"People of the Book" (
Arabic , ), also "Followers of the Holy Books", is a
theological term, primarily related to
Islam, describing non-Muslim peoples who, according to the
Qur'an, received
scriptures which were
revealed to them by
God before the time of
Muhammad. In Islam, the Muslim scripture, the
Qur'an, is taken to represent the completion of these scriptures, and to supplant them as God's true, final, and eternal message to humanity. However, because the People of the Book recognize the supreme
Abrahamic God as the Muslims do, and they practice revealed faiths based on Divine ordinances, a certain level of tolerance and autonomy is accorded to them in societies governed by
sharia (Islamic divine law). The generally accepted interpretation is that the pre-Islamic revealed texts are the
Tawrat,
Zabur and the
Injil.
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