For a long time, theories have been developed to explain the appearance of the Shīʿa. Many of the theories were devised by non-Shīʿa scholars or even anti-Shīʿa polemicists
In Islamic parlance, however, the word shīʿa has come to denote three rather different meanings. In one sense, it refers to those who love and support ʿAlī and the descendants of him and Fāṭima who make the Prophet’s Household (Ahl…
