Jamal-al-Din al-Afghani

Sayyid Muḥammad ibn Ṣafdar Husaynī (), better known as Sayyid Jamāl-ad-Dīn al-Afghānī () and Sayyid Jamal-ad-Din Asadabadi (), (b. 1838, d. March 9, 1897), was a political activist and Islamic ideologist in the Muslim world during the late 19th century, particularly in the Middle East, South Asia and Europe. One of the founders of Islamic modernism and an advocate of pan-Islamic unity,Ludwig W. Adamec, Historical Dictionary of Islam (Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 2001), p. 32 he has been described as "less interested in theology than he was in organizing a Muslim response to Western pressure."Vali Nasr, The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam Will Shape the Future (New York: Norton, 2006), p. 103.

Early life and origin

He claimed to be of Afghan origin most of his life but evidence suggests that he was born in Iran. Although some older sources claim that Asadabadi was born in a district of Kunar Province in Afghanistan which is also called Asadabad,From Reform to Revolution, Louay Safi, Intellectual Discourse 1995, Vol. 3, No. 1...
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