Tafsīr Aḥkām in Indonesian Journals: Thematic Clusters, Methodological Trends, and the Cross-Madhhab Gap (2019–2025)

Abdul Muiz Amir; Surahman Amin; Fuad Fansuri; Fatira Wahidah; Muhammad Amri; Danial

doi:10.24252/mazahibuna.vi.67414

Authors

Abdul Muiz Amir Institut Agama Islam Negeri Kendari, Indonesia
Surahman Amin Institut Agama Islam Negeri Sorong, Papua Barat Daya, Indonesia
Fuad Fansuri Universitas Islam Negeri Sultan Aji Muhammad Idris, Samarinda, Indonesia
Fatira Wahidah Institut Agama Islam Negeri Kendari, Sulawesi Tenggara, Indonesia
Muhammad Amri Institut Agama Islam Negeri Ternate, Indonesia.
Danial Institut Agama Islam Negeri Kendari, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24252/mazahibuna.vi.67414

Keywords:

Tafsir Ahkam, Systematic Literature Review, Research Gaps, SINTA, the Cross-Madhhab Gap

Abstract

Tafsīr aḥkām (the systematic exegesis of legal verses in the Qur'an), is one of the most dynamic strands of Islamic scholarly discourse in Indonesia. Yet no study has comprehensively mapped this research landscape across nationally accredited journals indexed in SINTA 1 and 2. The present study addresses that gap by constructing a systematic research map of tafsīr aḥkām publications in SINTA 1 and 2 journals between 2019 and 2025. Guided by the PRISMA 2020 protocol, a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) screened 847 initial records through multi-stage selection and yielded a final corpus of 267 articles with substantial inter-rater reliability (Cohen's κ = 0.84). The analysis identified five primary thematic clusters, namely family and marriage law (28.5%), Islamic economics and finance (24.3%), criminal law and jināyah (18.7%), gender relations and women's rights (17.2%), and environmental fiqh and contemporary issues (11.3%). The maqāṣid al-sharīʿah approach has accelerated markedly in the post-COVID-19 period (2021–2025), while institutional output remains concentrated in five universities that together account for roughly 74% of the corpus. Six critical research gaps emerge from the analysis, namely the scarcity of cross-madhhab comparative work, critical hermeneutics, ethnographic enquiry, engagement with disruptive technologies, systematic Islamic eco-theology, and scient metric mapping. The resulting research map provides a foundational resource for advancing the theoretical and empirical frontiers of the field.

References

Abou El Fadl, K. (2014). Reasoning with God: Reclaiming Shariah in the Modern Age. Rowman & Littlefield.

Abu Zayd, N. H. (2004). Rethinking the Quran: Towards a humanistic hermeneutics. Humanistics University Press Utrecht.

Ahmed, L. (2021). Women and gender in Islam: Historical roots of a modern debate. Yale University Press. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt32bg61

Al Ghazali, A. H. M. (1993). Al-Mustasfa min Ilm al-Usul. Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah.

Alias, M. N., Abdullah, M. N., Kamis, M. S., Afandi, A. J., & Alias, N. (2024). Scientific Approach as the Basis for the Formation of Maqasid Al-Shariah Concept and Principles: A Comparative Study. Malaysian Journal of Syariah and Law, 12(2), 350–363. https://doi.org/10.33102/mjsl.vol12no2.568

Alshater, M. M., Hassan, M. K., Rashid, M., & Hasan, R. (2022). A bibliometric review of the Waqf literature. Eurasian Economic Review, 12(2), 213–239. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40822-021-00183-4

Ar-Raysuni, A. (1995). Nazariyah al-Maqasid Inda al-Imam asy-Syatibi. Al-Mahad al-Alami li al-Fikri al-Islami

Aria, M., & Cuccurullo, C. (2017). Bibliometrix: An R-tool for comprehensive science mapping analysis. Journal of Informetrics, 11(4), 959–975. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joi.2017.08.007

Auda, J. (2007). Maqasid al-Shariah as Philosophy of Islamic Law. In The International Institute of Islamic Thought. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvkc67tg

Ayuni, W., Nirwana, A., & Nurrohim, A. (2023). Bibliometric Analysis of the Development Map and Research Trends in Qur'anic Studies and Tafseer: A Scopus Database Exploration (1974–2023). Journal of Qur'an and Hadith Studies, 12(2), 95–116. https://doi.org/10.15408/quhas.v12i2.36191

Azra, A. (2004). The Origins of Islamic Reformism in Southeast Asia: Networks of Malay-Indonesian and Middle Eastern Ulama in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. University of Hawaii Press.

