PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF TROPICAL AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE

The debate on Salafiyyah has been ongoing since the early 20^th century during the reform (Islah) movement in Egypt and its neighbouring countries. The movement affected local Muslim scholars who had been studying abroad, especially in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, who brought is influence back to their homeland. The objective of this study is to describe the background of the Salafiyyah that spread to Malaysia, especially Terengganu. It also aims to examine the views of several Muslim scholars in Terengganu on the matter. This descriptive study combines both literature review and field study. For the literature review, references such as books, theses, journal articles and paper work were consulted. Interview sessions with the selected scholars were conducted using a structured questionnaire. The findings show that this movement spread in Malaysia from the Islah movement in the Middle East countries and the influence of Malaysian students who studied in Makkah, Egypt and India and brought back these new ideas to Malaysia