On page SEO

On page SEO

On page SEO is maybe the foremost necessary method not just for higher rankings however conjointly for a successful  web selling campaign. each campaign starts from the online web site and if your computing machine isn't optimized for each search engines and users, your possibilities for achievement ar decreased .I have already talked regarding the relation between on-page and off-page SEO and conjointly explained very well what's off-page SEO.  For the aim of giving beginners an entire image, i'll justify in short a couple of basic terms.
Search Engine improvement
Search Engine improvement or SEO briefly could be a term that encapsulates everything you wish to try and do to boost your net site’s ranking position within the varied search engines. This includes configuration settings you've got to use on the web site (that’s on page SEO) and techniques you'll be able to use outside the boundaries of the web site (that’s off page SEO).
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Is on-page SEO additional necessary than off-page SEO?
To achieve most exposure within the search engines and keep your users happy you wish each off-page SEO and on-page SEO. In my opinion on page SEO is additional necessary and that i can justify below why.
1) ‘Speak’ the search engines language: It makes additional sense to begin with on-page SEO and find it right instead of attempting to persuade search engines to convey you higher ranking with off page SEO. Search engines ar laptop programs (software) and that they perceive a selected language. With SEO and particularly on page SEO you ‘speak’ their language and your goal is to assist them perceive what you web site is regarding. In alternative words the additional signals you'll be able to offer them, the additional ar your possibilities of achieving higher rankings.
2) On Page SEO is regarding the user as well: always remember that your primary target is to stay your users happy. Off Page SEO might bring traffic to the web site however if it's not setup properly, if it's not user friendly the results are going to be unsatisfactory.
3) several websites comprehend wrong: It’s wonderful however it's true that the bulk of internet sites these days aren't optimized for search engines. Despite the embarrassment of knowledge regarding SEO several web site homeowners believe that it doesn't value to even do SEO and that they quit before beginning. For those cases on-page SEO features a ton to supply each in terms of usability however in terms of traffic moreover.
4) On Page SEO is typically all would like|you would like|you wish}: If you're running a web site for atiny low business and you wish to urge native customers looking for varied terms on Google then on page SEO is all you need to try and do.
5) Off page SEO comes when on page SEO: so as to begin thinking on however you'll be able to promote your web site you wish to make sure that the web site is optimized and in fitness. therefore the start is to figure with on-site  SEO initial and so go off-site.
5 on page SEO techniques for higher rankings
Now that the speculation regarding SEO and importance of on-page SEO is even, let’s travel to the sensible half.There ar several on page SEO techniques and not solely five, except for the aim of this post i'll justify below what i believe ar absolutely the settings you've got to use on your web site these days.  I powerfully counsel that you simply conjointly browse (links can open during a new window):
10 SEO Tips for startups and tiny business homeowners
Top ten SeO Copywriting tips for obtaining high rankings
10 SEO Mistakes that weaken your rankings
On Page SEO
1. Content comes initial
A website with good content will do nice with or while not SEO, a web site with unhealthy content won't survive with or while not SEO, a web site with smart content will become even higher with SEO!
So, what's thought of smart content?
Original Content (articles, text, images, videos, shows, infographics, comments etc.) – No copies or re-writes of existing articles
Content printed on your web site initial – even though it’s your own content, if you've got already printed it on another {website|web web site} then it’s not smart for your site.
Content that has text moreover – try and have text to accompany your non-text content. as an example if you post videos on your web site try and add a text description moreover. If you add pictures try and describe in words what the image is all regarding.
