Literacy And Identity In Pre Islamic Arabia

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Literacy and Identity in Pre-Islamic Arabia

M.C.A. Macdonald
Literacy and Identity in Pre Islamic Arabia Book PDF

Author : M.C.A. Macdonald
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 432 pages
File Size : 55,5 Mb
Release : 2022-02-24
Category : History
ISBN : 9781000585100

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Literacy and Identity in Pre-Islamic Arabia by M.C.A. Macdonald Pdf

In these studies Michael Macdonald examines the extraordinary flowering of literacy in both the settled and nomadic populations of western Arabia in the 1500 years before the birth of Islam, when a larger proportion of the population could read and write than in any other part of the ancient Near East, and possibly any other part of the ancient world. Even among the nomads there seems to have been almost universal literacy in some regions. The scores of thousands of inscriptions and graffiti they left paint a vivid picture of the way-of-life, social systems, and personal emotions of their authors, information which is not available for any other non-élite population in the ancient Near East outside Egypt. This abundance of inscriptions has enabled Michael Macdonald to explore in detail some of the - often surprising - ways in which reading and writing were used in the literate and non-literate communities of ancient Arabia. He describes the many different languages and the distinct family of alphabets used in ancient Arabia, and discusses the connections between the use of particular languages or scripts and expressions of personal and communal identity. The problem of how ancient perceptions of ethnicity in this region can be identified in the sources is another theme of these papers; more specifically, they deal from several different perspectives with the question of what ancient writers meant when they applied the term 'Arab' to a wide variety of peoples throughout the ancient Near East.

Imagining the Arabs

Webb Peter Webb
Imagining the Arabs Book PDF

Author : Webb Peter Webb
Publisher : Edinburgh University Press
Page : 317 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2016-05-31
Category : History
ISBN : 9781474408288

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Imagining the Arabs by Webb Peter Webb Pdf

Who are the Arabs? When did people begin calling themselves Arabs? And what was the Arabs' role in the rise of Islam? Investigating these core questions about Arab identity and history by marshalling the widest array of Arabic sources employed hitherto, and by closely interpreting the evidence with theories of identity and ethnicity, Imagining the Arabs proposes new answers to the riddle of Arab origins and fundamental reinterpretations of early Islamic history. This book reveals that the time-honoured stereotypes which depict Arabs as ancient Arabian Bedouin are entirely misleading because the essence of Arab identity was in fact devised by Muslims during the first centuries of Islam. Arab identity emerged and evolved as groups imagined new notions of community to suit the radically changing circumstances of life in the early Caliphate. The idea of 'the Arab' was a device which Muslims utilised to articulate their communal identity, to negotiate post-Conquest power relations, and to explain the rise of Islam. Over Islam's first four centuries, political elites, genealogists, poetry collectors, historians and grammarians all participated in a vibrant process of imagining and re-imagining Arab identity and history, and the sum of their works established a powerful tradition that influences Middle Eastern communities to the present day.

Pre-Islamic Arabia

Valentina A. Grasso
Pre Islamic Arabia Book PDF

Author : Valentina A. Grasso
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 279 pages
File Size : 50,7 Mb
Release : 2023-02-28
Category : History
ISBN : 9781009252973

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Pre-Islamic Arabia by Valentina A. Grasso Pdf

This book delves into the political and cultural developments of pre-Islamic Arabia, focusing on the religious attitudes of the inhabitants of the Arabian Peninsula and its northern extension into the Syrian desert. Between the third and the seventh century, Arabia was on the edge of three great empires (Iran, Rome and Aksūm) and at the centre of a lucrative network of trade routes. Valentina Grasso offers an interpretative framework which contextualizes the choice of Arabian elites to become Jewish sympathisers and/or convert to Christianity and Islam by probing the mobilization of faith in the shaping of Arabian identities. For the first time the Arabians of the period are granted autonomy from marginalizing (mostly Western) narratives framing them as 'barbarians' inhabiting the fringes of Rome and Iran and/or deterministic analyses in which they are depicted retrospectively as exemplified by the Muslims' definition of the period as Jāhilīyah, 'ignorance'.