Bakry, M. M. (2020). Laws exegesis versus jurisprudence (Comparative studies in understanding religious text and the istinbath process of law on mahar). JICSA (Journal of Islamic Civilization in Southeast Asia), 9(1), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.24252/jicsa.v8i2.12005

Barlas, A. (2002). The Quran, Sex/Gender, and Sexuality: Sameness, Difference, Equality. In Believing Women in Islam: Unreading Patriarchal Interpretations of the Qu'an (pp. 129–166). University of Texas Press. https://utpress.utexas.edu/9781477315927

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101. https://doi.org/10.1191/1478088706qp063oa

Brown, J. A. C. (2014). Misquoting Muhammad: The challenge and choices of interpreting the Prophet's legacy. Oneworld.

Burhanudin, J., & van Dijk, K. (Eds.). (2013). Islam in Indonesia: Contrasting images and interpretations. Amsterdam University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctt46mwqt

Demircigil, B. (2025). The Conceptualization of Jurisprudential Exegesis as the Intersection of Tafsir and Fiqh: A Critical Approach. Religions, 16(2), 254. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16020254

Donthu, N., Kumar, S., Mukherjee, D., Pandey, N., & Lim, W. M. (2021). How to conduct a bibliometric analysis: An overview and guidelines. Journal of Business Research, 133(1), 285–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2021.04.070

Duderija, A. (Ed.). (2014). Maqasid al-Sharia and Contemporary Reformist Muslim Thought: An Examination. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137319418

El-Gamal, M. A. (2006). Islamic finance: Law, economics, and practice. Cambridge University Press.

El-Mesawi, M. E.-T. (2012). From al-Shatibis legal hermeneutics to thematic exegesis of the Quran. Intellectual Discourse, 20(2), 189–214. https://doi.org/10.31436/id.v20i2.294

El Cheikh, N. M. (2012). [Review of the book Marriage and slavery in early Islam, by K. Ali]. Journal of Middle East Women's Studies, 8(2), 102–104. https://doi.org/10.2979/jmiddeastwomstud.8.2.102

Esack, F. (1997). Qur'an, Liberation, and Pluralism: An Islamic Perspective of Interreligious Solidarity against Oppression. Oneworld Publications.

Fadlillah, N., Sholihah, N., Fuad, A. Z., Syaifudin, M., & Abdullah, M. (2025). A Bibliometric Analysis of Quranic Learning Research in Scopus (1994–2024): Trends, Thematic Shifts, and Institutional Disparities. Al-Talim Journal, 32(3), 264–277. http://dx.doi.org/10.15548/jt.v32i3.961

Fealy, G., & Hooker, V. M. (2006). Voices of Islam in Southeast Asia: A contemporary sourcebook. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.

Foltz, R. C., Denny, F. M., & Baharuddin, A. (Eds.). (2003). Islam and Ecology: A Bestowed Trust. Harvard University Press.

Kerwanto, K., Furqon, I., & Mubassyir, A. (2024). Diskursus Seputar Epistemologi Tafsir Ahkam. MIZANUNA: Jurnal Hukum Ekonomi Syariah, 2(1), 59–70. https://doi.org/10.59166/mizanuna.v2i1.222

Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Aldine.

Gleave, R. (2012). Islam and literalism: Literal meaning and interpretation in Islamic legal theory. Edinburgh University Press. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctt3fgt1x

Hallaq, W. B. (2009). Sharia: Theory, practice, transformations. Cambridge University Press.

Harvey, R. (2017). The Legal Epistemology of Quranic Variants: The Readings of Ibn Masud in Kufan fiqh and the Hanafi madhhab. Journal of Quranic Studies, 19(1), 72–101. https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2017.0268

Hidayatullah, A. A. (2014). Feminist Edges of the Quran. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199359561.001.0001

Ibn al-Arabi, M. A. (2003). Ahkam al-Quran (M. A. al-Q. Ata, Ed.; 3rd ed., 4 vols.). Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-Ilmiyyah.

Ibn Ashur, M. al-Tahir. (2006). Ibn Ashur: Treatise on Maqasid Al-Shariah (T. M. El-Mesawi, Ed.). IIIT.

Iqbal, Z., & Mirakhor, A. (2011). An introduction to Islamic finance: Theory and practice. John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118390474

Izutsu, T. (2008). God and Man in the Quran: Semantics of the Quranic Weltanschauung. Islamic Book Trust.

