Muslim Atmospheres as Neighbourhoods of Religious Diasporic Microspheres

Abstract

In many countries around the globe, Muslims not only form a statistical religious minority, but also are mainly regarded as a homogeneous group by the average citizen, the press and politicians. Concepts of Muslim diaspora seem to frequently reinforce this idea, implying that Muslims are building a global community endangering supposedly peaceful cohabitation within nation-states. In contrast, this article, based on a case study in Argentina, shows that diasporic communities can be fruitfully conceptualised as socio-cultural orders with a special ‘atmosphere’, which is formed by the emotional connections between group members and their surroundings, which transcend borders of nation-states. Furthermore, it shows that one of the aims of Muslims in Argentina is to be recognised as integrated into the host society. This analysis is based on data collected during field work in Argentina as well as on ethnographies by various scholars and literature produced by Muslim organisations and their websites.