Özet:

The term charity (sadaqa) is derived from term “sıdq” which means truth and truthfulness in the Arabic language. According to the data of the classical Arabic language this term did not have any religious meaning in pre-Islamic period. This term is found in the Qur’an in 13 places (verses). Five of them are singular, and the others are plural. All the verses in which this term is found are revealed in Madina. The term sadaqa/charity severally expresses all kinds of expenses whether compulsory or voluntary. In some verses, too, it indicates almsgiving, voluntary donation or the public expenses. In some hadiths (i.e. the words of the Prophet) it has been used a wider context. But in the Islamic law its meaning has been narrowed. As a conclusion of this development, it has been started to be understood as voluntary giving in the tradition of Islam.

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