• Offered by Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies
  • ANU College ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences
  • Classification Transitional
  • Course subject Middle Eastern & Central Asian Studies
  • Areas of interest Arab and Islamic Studies, Development Studies, Asian Studies, Middle East Studies, Political Economy

This course provides an introduction to the concept of Reba, developments in our understanding of it over the centuries, and its role in modern Islamic banking. The course will begin with a discussion of pre-Islamic debt (Jahilia) and then consider the meaning of Reba, which is a highly contested term, but is often interpreted as usury or interest rates or unjust debt, and examine the evolution of judicial interpretation of Reba. The impact of Reba on debt and trade will be examined. Modern interpretations of Reba will consider the financial instruments used in Islamic banking to manage the prohibition of Reba. Case studies will include Saudi Arabia and Malaysia. The course takes a qualitative approach to understanding these issues and does not require prior knowledge of quantitative techniques.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

  1. understand the various ambiguities in the prohibition on Reba and how modern banking systems circumvent or manage the prohibition;
  2. understand Islamic government laws on the prohibition of Reba;
  3. analyse and apply modern Islamic banking principles in the context of standard western financial instruments; and
  4. communicate these understandings and applications in writing.

Indicative Assessment

research essay, 4500 words, 50% (LO 1-4)
final examination during the examination period, 2 hours, 50% (LO 1-4)

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Workload

130 hours, consisting of 12 x 2-hour lectures and 104 hours of private study and assessment preparation.

Prescribed Texts

Set readings will be listed in the course outline

Fees

Tuition fees are for the academic year indicated at the top of the page.  

If you are a domestic graduate coursework or international student you will be required to pay tuition fees. Tuition fees are indexed annually. Further information for domestic and international students about tuition and other fees can be found at Fees.

Student Contribution Band:
3
Unit value:
6 units

If you are an undergraduate student and have been offered a Commonwealth supported place, your fees are set by the Australian Government for each course. At ANU 1 EFTSL is 48 units (normally 8 x 6-unit courses). You can find your student contribution amount for each course at Fees.  Where there is a unit range displayed for this course, not all unit options below may be available.

Units EFTSL
6.00 0.12500
Domestic fee paying students
Year Fee
2018 $4080
International fee paying students
Year Fee
2018 $5400
Note: Please note that fee information is for current year only.

Offerings, Dates and Class Summary Links

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The list of offerings for future years is indicative only.
Class summaries, if available, can be accessed by clicking on the View link for the relevant class number.

First Semester

Class number Class start date Last day to enrol Census date Class end date Mode Of Delivery Class Summary
4871 25 Feb 2019 04 Mar 2019 31 Mar 2019 31 May 2019 In Person View

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