Fozia Bora: Archives and Archival Sensibilities in Medieval Arabic Historiography
As part of the CML spring seminars Fozia Bora (Leeds) gave a talk on "Archives and Archival Sensibilities in Medieval Arabic Historiography" on 4 May 2021.
When premodern Arab historians reconstructed the Islamic past, which criteria governed their use of previously-written sources? Was their worldview shaped by sectarian concerns, or did they value knowledge of all kinds for its own sake? In this talk, we will explore the wide-ranging archival mindset that shaped medieval Arabic history writing, via the rich and understudied chronicle of the Egyptian Mamluk historian Ibn al-Furat (d. 1405). This, in turn, sheds unique light on epistemological values and intellectual culture in the premodern Islamicate world.
The seminar was co-sposored by the Centre for Medieval Literature and the Centre for Medieval Studies at York. Visit the Centre for Medieval Studies' Youtube channel for more videos here.