Dynamics of Development of Islamic Education in Mauritania

The article analyzes the transformation of the religious education system in Mauritania. Traditional Arab-Islamic education is in the center of public attention in the Muslim world, because it is closely related to both the problem of security and the strengthening of identity. The modern Mauritanian unique model of religious education, which has gained high authority and popularity in the Islamic world, is based on the foundation of a historical educational institution called mahdara. The article examines the history of the emergence of mahdara, the goals, forms and methods of teaching, the adaptation of the ancient model of education to modern times. An analysis of the state policy of recent decades in relation to the institutions of Islamic education is conducted. The author comes to the conclusion that mahdara was able to effectively adapt its functions, way of life, education system, social activities and intellectual component to modern times. Mahdara plays an important academic and social role in Mauritania and the Muslim world at large, continuing to exert a powerful influence in the political and religious spheres. In modern Mauritanian society, it promotes the spread of education, the preservation of spirituality and culture, and the unification of the country.

Mauritania, religious education, mahdara, state policy in the field of education, religious radicalism, modernization, identity