Islamic toys, Jewish toys, Christian toys… These clunky and rather awkward phrases tend to be used for no other reason than the lack of a better substitute. Of course, there isn't really any such thing as an "Islamic toy". This kind of phrase is generally only used to describe toys that are specifically geared towards children who are being brought up within the Islamic faith and it's just unfortunate that this more accurate description isn't more catchy!
It would be naïve to think of Islamic toys as simply being replicas of western toys, albeit substituting the English alphabet for the Arabic abjad, or the moral lessons from the Bible to the Qurʼan. There certainly are products designed for these specific educational purposes, but many of the differences between the toys you would typically find on a supermarket shelf and those that are actively geared towards Muslim children tend to be fairly small; perhaps a slight difference in clothing or facial features, in the case of dolls.
The grocery giant, Asda, has done more than any other major UK retailer to bring Islamic toys and dolls into the mainstream when they hit the headlines for introducing a range of Muslim toys into their stores. Desi Dolls as they are known, feature some Quranic Arabic phrases such as "As-Salamu'Alaikum" (the traditional islamic greeting). They are aimed mainly at Asian families who want their English-speaking children to have a good understanding of the Arabic phrases that they will hear regularly at home or in a mosque. We've used a particularly charming image of one of these dolls called Aamina for our category image, and are pleased to point you in the direction of shops selling these and many other Islamic toys online.
The world's most famous online retailer sells an unparalleled selection of toys.
