Editing Sharia (section)

=== Etymology ===
The primary meanings of the [[Arabic]] word ''šarīʿah'', derived from the root ''š-r-ʕ''.{{sfn|Calder|Hooker|2007|p=321}} The [[lexicographical]] studies records two major areas of the word can appear without religious connotation. In texts evoking a pastoral or nomadic environment, ''šarīʿah'' and its derivatives refers to watering animals at a permanent water-hole or to the seashore. One another area of use relates to notions of stretched or lengthy.{{sfn|Calder|Hooker|2007|p=326}} The word is cognate with the Hebrew ''saraʿ'' שָׂרַע and is likely to be the origin of the meaning "way" or "path".{{sfn|Calder|Hooker|2007|p=326}} Some scholars describe it as an archaic [[Arabic]] word denoting "pathway to be followed" (analogous to the [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]] term [[Halakha]]h ["The Way to Go"]),<ref name="haqq">Abdal-Haqq, Irshad (2006). ''Understanding Islamic Law&nbsp;– From Classical to Contemporary'' (edited by Aminah Beverly McCloud). Chapter 1 ''Islamic Law&nbsp;– An Overview of its Origin and Elements''. [[AltaMira Press]]. p. 4.</ref> or "path to the water hole"<ref name="Hashim1">{{cite book |last1=Hashim Kamali |first1=Mohammad |author-link=Mohammad Hashim Kamali |title=Shari'ah Law: An Introduction |date=2008 |publisher=[[Oneworld Publications]] |isbn=978-1851685653 |pages=2, 14}}</ref><ref name="weiss1998" /> and argue that its adoption as a metaphor for a divinely ordained way of life arises from the importance of water in an arid desert environment.<ref name="weiss1998">Weiss, Bernard G. (1998). ''The Spirit of Islamic Law''. Athens, Georgia: [[University of Georgia Press]]. p. 17. {{ISBN|978-0820319773}}.</ref>