North America's relative openness to immigration and religious expression, as well as its unusually high rate of religiosity (especially in the United States) within the developed world, has allowed Islam to take root, thrive, and evolve in surprising ways. Islam is already the second largest religious tradition (behind Christianity) in Canada, and is projected by the Pew Research Forum to be the second largest religious tradition in the United States by 2040. Almost daily, one reads about news relating to Islam and Muslims, and many universities offer courses on the topic. While there is a growing body of scholarship, there are few resources focusing on Islam as a North American religious tradition, and none which consider the connections between Muslims across the region. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Islam in North America provides the leading reference resource in this growing field, assembling scholars from religious studies, theology, history, gender and sexuality studies, political science, sociology, law, media studies, and the arts. With over 90 articles, the volume covers the major issues related to Islam in the West, including religious practice and communities, immigration, modernism, demographics, artistic expression, politics, and culture. Given their unique and varied interpretations of the religion, African American, Latin American, and Caribbean versions of Islam are also covered in detail, further demonstrating the ongoing evolution of a unique and varied North American Islam, part of a rapidly changing global religious landscape.
