Shia and Sunni Islam are the two major denominations of Islam. After the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in AD 632, Sunni believed that Muhammad’s successor should be Abu Bakr. A second group of Muslims, who would come to be known as the Shia, believed that his successor should have been Ali.

Of the total Muslim population, 87–90% are Sunni and 10–13% are Shi’a. Most Shi’as (between 68% and 80%) live in mainly four countries: Iran, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, and Iraq. Furthermore, there are concentrated Shi’a populations in Lebanon, Russia, Pakistan, and 10 sub-Saharan African countries.

The primary difference in practice comes in that Sunni Muslims mainly rely on the Sunnah, a record of the teachings and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad to guide their actions while the Shiites more heavily on their ayatollahs, whom they see as a sign of God on earth.

Sunni Islam is divided into four schools of law or fiqh (religious jurisprudence): Hanafi, Shafi, Maliki and Hanbali.

As with all other world religions, Islam is represented by several major branches: Sunni, Shi’a, Ibadi, Ahmadiyya, and Sufism….Major Branches Of Islam – Similarities And Differences.

A Shiite is a Muslim who follows specific religious traditions. Though Shiites hold this basic belief in common, there are further divisions within Shia Islam, another name for the group of Shiites. You can also call a Shiite a Shia, which is its root as well — from the Arabic shi’ah, “partisans or followers.”

Sunni vs Wahabi The difference between Sunni and Wahabi is that Sunni Muslims follow Mohammad Prophet and treat him as the messenger of God whereas Wahabi Muslims do not believe that he is a messenger and believe that he should be only treated as a human.

Shiites are the second-largest branch of Islam, after Sunnis. Though Shiites hold this basic belief in common, there are further divisions within Shia Islam, another name for the group of Shiites. You can also call a Shiite a Shia, which is its root as well — from the Arabic shi’ah, “partisans or followers.”

Sunnis also have a less elaborate religious hierarchy than Shiites have, and the two sects’ interpretation of Islam ‘s schools of law is different. Shiites give human beings the exalted status that is given only to prophets in the Quran , often venerating clerics as saints, whereas Sunnis do not.

Nations with Sunni majority include Egypt, Saudi Arabia and most other Arab nations, as well as non-Arab Turkey and Afghanistan.

The main reasons behind this serious conflict between Sunni and Shia sects are following. · The most important reason behind Sunni Shia conflict is the Shia belief that only persons of the Prophet’s household (ahl al-bayt) have the right to lead Muslims after the death of Holy Prophet (PBUH).

Although Sunni and Shiite Muslims are both sects of the Islamic faith, the differences between these two groups stem from conflicting religious beliefs . Political conflict separates the groups as well Saudi Arabia, a Sunni nation, and Shiite Iran continue to compete for regional influence in the Arab world.