Sunni Islam ( or ) is a
denomination of
Islam which holds that the Islamic prophet
Muhammad's first
Caliph was his father-in-law
Abu Bakr. Sunni Islam primarily contrasts with
Shi'a Islam, which holds that Muhammad's son-in-law and cousin
Ali ibn Abi Talib, not Abu Bakr, was his first caliph. Sunni Islam is by far the largest denomination of Islam. , Sunni Muslims constituted 87–90% of the world's Muslim population. Its adherents are referred to in
Arabic as , "people of the tradition of
Muhammad and the consensus of the
Ummah" or (Arabic أهل السنة) for short. In English, its theological study or doctrine is called
Sunnism, while adherents are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis, Sunnites and Ahlus Sunnah. Sunni Islam is the world's largest religious denomination, followed by
Roman Catholicism. Sunni Islam is sometimes referred to as "orthodox Islam". The word "Sunni" comes from the term
Sunnah (Arabic سنة), which refers to the sayings and actions of the
Islamic prophet Muhammad as recorded in the
hadith.