Content that's helpful – Don’t publish content for the sake of business. Before striking the publish button make certain that what goes live adds worth to your web site.Content that's well researched – Users don’t wish to browse quickly ready posts and neither will search engines. If you're writing a few sure topic or respondent a matter make certain that what you write is even and covers each sites of a story. Long articles ar established to rank higher than short articles.Posting frequency – a pair of things ar necessary once it involves posting frequency. initial is to own recent content on your web site and second to determine a business strategy and keep on with it.
2. Page titles, description and data format
This is SEO one hundred and one however vital moreover. once search engines ar reading your pages among the items they check includes the page title, the outline of the page, the most important headings and pictures. they are doing thus as a result of they have to know what the page is all regarding and so supported alternative factors moreover (off page SEO, domain authority, competition etc.), they're going to place your page during a position in their index.
Page titles – every page should have a novel title that may facilitate each search engines and users perceive what the page is regarding. A page with title “On Page SEO Tips” is healthier than a page with title “index.html”.
Descriptions – The page description is what the searcher can see within the computer programme results page. thus it's to be descriptive, up to one hundred fifty characters and distinctive for every page. It’s your chance to advertise your page and persuade the searcher to click your link and visit your web site instead of choosing one in all the opposite links.
Formatting – A page must be properly formatted. consider it sort of a report that must have a heading (h1) and sub headings (h2). necessary components of the report ar highlighted with daring, underline or italics.
Do not simply throw text on the page however make certain that it's legible moreover. Besides the data format practices explained higher than you furthermore mght ought to use a decent size font (at least 12px) and split the text into tiny paragraphs (max 4-5 lines).
Images – pictures ar necessary however these mustn't increase the loading time of the web site. Best practices for victimisation images:
1) Use original pictures. If you wish to use AN existing image from the online you wish to reference the supply.
2) Optimise the dimensions of the photographs – the smaller the dimensions (in bytes) of the image the higher. Use yahoo smush it to scale back the dimensions of a picture while not sacrificing the standard.
3) Use altitude tag to explain the image – This helps search engines perceive what the image is regarding.
4) Use descriptive filenames – Don’t simply name your image ‘image1.jpg’ however try and use descriptive filenames, as an example ‘Man doing push-ups’.
5) Use a Content Delivery Network – If you've got lots of pictures during a single page you'll be able to use a CDN service (from Amazon or Google) that may create your page load quicker. In straightforward terms your pictures are going to be hosted and served by variety of servers and this quickens the loading method.
You can conjointly browse my seo tips for beginners article for additional samples of optimized titles and discriptions and for best practices regarding the employment of pictures.
3. URL Structure
The URL structure is a crucial a part of on-page SEO. Whenever I point out URL structure, I favor to split it into four major parts:
1) Permanent links – Permanent links ar the URL’s of every page. smart URLs ought to be but 255 characters and use hyphens to ‘-‘separate the various components
2) classes – cluster your pages into classes to assist users and search engines notice what they need quicker. It’s like having a warehouse with countless uncategorized things versus a warehouse with all the things allotted to an infatuated class. you'll be able to have sub-categories moreover however my recommendation isn't to travel over one level. as an example a decent class structure is:
Reliablesoft > Social Media > Facebook and not Reliablesoft > Social Media > Facebook > Tips
3) crumb – A crumb is additionally necessary for all of your pages as a result of it permits users to navigate your web site during a structured approach since they continually apprehend wherever they're and the way deep below the house page.
4) User Sitemap – one in all your choices within the main menu ought to be the User Sitemap. this is often AN hypertext markup language file that represents the structure of your web site. Visit my sitemap for AN example.
4. Internal linking
Linking to pages at intervals your web site is incredibly necessary for SEO because:
