The Timeline of Zakah

This research aimed to (1) study the rates of different types of zakah and the time of their occurrence during the history of Islam (2) identify the rates and conditions of zakah according to the time period in Islam which is divided into the era of Prophet's companions, the era of Followers (Tabieen), and the era of Tabi-id Tabieen (3) study the social conditions at that time and the reasons explained by the Prophet, the rulers, and the scholars of the time. The scope of this research included the study of literature and evidences from the Qur’an, the Hadith, and the documents related to the rates and the duration for paying different types of zakah divided by the Islamic era. Another part of this research is the study of the different viewpoints of the leading Muslim scholars concerning the conditions and reasons in stipulating the rates of zakah in different periods of time in Islamic history. This part of the research was conducted by applying qualitative methods, which used interviews as a tool in order to gain insight information for the research. The results demonstrated that there were differences in the types and the rates of zakah in each period of Islamic history. The alternation that occurred can be observed in the time of the era of the Prophet's companions which was different from the era of the Prophet in the types and the rates of zakah for livestock. The rate of zakah for camel and horse, which were the types of livestock that required additional payment, were changed during the era of the Prophet's companions. The distinctive changes can be seen in the era of the Tabieen and the Tabi-id Tabieen. There were different viewpoints from the scholars concerning the rates, the conditions, and the regulations of zakah that were added from the era of the Prophet's and the era of the Prophet's companions. This has shown the clear distinction for the types and the rates of zakah in Islamic history. The research also revealed the viewpoints of the Muslim scholars concerning the additional types and rates of zakah that were added after the era of the Prophet, the era of Prophet's companions, the era of Tabieen, and the Tabi-id Tabieen, for example salary zakah, expertise wage zakah, partnership zakah, and so on. The information received from this research can be used for the development of additional research in zakah, the management of zakah, and the application of zakah money for the benefit of Thai Muslim development in the future.