The word · Law & life
قاضٍ
Qadi
A judge in an Islamic court, whose ruling binds, unlike a mufti's opinion.
Also written · Qadhi · Kadi · Qazi · Kadhi · Qaadi · Kazi · Qudah · Qada · judge · Islamic judge · sharia judge · magistrate · court
The meaning
What Qadi means in Islam
Appointment as a qadi was treated as a heavy burden rather than an honour, and several of the great imams refused it outright. The office asks for knowledge, integrity and independence, and classical manuals warn a judge not to rule while angry, hungry or distracted. The instruction reported from the Prophet, not to decide between two people until you have heard from both, is quoted in nearly every book on the subject.
Evidence · Editorial · Our own summary, drawn from the sources named
Read beside it
Rooms that name it
Words that sit beside it
- FatwaA scholar's answer to a specific question: advice, not a court judgement.فَتْوى
- HududThe small set of fixed penalties named in revelation, hedged about with very strict proof.حُدود
- Ta'zirDiscretionary punishment, set by a judge for offences that carry no fixed penalty.تَعْزير
- QisasEqual retaliation for murder or injury, which the victim's family may always waive for compensation.قِصاص
More from Law & life
- 'AqdA contract: a binding agreement formed by an offer and its acceptance.عَقْد
- DiyahBlood money: compensation paid to a victim's family for a killing or an injury.دِيَة
- HijabThe covering a Muslim woman wears in public, most often a headscarf with modest clothing.حِجاب
- MahrThe gift of money or property the groom owes the bride, which belongs to her alone.مَهْر
- MurabahahA sale at a disclosed cost plus markup, widely used in Islamic banking in place of lending.مُرابَحة
- RukhsahA concession: permission to do the easier thing when a recognised excuse applies.رُخْصة