Ethnographic studies of Muslim peoples by Arabic scholars, comparative religionists, anthropologists, and sociologists are reviewed in this article. Finnish Orientalism was initiated by Georg August Wallin in the 19th century and extended to the field of social anthropology by Edward Westermarck and Hilma Granqvist. Research on this topic was continued during the second half of the 20th century. Finnish research on Islam and Muslims knew a rapid development owing to the growing importance of Islam in world politics.