Abraham declares himself to be a submitter (muslim) in the Quran (2:131) and so do the followers of Jesus (5:111). This does not mean they were followers of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ but 'muslim' in the broad sense of the word. The word 'muslim' has a broad and narrow meaning (when capitalised, it usually implies the latter).
Europeans originally referred to Muslims as Muhammadans but this was later considered inappropriate and inaccurate. Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr remarks that Islam is unique among the world religions because it is not named after its founder (like Christianity or Buddhism), or a tribe (like Judaism), or a place (like Hinduism). It never claimed to be a new religion but simply a reassertion of the eternal Truth.
"... With Islam [the last Revelation], ‘the wheel has come full circle’, or almost; and that is why it claims to be a return to the primordial religion, which gives it yet another aspect of universality."
- Dr. Martin Lings
“Islam in its deepest meaning is ‘that which is everywhere’ and ‘that which has always been.’”
- Frithjof Schuon
"He hath ordained for you that religion which He commended unto Noah, and that which We inspire in thee (Muhammad), and that which We commended unto Abraham and Moses and Jesus, saying: Establish the religion, and be not divided therein."
- Quran 42:13
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