1) It’s like building your own web: If you watch the great tutorial by Google on however search works, {you can|you'll|you may} see that the primary step a look engine spider will do is follow the links they notice. thus after they gain your page, if you don’t have {any alternative|the other} links at intervals the text they're going to browse your page and go however if you've got links inform to other pages at intervals your web site they're going to take those under consideration moreover.
2) It’s how to let search engines realize your alternative pages: As explained higher than once search engines notice a page with links, they're going to go and browse those pages moreover thus you'll be able to use this method to inform search engines regarding pages of your web site they need not nevertheless discovered.
3) It’s how to inform search engines that ar your {most necessary|most vital|most significant} pages: each web site has some pages that ar additional important than others. Internal linking is one in all the ways that to pin-point the foremost necessary pages by causation them additional internal links.
4) It’s how to extend time on web site – A user that's browseing your post is additional possible to click on a link to read additional a few sure subject and so increase each the time pay on your web site and therefore the range of pages per visit.
Best practices for internal linking:
1) Don’t use keywords just for your internal links
2) Add internal links after they ar helpful for your reader
3) No over 7-8 internal links per page (this is my opinion and not supported any analysis or studies)
4) If applicable you'll be able to conjointly use ‘related posts’ at the top of every post for internal linking
5. Speed and authorship
Last however not least, a pair of SEO techniques that are getting additional and additional necessary particularly when the discharge of sphenisciform seabird a pair of.0 (or 4.0 as some folks prefer to say it): Speed and authorship.Speed: Google is investment an enormous quantity of cash to form the online quicker. In each Google I/O somebody can point out the importance of speed and their want to incorporate the quickest websites in their index. so as to ‘force’ computing machine homeowners to require speed under consideration they need formally another speed mutually of the ranking factors.So, we all know needless to say that computing machine speed will matter once it involves SEO and ranking. As a webmaster your job is to form positive that your web site masses as quick as doable by taking under consideration Google’s recommendations.Google authorship: Google is making ready for future generation of Search and their effort is to rank higher webpages written by people that have authority on the actual subject. one in all the ways that to determine authority is by correlating the content you publish on the online along with your Google+ profile. Then looking on what number followers you've got and WHO follows you, your ranking might modification.Google authorship remains at its early stages however it’s gaining ground quick thus you've got to form a Google+ profile and bind the profile along with your content.
On-Page SEO listing
If you've got browse the article up to the present purpose, the most tips ar summarized within the check-list below: (You may also transfer in PDF format for printing – On page SEO Checklist)
On-Page SEO listing
Content
1 Content is original – copyscape checked?
2 Content is initial printed on your website?
3 Content has enough descriptive text?
4 Content is well researched with references?
5 Do you've got a transparent business strategy?
Pages Titles, description and data format
6 Page titles ar distinctive for every page?
7 Descriptions ar distinctive and up to one hundred fifty characters?
8 Text is correctly formatted victimisation H1, H2, Bold, Italics?
9 Text is split into tiny paragraphs?
10 Font size is straightforward to browse on tiny screens (tablets) as well?
11 Image size is optimized victimisation smushit?
12 All pictures have altitude tags defined?
13 Image file name is descriptive?
URL Structure
14 Permanent links use ‘-‘ as apparatus ?
15 Website pages/posts ar sorted into categories?
16 There is crumb on all posts/pages?
17 There is AN hypertext markup language User Sitemap?
Internal Links
18 Pages have internal links?
19 There could be a ‘Related posts’ section at the top of every page?
20 Internal links use each keyword and non-keyword anchor text?
Speed and Authorship
21 Website scores over ninetieth once checked by Google page speed insights?
22 Google Authorship is enforced for every and each post/page offered on the website?
For web site homeowners that ar new SEO or just don't have the time to traumatize computing machine improvement, you'll be able to continually rent a trusty SEO firm to try and do the work for you. Have a glance at our nice vary of SEO packages, appropriate for each on-line business, custom-built to your own wants and needs and at competitive costs.

