Salafi–Sufi relations: what Wikipedia removed
This article covers the relationship between Salafism and Sufism, two major schools of thought in Sunni Islam. Through 2015 the opening said Salafism “in the Western world… is often associated with the Salafist jihadism which espouse violent jihad against civilians as a legitimate expression of Islam.” Today’s opening describes Salafism only as a literalist approach to Qur’an and hadith, with jihad surviving 24 times in the body. A reader today does not learn that the opening once named Salafist jihadism’s own claim that violence against civilians is a legitimate expression of Islam.
The word “jihad” appeared 2 times in this article’s opening at its peak, in 2015. Today the opening carries none; the body carries 24. Checked against the full current article on 2026-08-01.
The tracked words, snapshot by snapshot
Section titled “The tracked words, snapshot by snapshot”| word | 2015 | 2020 | 6 October 2023 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| jihad | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| terror | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| islamist | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| colonial | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Counts are of the opening paragraph only, the part most readers, search engines and AI training sets ever quote.
What was taken out
Section titled “What was taken out”- The sentence naming Salafism and Sufism as two movements of Sunni Islam was reworded to describe their relationship as ‘historically diverse.’
- The description of Salafist jihadism as espousing violent jihad against civilians ‘as a legitimate expression of Islam,’ dropped from the opening.
- The claim that Sufis were also involved in terrorism and militancy in Kashmir and Chechnya, dropped from the opening.
- The sentence on Muslims who believe Salafism and Sufism ‘overlap,’ dropped from the opening.
- The claim that the debate is found in ‘practically every Muslim country today,’ reworded elsewhere in the opening.
How it opened then, and now
Section titled “How it opened then, and now”2015 (revision 669145277):
The relationship between Salafism and Sufis – two movement of Sunni Islam with different interpretations of Islam – is historically diverse and reflects some of the changes and conflicts in the Muslim world today. Salafism is associated with literalist , strict and puritanical approaches to Islam. In the Western world it is often associated with the Salafist jihadism which espouse violent jihad against civilians as a legitimate expression of Islam. Sufism is associated with the use of prayer, music, dance and the teachings of Sufi masters—who may serve as an intermediary between God and humans—to achieve a spiritual sense of the meaning of God. Sufis were also involved in terrorism and milli…
2025 (revision 1289573866):
Relations between two major Islamic schools of thought Salafism and Sufism are two major scholarly movements which have been influential in Sunni Muslim societies. The debates between Salafi and Sufi schools of thought have dominated the Sunni world since the classical era, splitting their influence across religious communities and cultures, with each school competing for scholarly authority via official and unofficial religious institutions. The relationship between Salafism and Sufism — whose interpretations of Islam differ — is historically diverse and reflects some of the changes and conflicts in the Muslim world . Salafism is associated with literalist approaches to Islam, giving import…
Related
Section titled “Related”- The drift report: what changed across all 61,944 watched articles
- The case file for this article, with every snapshot and every marked removal
- Who made the cuts: removals grouped by the account that made them
- The live article on Wikipedia
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