Infirmities notwithstanding, I couldn't let this story pass by without at least mentioning it. Researchers at the University of Birmingham in the UK have found a manuscript of a part of the Qurʾan that can be dated to the middle of the 7th century CE, shortly after Muhammad's death: Radiocarbon analysis has dated the parchment … Continue reading University of Birmingham finds what might be the oldest Qurʾanic text in existence
Category: history
Today in Middle Eastern history: the First Crusade captures Jerusalem (1099)
One thing that sets the First Crusade apart from the rest of the Crusades, apart from it being first, is that it actually succeeded. Without qualification, without changing the conditions in the middle of the campaign, the army of the First Crusade accomplished what it set out to accomplish—it captured Jerusalem. Well, OK, what it … Continue reading Today in Middle Eastern history: the First Crusade captures Jerusalem (1099)
Today in Middle Eastern history: the Battle of Hattin (1187)
Today is of course the Fourth of July, or US Independence Day, and best wishes to those who are celebrating that. But this is not a newsletter devoted to American history, so we’re here today to talk instead about the Battle of Hattin, an 1187 clash between the army of the Crusader kingdom of Jerusalem … Continue reading Today in Middle Eastern history: the Battle of Hattin (1187)
The Joys of Empire
I suppose it's time to write something about Robert Kaplan's awful "Imperialism is Actually Good" hot take from Foreign Policy a couple of weeks ago. First I need to confess something. Every time I read a piece like Kaplan's (or like Graeme Wood's "ISIS is really very Islamic" piece from March, though in that case … Continue reading The Joys of Empire
Today in Middle Eastern history: the Ottoman coup of 1807
The May 29, 1807 coup that overthrew Ottoman Sultan Selim III (d. 1808) and replaced him with his cousin, Mustafa IV (also d. 1808, so you can see where this is going to wind up), isn’t a major event in Ottoman history, certainly not on par with what happened on this date in 1453. But … Continue reading Today in Middle Eastern history: the Ottoman coup of 1807
Islamic History, part 28: Islamic legal terms
Islamic History Series If I listed all the caveats I should list about this episode of our series, this post would be nothing but caveats. Suffice it to say that there are lots of people who spend their entire lives pursuing a study of Law, and lots of people who spend their entire lives pursuing … Continue reading Islamic History, part 28: Islamic legal terms
Islamic History, part 27: early Shiʿa traditions (632-c. 800)
Islamic History Series So last time out we looked at the history we've already covered from the perspective of the emerging Shiʿa minority. Here we'll take a (hopefully shorter) look at Shiʿism itself as it began to emerge over the first century and a half after Muhammad's death. That will then take us back to … Continue reading Islamic History, part 27: early Shiʿa traditions (632-c. 800)
Islamic History, part 26: early Shiʿa history (661-c. 800)
Islamic History Series For the most part, what we've covered until this point has been the history of Sunni Islam. The Rashidun, the Umayyads, the Abbasids, Spain and North Africa, early theology, all of these stories have belonged largely within the Sunni tradition. The irony there is that "Sunni Islam," like most religious majorities (85-90% … Continue reading Islamic History, part 26: early Shiʿa history (661-c. 800)
Today in Middle Eastern history: the Battle of the Zab (750)
Today is the anniversary of the Battle of the Zab, which took place in 750 and was the climactic battle in the Abbasid Revolution that ousted the Umayyad dynasty from the caliphate. Obviously it would be difficult to describe the battle without going over the causes of the revolution, but equally obviously we could be here for … Continue reading Today in Middle Eastern history: the Battle of the Zab (750)
Islamic History, part 25: early Islamic theology
We're getting into a potentially sensitive area (or back into one, since we've been down this road before), so I want to preface this by saying that I am not a theologian, I never went to divinity school, and I'm not here to assess the truth claims of any particular religion or sect. I'm covering … Continue reading Islamic History, part 25: early Islamic theology
The Foreign Exchanges Companion 