فقيه
faqīh
A person of deep understanding of religion, used for a jurist and as a synonym of ʿālim; the plural is fuqahāʾ.
What it means
A faqīh is one who has fiqh, a thorough understanding of the religion. The plural is fuqahāʾ. In the sense Faruqi gives, it is a synonym of ʿālim, a person of knowledge. In common use it names a jurist who can draw out legal rulings from the Quran and the sunna and give an answer to a question of practice.
The Quran’s call for people to gain understanding in religion and to teach it (9:122) is the basis for the standing of such scholars. The great jurists, among them Abu Hanifa, Malik, al-Shafiʿi and Ahmad ibn Hanbal, are called fuqahāʾ. The title does not require a state office; it rests on learning and character, and the community looks to the faqīh for guidance.
Often misunderstood as
Rendered “jurist” alone, which omits the older sense in which the faqīh is simply a scholar who understands the religion.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 43, listed as FAQĪH. The definition is restated here.