This chapter focuses on those states that have sought to define themselves in terms of Islam or to pursue strategies of Islamization as a form of political development or as a means for assuming and retaining power. While the governments in some of the countries have certainly sought at times to co-opt Islamists or to appropriate Islamic symbols when politically expedient, the primary interest here is in those nations that have actually declared themselves to be Islamic states or where broad, pervasive, and systematic “Islamization” programs have been implemented. The focus is on the politics of “Islam from above.” The chapter examines various cases to provide an understanding of the diverse range of approaches to, and experiences of, “official” Islamization in the Muslim world. It also examines the circumstances that might lead a particular state to pursue Islamization as a strategy and, again, the diverse range of goals they hope to achieve by doing so.