Scribbling through History

Chloé Ragazzoli,Ömür Harmansah,Chiara Salvador,Elizabeth Frood
Scribbling through History Book PDF

Author : Chloé Ragazzoli,Ömür Harmansah,Chiara Salvador,Elizabeth Frood
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 264 pages
File Size : 45,6 Mb
Release : 2018-05-31
Category : Art
ISBN : 9781474288835

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Scribbling through History by Chloé Ragazzoli,Ömür Harmansah,Chiara Salvador,Elizabeth Frood Pdf

For most people the mention of graffiti conjures up notions of subversion, defacement, and underground culture. Yet, the term was coined by classical archaeologists excavating Pompeii in the 19th century and has been embraced by modern street culture: graffiti have been left on natural sites and public monuments for tens of thousands of years. They mark a position in time, a relation to space, and a territorial claim. They are also material displays of individual identity and social interaction. As an effective, socially accepted medium of self-definition, ancient graffiti may be compared to the modern use of social networks. This book shows that graffiti, a very ancient practice long hidden behind modern disapproval and street culture, have been integral to literacy and self-expression throughout history. Graffiti bear witness to social events and religious practices that are difficult to track in normative and official discourses. This book addresses graffiti practices, in cultures ranging from ancient China and Egypt through early modern Europe to modern Turkey, in illustrated short essays by specialists. It proposes a holistic approach to graffiti as a cultural practice that plays a key role in crucial aspects of human experience and how they can be understood.

The Qur??n in Context

Angelika Neuwirth,Nicolai Sinai,Michael Marx
The Qur n in Context Book PDF

Author : Angelika Neuwirth,Nicolai Sinai,Michael Marx
Publisher : BRILL
Page : 873 pages
File Size : 40,6 Mb
Release : 2010
Category : History
ISBN : 9789004176881

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The Qur??n in Context by Angelika Neuwirth,Nicolai Sinai,Michael Marx Pdf

By addressing various aspects of the Qur'?n's linguistic and historical context and offering close readings of selected passages in the light of Jewish, Christian, and ancient Arabic literature, the volume seeks to stimulate a new interaction between literary and historical scholarship.

The Erasure of Arab Political Identity

Salam Hawa
The Erasure of Arab Political Identity Book PDF

Author : Salam Hawa
Publisher : Taylor & Francis
Page : 184 pages
File Size : 43,7 Mb
Release : 2017-01-20
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781317390060

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The Erasure of Arab Political Identity by Salam Hawa Pdf

This book explores the long history of the evolution of Arab political identity, which predates the time of the Prophet Muhammad and is characterized by tolerance, compassion, generosity, hospitality, self-control, correct behaviour, equality and consensus. The author argues that present-day struggles in many Arab countries to redefine polities and politics are related to the fact that the underlying political culture of the Arabs has been overridden for centuries by successive political regimes which have deviated from the original political culture that the Prophet adhered to. The book outlines the political culture that existed before Islam, examines how the Conquests and the rule of the early dynasties (Umayyad and Abbasid) of the Islamic world found it necessary to override it, and analyses the effect of rule by non-Arabs – successively Mamluks, Ottoman Turks and Western colonial powers. It discusses the impact of these distortions on present day politics in the Arab world, and concludes by appealing for a reawakening of, and respect for, the cultural elements underlying the origins of Arab political identity.

Between Empires

Greg Fisher
Between Empires Book PDF

Author : Greg Fisher
Publisher : OUP Oxford
Page : 272 pages
File Size : 42,6 Mb
Release : 2011-04-14
Category : History
ISBN : 9780191618949

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Between Empires by Greg Fisher Pdf

In Between Empires Greg Fisher tackles the problem of pre-Islamic Arab identity by examining the relationship between the Roman Empire and the Empire of Sasanian Iran, and a selection of their Arab allies and neighbours, the Jafnids, Nasrids, and Hujrids. Fisher focuses on the last century before the emergence of Islam and stresses the importance of a Near East dominated by Rome and Iran for the formation of early concepts of Arab identity. In particular, he examines cultural and religious integration, political activities, and the role played by Arabic as factors in this process. He concludes that interface with the Roman Empire, in particular, played a key role in helping to lay the foundation for later concepts of Arab identity, and that the world of Late Antiquity is, as a result, of enduring interest in our understanding of what we now call the Middle East.

Mirage of the Saracen

Walter D. Ward
Mirage of the Saracen Book PDF

Author : Walter D. Ward
Publisher : Univ of California Press
Page : 224 pages
File Size : 48,5 Mb
Release : 2014-12-17
Category : History
ISBN : 9780520959521

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Mirage of the Saracen by Walter D. Ward Pdf

Mirage of the Saracen analyzes the growth of monasticism and Christian settlements in the Sinai Peninsula through the early seventh century C.E. Walter D. Ward examines the ways in which Christian monks justified occupying the Sinai through creating associations between Biblical narratives and Sinai sites while assigning uncivilized, negative, and oppositional traits to the indigenous nomadic population, whom the Christians pejoratively called "Saracens." By writing edifying tales of hostile nomads and the ensuing martyrdom of the monks, Christians not only reinforced their claims to the spiritual benefits of asceticism but also provoked the Roman authorities to enhance defense of pilgrimage routes to the Sinai. When Muslim armies later began conquering the Middle East, Christians also labeled these new conquerors as Saracens, connecting Muslims to these pre-Islamic representations. This timely and relevant work builds a historical account of interreligious encounters in the ancient world, showing the Sinai as a crucible for forging long-lasting images of both Christians and Muslims, some of which endure today.