Seo 2016

Seo 2016
This Posts post is concerning SEO computer code however you're thinking what SEO computer code is? Don’t worry; I’ll clear all of your doubt. SEO computer code is formed for the new web promoting techniques that have top quality futures to create your SEO higher. this is often vital to bring your web site on the highest to bring higher result. As you recognize market is changing into a lot of competitive these days therefore this computer code makes it straightforward to bring higher result. These area unit the items that work with this software-:
1. name
2. Link Building (Including Internal & External Links)
3. Advertising
4. Keyword choice
There area unit various computer code and tools accessible on the web to create your SEO journey straightforward. This computer code manages everything like link building, keywords management, checking competition and performance of your web site. you'll do several things along with your computer code that helps you to grow your on-line business.

If you're finding out SEO computer code then Moz is that the best SEO tool supplier and one among the foremost vital things is that it’s supply keyword generator, analysis tools and link analysis. If you're a beginner then this is often the most effective tool for you. There area unit various things which may assist you create your web site succeeds} good rank.

Some of the opposite software’s area unit Semrush, SEOmasters and Traffic Travis. Before mistreatment the computer code for your web site, continually check the web site of your competitors. You’ll simply get the concept that what computer code they're mistreatment. There area unit several computer code programs that offer you free trials, therefore don’t forget to examine them additionally.

SEO is that the nice choice to bring traffic to your web site and if you have got the right tools then you’ll get the high rank simply however don’t dump the content. Write correct content and use the correct tools and you’ll get the success!

In order to provide revenue with the assistance of the websites, it's necessary to possess SEO friendly sites. The SEO friendly web site is unquestionably one that is formed and optimized in accordance to the policies of the computer programme. so as to optimize the positioning, of these activities area unit necessary to hold out.

To boost the rank additionally as presence of the positioning, the on page and off page optimisation is needed to try and do. of these activities assist in transferral a lot of guests to your web site. The a lot of the guests, the bigger are the probabilities of conversion and far a lot of the conversion, lots a lot of are the financial gain.

THE HIJRAH:

THE HIJRAH:

After Muhammad had preached publicly for more than a decade, the opposition to him reached such a high pitch that, fearful for their safety, he sent some of his adherents to Ethiopia, where the Christian ruler extended protection to them, the memory of which has been cherished by Muslims ever since. But in Mecca the persecution worsened. Muhammad's followers were harassed, abused, and even tortured. At last, therefore, Muhammad sent seventy of his followers off to the northern town of Yathrib, which was later to be renamed Medina ("The City"). Later, in the early fall of 622, he learned of a plot to murder him and, with his closest friend, Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, set off to join the emigrants. 
In Mecca the plotters arrived at Muhammad's home to find that his cousin, 'Ali, had taken his place in bed. Enraged, the Meccans set a price on Muhammad's head and set off in pursuit. Muhammad and Abu Bakr, however, had taken refuge in a cave where, as they hid from their pursuers, a spider spun its web across the cave's mouth. When they saw that the web was unbroken, the Meccans passed by and Muhammad and Abu Bakr went on to Medina, where they were joyously welcomed by a throng of Medinans as well as the Meccans who had gone ahead to prepare the way. This was the Hijrah - anglicized as Hegira - usually, but inaccurately, translated as "Flight" - from which the Muslim era is dated. In fact, the Hijrah was not a flight but a carefully planned migration which marks not only a break in history - the beginning of the Islamic era- but also, for Muhammad and the Muslims, a new way of life. Henceforth, the organizational principle of the community was not to be mere blood kinship, but the greater brotherhood of all Muslims. The men who accompanied Muhammad on the Hijrah were called the Muhajirun - "those that made the Hijrah" or the "Emigrants" - while those in Medina who became Muslims were called the Ansar or "Helpers." 
Muhammad was well acquainted with the situation in Medina. Earlier, before the Hijrah, the city had sent envoys to Mecca asking Muhammad to mediate a dispute between two powerful tribes. What the envoys saw and heard had impressed them and they had invited Muhammad to settle in Medina. After the Hijrah, Muhammad's exceptional qualities so impressed the Medinans that the rival tribes and their allies temporarily closed ranks as, on March 15, 624, Muhammad and his supporters moved against the pagans of Mecca. 
Photo: A colonnade of lofty arches surrounds the courtyard at the Prophet's Mosque in Medina, after Mecca the second holiest city of Islam. The first battle, which took place near Badr, now a small town southwest of Medina, had several important effects. In the first place, the Muslim forces, outnumbered three to one, routed the Meccans. Secondly, the discipline displayed by the Muslims brought home to the Meccans, perhaps for the first time, the abilities of the man they had driven from their city. Thirdly, one of the allied tribes which had pledged support to the Muslims in the Battle of Badr, but had then proved lukewarm when the fighting started, was expelled from Medina one month after the battle. Those who claimed to be allies of the Muslims, but tacitly opposed them, were thus served warning: membership in the community imposed the obligation of total support. A year later the Meccans struck back. Assembling an army of three thousand men, they met the Muslims at Uhud, a ridge outside Medina. After an initial success the Muslims were driven back and the Prophet himself was wounded. As the Muslims were not completely defeated, the Meccans, with an army of ten thousand, attacked Medina again two years later but with quite different results. At the Battle of the Trench, also known as the Battle of the Confederates, the Muslims scored a signal victory by introducing a new defense. On the side of Medina from which attack was expected they dug a trench too deep for the Meccan cavalry to clear without exposing itself to the archers posted behind earthworks on the Medina side. After an inconclusive siege, the Meccans were forced to retire. Thereafter Medina was entirely in the hands of the Muslims. 
The Constitution of Medina - under which the clans accepting Muhammad as the Prophet of God formed an alliance, or federation - dates from this period. It showed that the political consciousness of the Muslim community had reached an important point; its members defined themselves as a community separate from all others. The Constitution also defined the role of non-Muslims in the community. Jews, for example, were part of the community; they were dhimmis, that is, protected people, as long as they conformed to its laws. This established a precedent for the treatment of subject peoples during the later conquests. Christians and Jews, upon payment of a yearly tax, were allowed religious freedom and, while maintaining their status as non-Muslims, were associate members of the Muslim state. This status did not apply to polytheists, who could not be tolerated within a community that worshipped the One God. Photo: The Ka'bah, spiritual axis of the Muslim world, stands in the courtyard of Mecca's Sacred Mosque. Ibn Ishaq, one of the earliest biographers of the Prophet, says it was at about this time that Muhammad sent letters to the rulers of the earth - the King of Persia, the Emperor of Byzantium, the Negus of Abyssinia, and the Governor of Egypt among others - inviting them to submit to Islam. Nothing more fully illustrates the confidence of the small community, as its military power, despite the battle of the Trench, was still negligible. But its confidence was not misplaced. Muhammad so effectively built up a series of alliances among the tribes his early years with the Bedouins must have stood him in good stead here- that by 628 he and fifteen hundred followers were able to demand access to the Ka'bah during negotiations with the Meccans. This was a milestone in the history of the Muslims. Just a short time before, Muhammad had to leave the city of his birth in fear of his life. Now he was being treated by his former enemies as a leader in his own right. A year later, in 629, he reentered and, in effect, conquered Mecca without bloodshed and in a spirit of tolerance which established an ideal for future conquests. He also destroyed the idols in the Ka'bah, to put an end forever to pagan practices there. At the same time Muhammad won the allegiance of 'Amr ibn al-'As, the future conqueror of Egypt, and Khalid ibn al-Walid, the future "Sword of God," both of whom embraced Islam and joined Muhammad. Their conversion was especially noteworthy because these men had been among Muhammad's bitterest opponents only a short time before. 
In one sense Muhammad's return to Mecca was the climax of his mission. In 632, just three years later, he was suddenly taken ill and on June 8 of that year, with his third wife 'Aishah in attendance, the Messenger of God "died with the heat of noon."
Photo: Devout Muslims from all over the world gather for the pilgrimage to Mecca, for nearly fourteen centuries one of the most impressive religious gatherings in the world. 
The death of Muhammad was a profound loss. To his followers this simple man from Mecca was far more than a beloved friend, far more than a gifted administrator, far more than the revered leader who had forged a new state from clusters of warring tribes. Muhammad was also the exemplar of the teachings he had brought them from God: the teachings of the Quran, which, for centuries, have guided the thought and action, the faith and conduct, of innumerable men and women, and which ushered in a distinctive era in the history of mankind. His death, nevertheless, had little effect on the dynamic society he had created in Arabia, and no effect at all on his central mission: to transmit the Quran to the world. As Abu Bakr put it: "Whoever worshipped Muhammad, let him know that Muhammad is dead, but whoever worshipped God, let him know that God lives and dies not."

