Mujaz al-Tarikh al-Islami min Ahd Adam ila Asrina al-Hadir
- Author died
- -
- Editions
- Without publisher (King Fahad National Library Cataloging - Riyadh)
Mujaz al-Tarikh al-Islami min Ahd Adam ila Asrina al-Hadir (A Brief History of Islam from the Era of Adam to Our Present Age) is a single-volume historical compendium authored by the Saudi writer Ahmad Mamur al-Asiri, completed in 1417 AH (1996 CE) . The work provides a concise overview of Islamic history spanning from the creation of Adam through classical and modern dynasties down to the late twentieth century .
Background and Purpose
Al-Asiri completed the manuscript on 25 Muharram 1417 AH (1996 CE) . He noted that his primary motive was the lack of a single, accessible reference compiling the disparate stages of Islamic history into a concise volume tailored for general non-specialist readers, contrasting with the multi-volume classical works primarily utilized by researchers . His stated intent was to illustrate the strength of the Muslim community when adhering to its faith and to highlight the decline and fragmentation resulting from departing from it .
Structure and Scope
The book is organized chronologically into several primary sections:
- Ancient History: The earliest and briefest section, covering human history from Adam through biblical and pre-Islamic prophets up to the eve of Muhammad's mission, emphasizing that all divine messengers taught monotheistic Islam .
- The Prophetic Biography (52 BH–11 AH / 570–632 CE): Covers the life of Muhammad and the founding of the first Islamic polity based in Medina .
- The Rightly Guided Caliphate (11–41 AH / 632–661 CE): Details the era of the early caliphs and the initial territorial expansions into the Levant, Persia, and Egypt .
- The Umayyad Caliphate (41–132 AH / 661–749 CE): Discusses the political unified rule and the geographic apex of the early caliphate .
- The Abbasid Caliphate (132–656 AH / 749–1258 CE): Treats the development of autonomous dynasties (such as the Seljuks, Zengids, Ayyubids, Ghaznavids, and Murabits), the impact of internal sectarian currents, the Crusades, and the fall of Baghdad to the Mongols .
- The Mamluk Era (658–923 AH / 1259–1517 CE): Covers the repelling of the Mongol advance and the termination of the Crusader presence in the Levant .
- The Ottoman Era (923–1342 AH / 1517–1923 CE): Focuses on Ottoman expansion into Eastern Europe, the conquest of Constantinople, and the twentieth-century rise of nationalisms leading to the caliphate's abolition .
- The Contemporary Muslim World (1342–1417 AH / 1922–1996 CE): Provides regional geographic surveys and historical profiles of modern Muslim-majority states, followed by a global examination of Muslim minority populations in Asia, Africa, Europe, the Americas, and Australia .
Methodology
Al-Asiri adopted a methodology that combined chronological event narration with analytical commentary . For the ancient era, he restricted his reporting primarily to events corroborated by the Quran and authentic Prophetic traditions, intentionally bypassing unverified historical reports (isrāʾīliyyāt) and contested chronology . Throughout the book, events are outlined using both the Islamic Hijri and Common Era dating systems .
Publication History
The first edition of the work appeared in 1417 AH (1996 CE), cataloged at the King Fahd National Library in Riyadh . A third edition was subsequently published in 1420 AH (1999–2000 CE) .
Answer updated