Jamil, A., & Khaled, N. A. (2025). Quranic Studies in the Global Academic Sphere: Bibliometric Mapping of Research Themes, Collaborations, and Emerging Directions. Tribakti: Jurnal Pemikiran Keislaman, 36(2), 385–400. https://doi.org/10.33367/tribakti.v36i2.7155

Mahmood, S. (2005). Politics of Piety: The Islamic Revival and the Feminist Subject. Princeton University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctvct00cf

Kaleel, A. K., Assad, A., & Fyadh, M. (2024). Quranic Studies Evolution: A Bibliometric Analysis from 1880 to 2023. Mesopotamian Journal of Quran Studies, 2024, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.58496/MJQS/2024/001

Kamali, M. H. (2008). Shariah law: An introduction. Oneworld Publications.

Khalid, F. M. (2010). Islam and the Environment. Religion Compass, 4(11), 707–716. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-8171.2010.00249.x

Landis, J. R., & Koch, G. G. (1977). The measurement of observer agreement for categorical data. Biometrics, 33(1), 159–174. https://doi.org/10.2307/2529310

Leaman, O. (2006). The Quran: An Encyclopedia. Routledge.

Mayring, P. (2014). Qualitative content analysis: Theoretical foundation, basic procedures and software solution. Klagenfurt. https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-395173

McAuliffe, J. D. (2005). Reading the Quran with Fidelity and Freedom. Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 73(3), 615–635. https://doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/lfi072

McHugh, M. L. (2012). Interrater reliability: The kappa statistic. Biochemia Medica, 22(3), 276–282. https://doi.org/10.11613/BM.2012.031

Mir-Hosseini, Z. (1999). Islam and gender: The religious debate in contemporary Iran. Princeton University Press. https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctv1h9dgq0

Moher, D., Liberati, A., Tetzlaff, J., & Altman, D. G. (2009). Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: The PRISMA statement. BMJ, 339, b2535. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.b2535

Moldakhmetov, R. A., & Tungatova, U. A. (2025). Tafsir and Tawil in the Quran: A Bibliometric Analysis of Scholarly Approaches. In Proceedings of the 9th International Scientific Conference Research Retrieval and Academic Letters (pp. 599–612). Warsaw, Poland: Publisher.agency.

Mukherjee, D., Lim, W. M., Kumar, S., & Donthu, N. (2022). Guidelines for advancing theory and practice through bibliometric research. Journal of Business Research, 148, 101–115. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.04.042

Mulia, M. (2017). Pedagogi feminisme dalam perspektif Islam. Jurnal Perempuan (Makalah disampaikan pada Konferensi Internasional Feminisme, Jakarta, 23–24 September 2016). https://www.jurnalperempuan.org/uploads/1/2/2/0/12201443/musdah_mulia-pedagogi_feminisme_dalam_perspekktif_islam.pdf

Munir, M. S., Ramadhani, R. D., Masruhan, M., & Kholid, I. N. (2025). The Concept of Asbabun Nuzul in the Context of Warfare: A Tafsir Ahkam Study of QS. Al-Baqarah: 190–193 Based on Tafsir Al-Qurtubi. QiST: Journal of Quran and Tafseer Studies, 4(1), 241–266. https://doi.org/10.23917/qist.v4i1.9165

Mustaqim, A. (2020). Epistemologi tafsir kontemporer. Idea Press.

Nasrullah, Andriawan, W., & Musawar. (2024). The Character of Legal Products in Indonesia: A Study of Changes to the Marriage Law from a Political-Law Perspective. Samarah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga Dan Hukum Islam, 8(1), 602–627. https://doi.org/10.22373/sjhk.v8i1.17302

Neuwirth, A. (2003). Quran and History — A Disputed Relationship: Some Reflections on Qur'anic History and History in the Qur'an. Journal of Qur'anic Studies, 5(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.3366/jqs.2003.5.1.1

Opwis, F. (2010). Maslaha and the Purpose of the Law: Islamic discourse on legal change from the 4th/10th to 8th/14th century. Brill.

Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T. C., Mulrow, C. D., Shamseer, L., Tetzlaff, J. M., Akl, E. A., & Brennan, S. E. (2021). The PRISMA 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, 372, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71

Peacock, J. L. (1974). [Review of the book The Modernist Muslim Movement in Indonesia 1900–1942, by D. Noer]. The Journal of Asian Studies, 33(2), 342–343. https://doi.org/10.2307/2052224

Rahman, F. (1982). Islam and Modernity: Transformation of an intellectual tradition. University of Chicago Press.

