DOI: 10.25136/2409-8744.2020.5.34083

Abstract: This article analyzes how the young ethnic Muslims of 2nd and 3rd generations who were born in Germany, as well as Muslim students studying in Germany, spend their spare time. The author used such methods as field ethnographic observation and unstructured interview with the respondents. The pool of respondents was formed via snowball sampling. Studying the pastime of Muslim youth, the author was able to trace the degree of their integration into German society. Since multiple sociocultural needs are usually fulfilled during the spare time, examination of the leisure of youth allows determining moral and spiritual image of a person. This article is first to analyze leisure time of ethnic Muslims residing in Germany based on the field material acquired by the author, which defines the scientific novelty of this research. The conclusion is made that usually ethnic Muslims of 2nd and 3rd generations (young people without higher education) spend their spare time on the Internet, doing sport or entertaining activities. Young Muslims studying in the universities prefer intellectual leisure activities: reading, visiting museums and exhibitions. The priorities of young Muslims of the 2nd and 3rd generation resemble a slow paced level life, keeping it easy, with no ambition in getting higher education. For Muslim students or Muslims who already received higher education, the priority in pastime include spiritual and cultural development, accumulation of investments and landing a highly-skilled job with decent salary.

DOI: 10.7256/2454-0609.2019.2.29045

Abstract: The article is focused on the Germans (the so-called converts), who converted to Islam, being born and living on the territory of Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany. The aim of this study is to identify the factors behind the religious conversion. The author's main task was to determine what reasons influenced the adoption of Islam among Germans. The author analyzes the connection between the decision to adopt Islam and the place of residence of newly converted Muslims, the influence of political attitudes within German society towards immigrant Muslims, family circumstances and cultural preferences. The article is written based on the author's field material. The author applied the methods of field ethnographic observation, non-formalized interviewing, as well as an analysis of the literature on this topic. The scientific novelty of this research lies in the fact that this is the first study in Russian historiography on the reasons for the conversion of Germans to Islam, conducted on field material. The author comes to the conclusion that the Germans' decision to adopt Islam was not significantly influenced by political and territorial factors. Neither does distance from the Muslim world hinder conversion. Negative attitudes towards Muslims also do not play a significant role in making a conscious choice regarding the transition to the religion. The main reasons for adopting Islam were personal and family.