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Ilm al-kalam [a] or ilm al-lahut,[b] often shortened to kalam, is the scholastic, speculative, or philosophical study of Islamic theology (aqida).[2] It can also be defined as the science that studies the fundamental doctrines of Islamic faith (usul al-din), proving their validity, or refuting doubts regarding them.[3]
Kalām was born out of the need to establish and defend the tenets of Islam against the philosophical doubters.[4][5]
The term kalām means "speech", "word", or "utterance". There are many possible interpretations as to why this discipline was originally called so; one is that one of the widest controversies in this discipline, in the second and third centuries of Hijra, has been about whether the "Word of God" (Kalām Allāh), as revealed in the Quran, is an eternal attribute of God and therefore not created, or whether it is created words.[4][6]
A scholar of kalam is referred to as a mutakallim (plural mutakallimun), a role distinguished from those of Islamic philosophers and jurists.[7]
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For a definition of 'ilm al-kalam, it is sufficient to say that, "It is a science which studies the basic doctrines of the Islamic faith (usul al-Din). It identifies the basic doctrines and seeks to prove their validity and answers any doubts which may be cast upon them."
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