Khalīfah

Khalifa or Khalifah is a name or title which literally means "successor". It most commonly refers to the leader of a caliphate, but can also be used as a title among various Islamic religious groups and others. There were four Rashidun caliphs after Muhammad died, beginning with Abu Bakr. The Khilafah was then contested and gave rise to the eventual division of the Islamic Umma into two groups, the Sunni and the Shi'a who interpret the word Khalifa in differently nuanced ways.

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