Essential Essays for the Study of the Military in First-Century Palestine

Christopher B. Zeichmann
Essential Essays for the Study of the Military in First Century Palestine Book PDF

Author : Christopher B. Zeichmann
Publisher : Wipf and Stock Publishers
Page : 178 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2019-11-04
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781532656385

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Essential Essays for the Study of the Military in First-Century Palestine by Christopher B. Zeichmann Pdf

Though the Roman Empire has been a hot topic within New Testament studies in the twenty-first century, its military aspect has—strangely—been almost entirely neglected. This volume will fill that lacuna by reprinting pivotal, but difficult to access, essays on the topic from the past forty years. The book will help bring scholars up to speed on what Roman military experts have been saying on the matter and give a sense for key developments within the field over the last forty years. The contents of this book include a variety of pivotal essays, though most are difficult to find without access to a major research library.

Routledge Handbook on Early Islam

Herbert Berg
Routledge Handbook on Early Islam Book PDF

Author : Herbert Berg
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 392 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 2017-08-10
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781317589204

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Routledge Handbook on Early Islam by Herbert Berg Pdf

The formative period of Islam remains highly contested. From the beginning of modern scholarship on this formative period, scholars have questioned traditional Muslim accounts on early Islam. The scholarly fixation is mirrored by sectarian groups and movements within Islam, most of which trace their origins to this period. Moreover, contemporary movements from Salafists to modernists continue to point to Islam’s origins to justify their positions. This Handbook provides a definitive overview of early Islam and how this period was understood and deployed by later Muslims. It is split into four main parts, the first of which explores the debates and positions on the critical texts and figures of early Islam. The second part turns to the communities that identified their origins with the Qurʾān and Muḥammad. In addition to the development of Muslim identities and polities, of particular focus is the relationship with groups outside or movements inside of the umma (the collective community of Muslims). The third part looks beyond what happened from the 7th to the 9th centuries CE and explores what that period, the events, figures, and texts have meant for Muslims in the past and what they mean for Muslims today. Not all Muslims or scholars are willing to merely reinterpret early Islam and its sources, though; some are willing to jettison parts, or even all, of the edifice that has been constructed over almost a millennium and a half. The Handbook therefore concludes with discussions of re-imaginations and revisions of early Islam and its sources. Almost every major debate in the study of Islam and among Muslims looks to the formative period of Islam. The wide range of contributions from many of the leading academic experts on the subject therefore means that this book will be a valuable resource for all students and scholars of Islamic studies, as well as for anyone with an interest in early Islam.

Writing on the Wall

Karen B. Stern
Writing on the Wall Book PDF

Author : Karen B. Stern
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 310 pages
File Size : 48,5 Mb
Release : 2020-11-03
Category : Art
ISBN : 9780691210704

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Writing on the Wall by Karen B. Stern Pdf

What ancient graffiti reveals about the everyday lives of Jews in the Greek and Roman world Few direct clues exist to the everyday lives and beliefs of ordinary Jews in antiquity. Prevailing perspectives on ancient Jewish life have been shaped largely by the voices of intellectual and social elites, preserved in the writings of Philo and Josephus and the rabbinic texts of the Mishnah and Talmud. Commissioned art, architecture, and formal inscriptions displayed on tombs and synagogues equally reflect the sensibilities of their influential patrons. The perspectives and sentiments of nonelite Jews, by contrast, have mostly disappeared from the historical record. Focusing on these forgotten Jews of antiquity, Writing on the Wall takes an unprecedented look at the vernacular inscriptions and drawings they left behind and sheds new light on the richness of their quotidian lives. Just like their neighbors throughout the eastern and southern Mediterranean, Mesopotamia, Arabia, and Egypt, ancient Jews scribbled and drew graffiti everyplace--in and around markets, hippodromes, theaters, pagan temples, open cliffs, sanctuaries, and even inside burial caves and synagogues. Karen Stern reveals what these markings tell us about the men and women who made them, people whose lives, beliefs, and behaviors eluded commemoration in grand literary and architectural works. Making compelling analogies with modern graffiti practices, she documents the overlooked connections between Jews and their neighbors, showing how popular Jewish practices of prayer, mortuary commemoration, commerce, and civic engagement regularly crossed ethnic and religious boundaries. Illustrated throughout with examples of ancient graffiti, Writing on the Wall provides a tantalizingly intimate glimpse into the cultural worlds of forgotten populations living at the crossroads of Judaism, Christianity, paganism, and earliest Islam.