THE RIGHTLY GUIDED CALIPHS

THE RIGHTLY GUIDED CALIPHS

With the death of Muhammad, the Muslim community was faced with the problem of succession. Who would be its leader? There were four persons obviously marked for leadership: Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, who had not only accompanied Muhammad to Medina ten years before, but had been appointed to take the place of the Prophet as leader of public prayer during Muhammad's last illness; 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, an able and trusted Companion of the Prophet; 'Uthman ibn 'Affan, a respected early convert; and 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law. To avoid contention among various groups, 'Umar suddenly grasped Abu Bakr's hand, the traditional sign of recognition of a new leader. Soon everyone concurred and before dusk Abu Bakr had been recognized as the khalifah of Muhammad. Khalifah- anglicized as caliph - is a word meaning "successor" but also suggesting what his historical role would be: to govern according to the Quran and the practice of the Prophet.
Abu Bakr's caliphate was short but important. An exemplary leader, he lived simply, assiduously fulfilled his religious obligations, and was accessible and sympathetic to his people. But he also stood firm when, in the wake of the Prophet's death, some tribes renounced Islam; in what was a major accomplishment, Abu Bakr swiftly disciplined them. Later, he consolidated the support of the tribes within the Arabian Peninsula and subsequently funnelled their energies against the powerful empires of the East: the Sassanians in Persia and the Byzantines in Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. In short, he demonstrated the viability of the Muslim state.
The second caliph, 'Umar- appointed by Abu Bakr in a written testament - continued to demonstrate that viability. Adopting the title Amir al-Muminin, "Commander of the Believers," 'Umar extended Islam's temporal rule over Syria, Egypt, Iraq, and Persia in what from a purely military standpoint were astonishing victories. Within four years after the death of the Prophet the Muslim state had extended its sway over all of Syria and had, at a famous battle fought during a sandstorm near the River Yarmuk, blunted the power of the Byzantines - whose ruler Heraclius had shortly before disdainfully rejected the letter from the unknown Prophet of Arabia.
Even more astonishingly, the Muslim state administered the conquered territories with a tolerance almost unheard of in that age. At Damascus, for example, the Muslim leader Khalid ibn al-Walid signed a treaty which read as follows:
This is what Khalid ibn al-Walid would grant to the inhabitants of Damascus if he enters therein: he promises to give them security for their lives, property and churches. Their city wall shall not be demolished, neither shall any Muslim be quartered in their houses. Thereunto we give them the pact of Allah and the protection of His Prophet, the caliphs and the believers. So long as they pay the poll tax, nothing but good shall befall them.
This tolerance was typical of Islam. A year after Yarmuk, 'Umar, in the military camp of al-Jabiyah on the Golan Heights, received word that the Byzantines were ready to surrender Jerusalem and rode there to accept the surrender in person. According to one account, he entered the city alone and clad in a simple cloak, astounding a populace accustomed to the sumptuous garb and court ceremonials of the Byzantines and Persians. He astounded them still further when he set their fears at rest by negotiating a generous treaty in which he told them:
In the name of God ... you have complete security for your churches which shall not be occupied by the Muslims or destroyed.
This policy was to prove successful everywhere. In Syria, for example, many Christians who had been involved in bitter theological disputes with Byzantine authorities- and persecuted for it- welcomed the coming of Islam as an end to tyranny. And in Egypt, which 'Amr ibn al-'As took from the Byzantines after a daring march across the Sinai Peninsula, the Coptic Christians not only welcomed the Arabs, but enthusiastically assisted them.
This pattern was repeated throughout the Byzantine Empire. Conflict among Greek Orthodox, Syrian Monophysites, Copts, and Nestorian Christians contributed to the failure of the Byzantines - always regarded as intruders - to develop popular support, while the tolerance which Muslims showed toward Christians and Jews removed the primary cause for opposing them.
'Umar adopted this attitude in administrative matters as well. Although he assigned Muslim governors to the new provinces, existing Byzantine and Persian administrations were retained wherever possible. For fifty years, in fact, Greek remained the chancery language of Syria, Egypt, and Palestine, while Pahlavi, the chancery language of the Sassanians, continued to be used in Mesopotamia and Persia.
