Alone among Muslim countries, Morocco is known for its national form of Islam, "Moroccan Islam." This path-breaking study, however, reveals that Moroccan Islam was actually invented in the early twentieth century by French ethnographers and colonial officers who were influenced by British colonial practices in India. Between 1900 and 1920, these researchers compiled a social inventory of Morocco, which in turn led to the emergence of a new object of study, Moroccan Islam, and a new field, Moroccan Studies. In the process they reinvented Morocco as a modern polity and resurrected the monarchy. This book will be of interest to scholars and readers interested in questions around orientalism and empire, colonialism and modernity, and the invention of traditions.

"4/5 ... Highly engaging." -- Kevin Winter San Francisco Book Review "La composition brillamment degagee par l'auteur." ("Brilliantly clear composition by the author.") -- Mehdi Sakatni lectures "The Ethnographic State is a significant contribution to Moroccan studies and to the history of imperialism in North Africa... For students of Morocco, Burke's work is critical." American Historical Review

Edmund Burke III is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and the author or editor of many works, including Struggle and Survival in the Modern Middle East (UC Press).