Conversion in Late Antiquity: Christianity, Islam, and Beyond

Arietta Papaconstantinou,Daniel L. Schwartz
Conversion in Late Antiquity Christianity Islam and Beyond Book PDF

Author : Arietta Papaconstantinou,Daniel L. Schwartz
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 436 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2016-03-03
Category : History
ISBN : 9781317159735

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Conversion in Late Antiquity: Christianity, Islam, and Beyond by Arietta Papaconstantinou,Daniel L. Schwartz Pdf

The papers in this volume were presented at a Mellon-Sawyer Seminar held at the University of Oxford in 2009-2010, which sought to investigate side by side the two important movements of conversion that frame late antiquity: to Christianity at its start, and to Islam at the other end. Challenging the opposition between the two stereotypes of Islamic conversion as an intrinsically violent process, and Christian conversion as a fundamentally spiritual one, the papers seek to isolate the behaviours and circumstances that made conversion both such a common and such a contested phenomenon. The spread of Buddhism in Asia in broadly the same period serves as an external comparator that was not caught in the net of the Abrahamic religions. The volume is organised around several themes, reflecting the concerns of the initial project with the articulation between norm and practice, the role of authorities and institutions, and the social and individual fluidity on the ground. Debates, discussions, and the expression of norms and principles about conversion conversion are not rare in societies experiencing religious change, and the first section of the book examines some of the main issues brought up by surviving sources. This is followed by three sections examining different aspects of how those principles were - or were not - put into practice: how conversion was handled by the state, how it was continuously redefined by individual ambivalence and cultural fluidity, and how it was enshrined through different forms of institutionalization. Finally, a topographical coda examines the effects of religious change on the iconic holy city of Jerusalem.

New Frontiers of Arabic Papyrology

Sobhi Bouderbala,Sylvie Denoix,Matt Malczycki
New Frontiers of Arabic Papyrology Book PDF

Author : Sobhi Bouderbala,Sylvie Denoix,Matt Malczycki
Publisher : BRILL
Page : 220 pages
File Size : 55,7 Mb
Release : 2017-06-12
Category : History
ISBN : 9789004345171

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New Frontiers of Arabic Papyrology by Sobhi Bouderbala,Sylvie Denoix,Matt Malczycki Pdf

New Frontiers of Arabic Papyrology focuses on texts from the transformative era of the Islamic conquests, although some of the research treats later periods.

Arab Settlements: Tribal structures and spatial organizations in the Middle East between Hellenistic and Early Islamic periods

Nicolò Pini
Arab Settlements Tribal structures and spatial organizations in the Middle East between Hellenistic and Early Islamic periods Book PDF

Author : Nicolò Pini
Publisher : Archaeopress Publishing Ltd
Page : 270 pages
File Size : 52,6 Mb
Release : 2019-10-31
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 9781789693621

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Arab Settlements: Tribal structures and spatial organizations in the Middle East between Hellenistic and Early Islamic periods by Nicolò Pini Pdf

How can the built environment help in the understanding of social and economic changes involving ancient local communities? Arab Settlements aims to shed light on the degree to which economic and political changes affected social and identity patterns in the regional context from the Nabatean through to the Umayyad and Abbasid periods.

Scripts and Scripture

Fred M. Donner,Rebecca Hasselbach-Andee
Scripts and Scripture Book PDF

Author : Fred M. Donner,Rebecca Hasselbach-Andee
Publisher : Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago
Page : 312 pages
File Size : 46,7 Mb
Release : 2022-06-30
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781614910749

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Scripts and Scripture by Fred M. Donner,Rebecca Hasselbach-Andee Pdf

How did Islam's sacred scripture, the Arabic Qur'an, emerge from western Arabia at a time when the region was religiously fragmented and lacked a clearly established tradition of writing to render the Arabic language? The studies in this volume, the proceedings of a scholarly conference, address different aspects of this question. They include discussions of the religious concepts found in Arabia in the centuries preceding the rise of Islam, which reflect the presence of polytheism and of several varieties of monotheism including Judaism and Christianity. Also discussed at length are the complexities surrounding the way languages of the Arabian Peninsula were written in the centuries before and after the rise of Islam-including Nabataean and various North Arabian dialects of Semitic-and the gradual emergence of the now-familiar Arabic script from the Nabataean script originally intended to render a dialect of Aramaic. The religious implications of inscriptions from the pre-Islamic and early Islamic centuries receive careful scrutiny. The early coalescence of the Qur'an, the kind of information it contains on Christianity and other religions that formed part of the environment in which it first appeared, the development of several key Qur'anic concepts, and the changing meaning of certain terms used in the Qur'an also form part of this rich volume.