This paper explores the notion of civilization (medeniyet) as it is currently developed and discussed in select Islamic journals in Turkey such as Divan, Hece, or Anlayis in relation to the concepts of community, nation, the state, culture, identity, and religion. This study is part of a nationally funded ongoing project in Turkey that explores the current practice of knowledge production and debates of Islamic intellectuals in various publications, blogs, conferences, seminars, and other similar forums on key concepts of political theory such as justice, order, consent, the nation-state, community or the self. This paper examines the ways in which political theorizing on the notion of civilization in this Islamic intellectual field is producing new approaches and perspectives that create and cultivate a new language of politics by bringing together Islamic knowledges with Western intellectual traditions. I argue that Islamic circles are developing and using the term civilization as an alternative to the notion of nationhood and define it as a particular type of community that is bound by common intellectual traditions which permeates all fields of knowledge including political, economic, social, artistic or philosophical. I argue that based on this understanding of civilization, Islamic intellectuals are producing a theory of state and community-building toward the development of what can be referred to as a ‘civilization-state’ that is meant to replace the secular ‘nation-state.’ In terms of methodology, this paper seeks to develop an ethnographic approach to the study of political theory by focusing on the social, political, cultural and intellectual context within which the notion of civilization is debated; by investigating the educational background and intellectual formation of the intellectuals involved in these debates; and by examining the ways in which the approaches, perspectives and concepts developed in this intellectual field are connected with current political movements, ideologies and projects. To this end, the paper investigates the ways in which the notion of civilization is used by current Islamist political movements, and particularly by the ruling AKP, to develop, justify, legitimize, and empower its ideology, political projects, program, and policies.