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This is somewhat tricky. I will explain why below.

The safest approach is to provide a literal rendition. I would skip the word أصول because if you use an expression like "Principles of ...," it would sound more like a single course, not a complete program.

Side note: In the Christian tradition, an undergraduate degree in religious studies is usually given the name "BA in Theology." If the student afterwards goes to a specialized seminary for a master's degree, the degree is usually called "Master of Divinity." A word to the wise: Beware the temptation to use these expressions in an Islamic context. They sound idiomatic in English, but they are actually false imitations.

Now for the tricky part: In the Shi`i tradition, the expression أصول الدين means something much more specific than the general subject of "religion." In fact, there are two similar sounding expression: أصول الدين and أصول الفقه. The former refers to doctrinal or dogmatic topics, usually called "dogmatics" or "systematics" in the Christian tradition. This subject deals with the fundamental beliefs in God, the prophets, the afterlife, etc. The latter refers to the principles by which jurisprudencial opinions are established.

It is clear from the context that أصول الدين here refers to the general subject of religion, not to the narrow sense of "dogmatics" or "systematics." The words that follow, قسم الحديث وعلومه, is what gives it away.

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Fundamental of religion
or
Principles of religion

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Joseph Kenny OP: Islamic Philosophy and Theology
The Sources of Religion: كتاب أصول الدين , translation The short
catechism, Usûl ad-dîn, by Usman dan Fodiye, the founder of the Sokoto ...
www.diafrica.org/nigeriaop/kenny/Isltheology.htm - 10k - Cached - Similar pages

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This type of study is called Theological studies/theology in the west. Merriam webster defines Theology as: the study of religious faith, practice, and experience; especially : the study of God and of God's relation to the world. As far as I know that's what students of أصول الدين study.

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Note added at 6 hrs 3 mins (2005-06-13 09:46:28 GMT)
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You may find this link useful I hope:

http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=1022

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Note added at 6 hrs 4 mins (2005-06-13 09:47:04 GMT)
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\"As a religion, Islam is neither violent nor oppressive to women, says Demiri, who obtained her bachelor\'s and master\'s degrees in Muslim theology at the University of Marmara, in Istanbul. She is currently a doctoral candidate there.\"

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Note added at 6 hrs 5 mins (2005-06-13 09:48:21 GMT)
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I\'ve just borrowed that small paragraph to support my argument. :)