Editing Druze (section)

== Etymology ==
{{Druze|all}}
The name Druze is derived from the name of [[Ad-Darazi|Muhammad bin Ismail Nashtakin ad-Darazī]] (from [[Persian language|Persian]] ''{{Transliteration|fa|darzi}}'', "seamster") who was an early [[preacher]]. Although the Druze consider ad-Darazī a [[heretic]],<ref name="about">{{Citation |last=Moukarim |first=Moustafa F. |title=About the Faith of The Mo'wa'he'doon Druze |url=http://www.druze.ca/AboutDruze.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120426105258/http://www.druze.ca/AboutDruze.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 April 2012}}</ref> the name has been used to identify them, possibly by their historical opponents as a way to attach their community with ad-Darazi's poor reputation.

Before becoming public, the movement was secretive and held closed meetings in what was known as Sessions of Wisdom. During this stage a dispute occurred between ad-Darazi and [[Hamza bin Ali]] mainly concerning ad-Darazi's ''{{Transliteration|ar|[[ghulat|ghuluww]]}}'' ("exaggeration"), which refers to the belief that God was [[incarnation|incarnated]] in human beings to ad-Darazi naming himself "The Sword of the Faith", which led Hamza to write an epistle refuting the need for the sword to spread the faith and several epistles refuting the beliefs of the ''{{Transliteration|ar|[[ghulat]]}}''.

In 1016 ad-Darazi and his followers openly proclaimed their beliefs and called people to join them, causing riots in Cairo against the Unitarian movement including Hamza bin Ali and his followers. This led to the suspension of the movement for one year and the expulsion of ad-Darazi and his supporters.<ref name="Hodgson 1962 5–20"/>

Although the Druze religious books describe ad-Darazi as the "insolent one" and as the "calf" who is narrow-minded and hasty, the name "Druze" is still used for identification and for historical reasons. In 1018, ad-Darazi was assassinated for his teachings; some sources claim that he was executed by Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah.<ref name="about" /><ref name="samy">{{cite book |last=Swayd |first=Samy |title=The Druzes: An Annotated Bibliography |publisher=ISES Publications |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-9662932-0-3 |location=Kirkland, Washington, USA}}</ref>

Some authorities see in the name "Druze" a descriptive epithet, derived from Arabic ''{{Transliteration|ar|dārisah}}'' ("she who studies").{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=605}} Others have speculated that the word comes from the Persian word ''{{Transliteration|fa|Darazo}}'' ({{lang|fa|درز}} "bliss") or from [[Shaykh]] Hussayn ad-Darazī, who was one of the early converts to the faith.<ref name = najjar /> In the early stages of the movement, the word "Druze" is rarely mentioned by historians, and in Druze religious texts only the word ''Muwaḥḥidūn'' ("Unitarian") appears. The only early Arab historian who mentions the Druze is the eleventh century Christian scholar [[Yahya of Antioch]], who clearly refers to the heretical group created by ad-Darazī, rather than the followers of Hamza ibn 'Alī.<ref name=najjar>{{cite book |last=Al-Najjar |first='Abdullāh |title=Madhhab ad-Durūz wa t-Tawḥīd (The Druze Sect and Unism) |publisher=Dār al-Ma'ārif |location=Egypt |year=1965 |language=ar}}</ref> As for Western sources, [[Benjamin of Tudela]], the Jewish traveler who passed through Lebanon in or around 1165, was one of the first European writers to refer to the Druze by name. The word ''{{Transliteration|he|Dogziyin}}'' ("Druzes") occurs in an early Hebrew edition of his travels, but it is clear that this is a scribal error. Be that as it may, he described the Druze as "mountain dwellers, monotheists, who believe in 'soul eternity' and [[reincarnation]]".<ref>{{cite book |last=Hitti |first=Philip K. |title=Origins of the Druze People and Religion, with Extracts from their Sacred Writings |publisher=Saqi |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-86356-690-5 |edition=new |series=Columbia University Oriental Studies |volume=28 |location=London |pages=13–14 |orig-year=1924}}</ref> He also stated that "they loved the Jews".{{sfn|Nisan|2002|p=283}}