adala: justice.

adl: a trusted and honourable person, selected by both parties to a transaction; analogous to a trustee.

amana/amanah: literally means reliability, trustworthiness, loyalty and honesty, and is an important value of Islamic society in mutual dealings. It also refers to deposits in trust, sometimes on a contractual basis.

bai/bay: contract of sale, sale and purchase.

bai al-salam: advance payment for goods. While normally the goods need to exist before a sale can be completed, in this case the goods are defined (such as quantity, quality, workmanship) and the date of delivery fixed. Usually applied in the agricultural sector where money is advanced for inputs to receive a share in the crop.

fatwa (pl. fatawa): an authoritative legal opinion based on the Shari’ah.

fiqh: practical Islamic jurisprudence. Can be regarded as the jurists’ understanding of the Shari’ah.

gharar: uncertainty in a contract or sale in which the goods may or may not be available or exist (e.g. the bird in the air or the fish in the water). Also, ambiguity in the consideration or terms of a contract – as such, the contract would not be valid.

hadith: the narrative record of the sayings, doings and implicit approval or disapproval of the Prophet.

halal: permissible, allowed, lawful. In Islam, there are activities, professions, contracts and transactions that are explicitly prohibited (haram) by the Qur’an or the Sunnah. Barring these, all others are halal. An activity may be economically sound but may not be allowed in Islamic society if it is not permitted by the Shari’ah.

Hanifite laws: an Islamic school of law founded by Iman Abu Hanifa. Followers of this school are known as Hanafis.

haram: unlawful, forbidden (see halal). Describes activities, professions, contracts, and transactions that are explicitly prohibited by the Qur’an or the Sunnah.

hawala: bill of exchange, promissory note, cheque or draft. A debtor passes on the responsibility of payment of his debt to a third party who owes the former a debt. Thus, the responsibility of payment is ultimately shifted to a third party. Hawala is used in developing countries as a mechanism for settling international transactions by book transfers.