Allah gave the name ‘Al-Muslimeen‘ (The Muslims) to all those who would submit to His Commands.

هُوَ سَمَّاكُمُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ

…He named you all Al-Muslimeen…

[Al-Quran Surah 22: Verse 78] 

But some of the Muslims do not seem to quite like this name, which was given to them by the Almighty. Some call themselves Sunni, some Shia, some Ahl-e-Hadith and some like to be known as Ahl-e-Fiqh. Some Ahl-e-Fiqh call themselves Hanafi, some Maliki, some Shafi’ee, and some Hambli. Some Hanafi like to be identified as Barelvi and some Deobandi. This is only with respect to different versions of Maddhab/Sharia. With respect to Tareeqah, some identify themselves as Chishti, some Naqshbandi, some Suhrwardi, some Qadiri and so on. Muslims, the believers in One Allah, are supposed to be one single community or Ummah, with single ideological identity as Muslims, and should identify themselves as Muslims as Allah has advised them in the Quran.

وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ قَوْلا مِمَّنْ دَعَا إِلَى اللَّهِ وَعَمِلَ صَالِحًا وَقَالَ إِنَّنِي مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ

And who speaks better than he who calls to Allah while he himself does good, and says: I am surely of those who are Al-Muslimeen.

[Al-Quran Surah 41: Verse 33]