Being German, Becoming Muslim

"Through thoughtful portraits, Ozyurek explores the dilemmas faced by converts to Islam in Germany, where new Muslims are seeking nonethnic forms of the religion. She shows how these converts are finding an original way to be German through their Islam--a discovery that seems dangerous to some in the German state. A clear, convincing account of new Muslims in a European land."--John Bowen, author of Can Islam Be French?
"In a society where 'Muslim' has come to imply 'nonwhite immigrant, ' and where German-Islam for many is a contradiction of identity, how do native German Muslims tread across these conundra? Ozyurek's engaging and penetrating book leads us through the issues and reveals as much about Germany and a select group of Germans as it does about Islam."--Ruth Mandel, University College London
"This book offers both a call and a hope. Ozyurek shows the tremendous role of Muslim converts in making Islam a German and European religion, and she calls converts to meet this challenge. She also presents the common hope of everyone 'living together' in unity, and her book is an important contribution to the achievement of this goal."--Tariq Ramadan, University of Oxford
"Given the current position of Islam in Europe, why do Europeans convert? What do the experiences of converts reveal about contemporary life, particularly in Germany? This rich book offers a new perspective and entree into the discussion of religion in Europe."--Damani J. Partridge, University of Michigan
"Ozyurek has written an engaging, highly readable portrait of German converts to Islam who have become key figures in public debates over the future of the country as a multireligious, multiethnic polity. The book serves as a primer on the history of Islam in Germany and plumbs the limits of European secularism. A pleasure to read."--Paul Silverstein, Reed College

Acknowledgments ix Introduction Germanizing Islam and Racializing Muslims 1
Chapter 1 Giving Islam a German Face 24
Chapter 2 Establishing Distance from Immigrant Muslims 51
Chapter 3 East German Conversions to Islam after the Collapse of the Berlin Wall 69
Chapter 4 Being Muslim as a Way of Becoming German 87
Chapter 5 Salafism as the Future of European Islam? 109
Chapter 6 Conclusion 132 Notes 137 References 149 Index 163