Rahmi, A., Hidhayati, A. T., Alfikri, R., Arini, R. M., & Sinaga, A. S. T. B. (2025). A Bibliometric Analysis of Publications on Maqashid Sharia in Islamic Finance. Al Iqtishod: Jurnal Pemikiran dan Penelitian Ekonomi Islam, 13(2), 202–220. https://doi.org/10.37812/aliqtishod.v13i2.1816

Rethlefsen, M. L., Kirtley, S., Waffenschmidt, S., Ayala, A. P., Moher, D., Page, M. J., Koffel, J. B., & PRISMA-S Group. (2021). PRISMA-S: An extension to the PRISMA Statement for Reporting Literature Searches in Systematic Reviews. Systematic Reviews, 10(1), 39. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13643-020-01542-z

Rippin, A. (2008). The Blackwell companion to the Quran. John Wiley & Sons.

Rippin, A. (2011). The Quran in Context: Historical and Literary Investigations into the Quranic Milieu. Journal of the American Oriental Society, 131(3), 470–473. https://doi.org/10.2307/41380718

Rohmadi, Ali, Z. Z., Apriani, F., Octavianne, H., & Permata, C. (2024). Judges Considerations in Granting Marriage Dispensation Licenses in Indonesia: Islamic Family Law Perspective. El-Usrah: Jurnal Hukum Keluarga, 7(1), 326–345. https://doi.org/10.22373/ujhk.v7i1.22597

Rumadi, R. (2015). Islamic Post-Traditionalism in Indonesia. ISEAS Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1355/9789814620666

Rumadi. (2012). Islam dan otoritas keagamaan. Walisongo: Jurnal Penelitian Sosial Keagamaan, 20(1), 25–54. https://doi.org/10.21580/ws.20.1.183

Saeed, A. (2006). Interpreting the Quran: Towards a Contemporary Approach. Routledge.

Saeed, A. (2013). Reading the Qur'an in the Twenty-First Century: A Contextualist Approach. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315870922

Syatar, A., & Rahman, A. (2019). Transformation of Fiqh in the forms of hajj and zakat legislation. Mazahibuna: Jurnal Perbandingan Mazhab, 1(2), 120–133. https://doi.org/10.24252/mh.v1i2.11646

Tumewang, Y. K., Dewi, H. R., & Amin, H. (2025). Over a decade of maqashid sharia studies: A bibliometric analysis and direction for future research. Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research, 16(1), 25–52. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIABR-08-2022-0207

Ugli, A. A. A., Ugli, A. I. B., Rustamovna, S. X., Yakubova, M. A., & Kizi, G. P. A. (2025). Legal Issues of Digital Asset Inheritance from an Islamic Law Perspective. Ijtihad: Jurnal Wacana Hukum Islam dan Kemanusiaan, 25(2), 191–212. https://doi.org/10.18326/ijtihad.v25i2.191-212

Uluyol, B., Secinaro, S., Calandra, D., & Lanzalonga, F. (2021). Mapping waqf research: A thirty-year bibliometric analysis. Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research, 12(5), 748–767. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIABR-01-2021-0031

Umar, N. (2014). Arguments for Gender Equality: A Quranic Perspective. Puslitbang Lektur dan Khasanah Keagamaan, Badan Litbang dan Diklat.

Van Bruinessen, M. M. (1994). Pesantren and kitab kuning: Continuity and change in a tradition of religious learning. In W. Marschall (Ed.), Texts from the Islands. University of Berne.

Van Eck, N., & Waltman, L. (2010). Software survey: VOSviewer, a computer program for bibliometric mapping. Scientometrics, 84(2), 523–538. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11192-009-0146-3

Wadud, A. (1999). Quran and Woman: Rereading the Sacred Text from a Woman's Perspective. Oxford University Press.

Wahid, A. (2006). Islamku Islam Anda Islam kita: Agama masyarakat negara demokrasi. The Wahid Institute.

Wahidi, R., Rahman, R., & Nurkholis, M. (2024). The Characteristics of Nusantara Tafsir Manuscript: A Methodological Study of QS. al-Baqarah by Abdul Latif Syakur. QOF, 8(1), 55–70. https://doi.org/10.30762/qof.v8i1.2191

Wahyuni, H., Vanany, I., & Ciptomulyono, U. (2019). Food safety and halal food in the supply chain: Review and bibliometric analysis. Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management (JIEM), 12(2), 373–391. https://doi.org/10.3926/jiem.2803

Warde, I. (2010). Islamic finance in the global economy. Edinburgh University Press. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3366/j.ctv2f4vm3z

Zupic, I., & Cater, T. (2015). Bibliometric methods in management and organization. Organizational Research Methods, 18(3), 429–472. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094428114562629