Qissat al-Hadara
- Author died
- 1402 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Jīl
Qissat al-Hadara (The Story of Civilization) is a multi-volume historical encyclopedia written by the American historian and philosopher Will Durant (d. 1402 AH / 1981 CE), with the collaboration of his wife Ariel Durant, surveying human civilization from ancient times .
Scope and Composition
The work contains no less than two million words . It treats Eastern history up to 1933 CE and Western history up to the era of Napoleon Bonaparte and the year 1800 . In compiling the work, Durant undertook extensive travels: he spent a long summer in Greece studying Hellenic civilization sites for the second volume; traveled across the Mediterranean for the third volume; spent six months in 1948 visiting Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, and Western Europe to prepare the fourth volume; returned to Italy in 1951 for the fifth volume; and traveled in 1954 to Germany, Switzerland, France, and England to study sites connected to the Reformation .
Structure
The work comprises multiple major volumes, including:
- Our Oriental Heritage (Turath al-Sharq), which covers the origins of civilization, the Near East, India and its neighbors, China, and Japan .
- The Life of Greece (Hayat al-Yunan) .
- Caesar and Christ (Qaysar wa-al-Masih), completed in 1944 .
- The Age of Faith ('Asr al-Iman), completed in 1950 .
- The Renaissance ('Asr al-Nahda), completed in 1953, followed by the volume on the Reformation .
- The Age of Reason ('Asr al-'Aql) .
Arabic Translation and Publication
The translation of the encyclopedia into Arabic was commissioned by the League of Arab States through its cultural director, Ahmad Amin, who also oversaw its publication as head of the Committee for Authorship, Translation, and Publication (Lajnat al-Ta'lif wa-al-Tarjama wa-al-Nashr) in Cairo .
The translation team divided the encyclopedia's eleven main volumes into forty-seven parts:
- Volume 1: translated by Zaki Najib Mahmud (parts 1, 3, 5) and Muhammad Badran (parts 2, 4) .
- Volumes 2 through 5: translated entirely by Muhammad Badran (parts 6–21) .
- Volume 6: translated by Abd al-Hamid Yunus (parts 22–25), Muhammad Ali Abu Durra (part 26), and Fu'ad Andrawus (part 27) .
- Volume 7: translated by Muhammad Ali Abu Durra (parts 28, 30) and Fu'ad Andrawus (part 29) .
- Volume 8: translated by Fu'ad Andrawus (parts 31, 33) and Muhammad Ali Abu Durra (parts 32, 34) .
- Volume 9: translated by Fu'ad Andrawus (parts 35, 37) and Muhammad Ali Abu Durra (parts 36, 38) .
- Volume 10: translated by Fu'ad Andrawus (parts 39–42) .
- Volume 11: translated by Abd al-Rahman Abd Allah al-Shaykh (parts 43–47) .
The translation appeared in multiple print editions, including a 30-part edition in 15 volumes, an edition in 42 volumes, an edition in 21 volumes, and editions issued by Dar al-Jil in Beirut in cooperation with the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (ALECSO) .
Method and Reception
Critics acknowledged the encyclopedia for its objectivity, scientific method, and moral commitment . Unlike the common Western historiographical convention of beginning human history with ancient Greece and Rome, Durant began his narrative in Asia and the East .
In modern Arabic and Islamic scholarship, the work is frequently cited across various historical and comparative discussions. Authors draw upon Durant's textual analysis of Christian scriptures and church history , as well as his accounts of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ . Arab scholars have also critically engaged with his depictions of historical figures, such as his characterization of the Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid drawn from One Thousand and One Nights .
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