon, Bahrain, and elsewhere.
- ImamateState ruled by imam
- Ali ibn Abi TalibFourth leader after Muhammad
- AshuraIslamic day of fasting
- MahdiIslam's foretold deliverer
- FatimahMuhammad's youngest daughter
Wilayat al-Faqih · religious authority · Ayatollah · prayer · Zakat · Quran · mosque · mourning · martyrdom · lamentation · chest beating · mourning procession · Hajj · Hussein · Iraq · pilgrimage · turbans · weeping
- Mideast ReligionsIslam, Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Mandaeism
- Shia IslamAli, Ali ibn Abi Talib, Hussein, Hussain, imam
- Islamic SectsSunni, Wahhabism, Salafism
- SafavidsIsfahan, state religion, Persian carpets, Persian rugs, carpet weaving
- Shia Jurisprudenceayatollah, fatwa, zakat, temporary marriage, salat
- Persian ReligionsZoroastrianism, Bahai, Yazidi, Manichaean
Twelver ShiaChristianity
Faith based on Jesus
Judaism · Hinduism · Buddhism · atheism · secularism