Malikization of the Maghreb

Following the Muslim conquest of the Maghreb, various Islamic sects began to develop in the region. Although the majority of the inhabitants of Ifriqiya adhered to Sunni Islam, opposition to the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates began to emerge in the western and central Maghreb. In these areas, Zaydi Shi'ism, Isma'ili Shi'ism, Kharijite Ibadism and Kharijite Sufrism were all well-established.^[3] The repression and marginalization of political parties in Iraq and the Middle East in the 8th century caused religious missionaries and political dissidents to emigrate to the Maghreb, who converted large populations.^[2]

The Kharijite Ibadi movement reached North Africa by 719, when the missionary Salma ibn Sa'd was sent from the Ibadi jama'a of Basra in Iraq to Kairouan in Ifriqiya,^[4] which managed to convert the major Berber tribes of Huwara around Tripoli, in the Nafusa Mountains and the Zenata in western Tripolitania by 740.^{[5]: 37–38} Kharijism was at the outset the most acceptable form of Islam to the Berbers, primarily due to its emphasis on the equality of all Muslims. Despite this, the belief co-existed with great reverence for Ali's family, which permitted the rise of various Sharifian (direct descendants of Muhammad) dynasties in the Maghreb, such as the Zaydi Shia Idrisid dynasty.^[6]

The Maghreb historically had a large Shia Arab population, such as the Zaydi Idrisids and the Bedouin tribes of Banu Hilal and Banu Sulaym that emigrated to the Maghreb.^[7] In 893, an Arab Shia missionary known as Abu Abdallah al-Shi'i arrived in the Maghreb from Yemen, who subsequently converted the Kutama of northeastern Algeria to Ismaili Shi'ism. These came under the rule of the Fatimid dynasty who organized an army to fight the Mu'tazilite Sunni Aghlabid dynasty of Ifriqiya. After numerous battles against the Aghlabids, the Fatimids emerged victorious in 909 and conquered Ifriqiya, establishing the Fatimid Caliphate.^[8] The Idrisids of the western Maghreb (present-day Morocco) have been described as a Zaydi Shia dynasty who attempted to introduce doctrines of Shia Islam in the Maghreb.^[9] Having come from the Arabian Peninsula, Idris ibn Abdallah and his descendants had brought with them a form of archaic Shi'ism that was very similar to Zaydism.^[10]

The Aghlabid dynasty, which ruled Ifriqiya from 800 to 909 as vassals of the Abbasids, adhered to the Mu'tazilite rationalist doctrine within Hanafi Sunni Islam. Once Mu'tazilism was adopted as the official doctrine of the Abbasid Caliphate of Baghdad during the reign of caliph Al-Ma'mun (813–833), the Aghlabids followed suit and officialized it in Ifriqiya. This was met with opposition from the Maliki majority of Ifriqiya, particularly due to the Mu'tazilite rejection of the orthodox belief that the Qur'an was God's eternal word and therefore uncreated. Although the Aghlabids recognized the political influence of the Maliki religious leaders, they were both unable and unwilling to alter their governmental system to align with their beliefs.^[5]: 57 The qāḍī (judge) of Kairouan adhered to the Hanafi school and endorsed the concept of Khalq al-Qur'an (createdness of the Qur'an). The Aghlabids consistently favored Iraqis as their higher-ranking judges, while the viziers had affiliations with the Maliki school.^[11] Some Malikis were persecuted for rejecting Mu'tazilite beliefs, such as Sahsun, who suffered persecution during the reign of Emir Muhammad I ibn al-Aghlab (841–856) for rejecting the Mu'tazilite concept that the Qur'an was created.^[5]: 57