The Sunni Muslim
In the religion, Islam, there are two sects that split the followers: Sunni and Shia. The Sunni take up the majority of those who practice Islam, with about 940 million people out of 1.6 billion total followers. They can be recognized as Sunni or Sunnites. They are founded on the followers of Abu Bakr, a successor of Muhammad rather than a direct descendant of him. This is the main difference in belief between the Sunnis and the Shiites. Sunnis are the majority of Muslims in Israel, Egypt, Turkey, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Libya, Jordan. and islands like the Maldives, Comoros, and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Estimates reveal that Sunnis take up 20% of the world’s population.
Sunni Muslim Beliefs
The Sunnis have four schools of law, or madhab, based on the Quran: the Hanafi, the Maliki, the Shafi'i and the Hanbali. They are associated with early scholars: Abu Haneefah, Malik, Shafi'i, and Ahmad bin Hanbal, who are known for their wide knowledge and religious devotion. Some believe that one can choose only one madhab, and follow its rules, while others believe one can choose different ones, and apply different rules to different situations. Sunnis also view the hadith, the Islamic oral law, in a way that holds some collections more authentic than others.