'Umar, who served as caliph for ten years, ended his rule with a significant victory over the Persian Empire. The struggle with the Sassanid realm had opened in 687 at al-Qadisiyah, near Ctesiphon in Iraq, where Muslim cavalry had successfully coped with elephants used by the Persians as a kind of primitive tank. Now with the Battle of Nihavand, called the "Conquest of Conquests," 'Umar sealed the fate of Persia; henceforth it was to be one of the most important provinces in the Muslim Empire.
His caliphate was a high point in early Islamic history. He was noted for his justice, social ideals, administration, and statesmanship. His innovations left all enduring imprint on social welfare, taxation, and the financial and administrative fabric of the growing empire.
After the death of 'Umar an advisory council composed of Companions of the Prophet selected as the third caliph 'Uthman, during whose rule the first serious strains on Islamic unity would appear. 'Uthman achieved much during his reign. He pushed forward with the pacification of Persia, continued to defend the Muslim state against the Byzantines, added what is now Libya to the empire, and subjugated most of Armenia. 'Uthman also, through his cousin Mu'awiyah ibn Abi Sufyan, the governor of Syria, established an Arab navy which fought a series of important engagements with the Byzantines.
Of much greater importance to Islam, however, was 'Uthman's compilation of the text of the Quran as revealed to the Prophet. Realizing that the original message from God might be inadvertently distorted by textual variants, he appointed a committee to collect the canonical verses and destroy the variant recensions. The result was the text that is accepted to this day throughout the Muslim world.
 Photo: This eighth century manuscript from Mecca or Medina is one of the two oldest known existing copies of the Quran.
These successes, however, were qualified by serious administrative weaknesses. 'Uthman was accused of favoritism to members of his family - the clan of Umayyah. Negotiations over such grievances were opened by representatives from Egypt but soon collapsed and 'Uthman was killed - an act that caused a rift in the community of Islam that has never entirely been closed.
This rift widened almost as soon as 'Ali, cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet, was chosen to be the fourth caliph. At issue, essentially, was the legitimacy of 'Ali's caliphate. 'Uthman's relatives - in particular Mu'awiyah, the powerful governor of Syria, where 'Ali's election had not been recognized - believed 'Ali's caliphate was invalid because his election had been supported by those responsible for 'Uthman's unavenged death. The conflict came to a climax in 657 at Siffin, near the Euphrates, and eventually resulted in a major division between the Sunnis or Sunnites and the Shi'is (also called Shi'ites or Shi'ah), the "Partisans" of 'Ali- a division that was to color the subsequent history of Islam.
Actually the Sunnis and the Shi'is are agreed upon almost all the essentials of Islam. Both believe in the Quran and the Prophet, both follow the same principles of religion and both observe the same rituals. However, there is one prominent difference, which is essentially political rather than religious, and concerns the choice of the caliph or successor of Muhammad.
The majority of Muslims support the elective principle which led to the choice of Abu Bakr as the first caliph. This group is known as ahl alsunnah wa-l-jama'ah, "the people of custom and community," or Sunnis, who consider the caliph to be Muhammad's successor only in his capacity as ruler of the community. The main body of the Shi'is, on the other hand, believes that the caliphate - which they call the imamate or "leadership" - is nonelective. The caliphate, they say, must remain within the family of the Prophet - with 'Ali the first valid caliph. And while Sunnis consider the caliph a guardian of the shari'ah, the religious law, the Shi'is see the imam as a trustee inheriting and interpreting the Prophet's spiritual knowledge.
After the battle of Siffin, 'Ali - whose chief strength was in Iraq, with his capital at Kufa - began to lose the support of many of his more uncompromising followers and in 661 he was murdered by a former supporter. His son Hasan was proclaimed caliph at Kufa but soon afterward deferred to Muiawiyah, who had already been proclaimed caliph in Jerusalem in the previous year and who now was recognized and accepted as caliph in all the Muslim territories - thus inaugurating the Umayyad dynasty which would rule for the next ninety years.
The division between the Sunnis and the Shi'is continued to develop in 680 when Ali's son Husayn along with his followers was brutally killed at Karbala in Iraq by the forces of the Umayyad ruler Yazid. His death is still commemorated every year during the Islamic month of Muharram.