Documente Academic
Documente Profesional
Documente Cultură
Autumn 2016
Informed discussion is a key aspect of the course. You are expected to attend each class
meeting, to complete the weekly readings and other assignments in advance, and to
participate actively in class discussions.
2. Six response papers: 20%
For each week in which discussion sections meet, you are required to write a one-page
response paper that summarizes and analyzes one set of that weeks primary readings. The
response papers are due by e-mail before each Fridays class meeting to
msagha@uchicago.edu (undergraduates) or elshamsy@uchicago.edu (graduate students).
3. Two map assignments: 10%
The two map assignments ask you to locate specified places on a blank map. They are due
in hard copy in the discussion sections of weeks 3 and 5.
4. Midterm examination: 20%
The midterm examination takes place in class on Friday of week 6 (note: no discussion
sections that week). It consists of a set of questions that require you to identify names and
terms as well as one short essay question.
5. Term paper: 30%
The term paper is due in class in hard copy on Wednesday of week 10 (final class).
However, to encourage you to get started on your papers in good time, you must submit
your paper title, an abstract, and a tentative bibliography either by e-mail or in hard copy in
the discussion section on Friday of week 7. The length of the paper should be 45 doublespaced pages for undergraduates, 78 pages for graduate students. Essay prompts will be
posted on Chalk, but with the instructors prior approval you may also develop a topic of
your own, as long as it engages directly with the course themes and (at least some) course
readings.
Note: All examinations, essays, and other assignments submitted by you must be done by you,
except if collaboration is explicitly permitted. Plagiarism is not tolerated and will result in
sanctions.
Course outline with reading assignments:
Week 1 (Sept 26). Religion and society before Islam
Mon
Wed
Arabia and its neighbors in late antiquity: politics, society, religion, language, culture
Readings Vernon Egger, A History of the Muslim World to 1405, preface and ch. 1, pp. 115
Fri
The Byzantine and Sasanian empires (NO DISCUSSION SECTION THIS WEEK)
Week 2 (Oct 3). Pre-Islamic Arabia and the coming of the Arab prophet
Mon
Arabia before Islam
Readings Egger, History of the Muslim World, ch. 1, pp. 1520
Primary Ibn al-Kalbi, Book of Idols
Pre-Islamic poetry: excerpt from Imru al-Qayss muallaqa ode
Wed
Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam: life and message
Readings Jonathan A. C. Brown, Muhammad: A Very Short Introduction, ch. 1
Primary Constitution of Medina (Ibn Hisham after Ibn Ishaq)
Expeditions to Khaybar and Mecca (Mamar ibn Rashid)
Hadith excerpts from Cleary, The Wisdom of the Prophet, pp. 15, 2223, 3839
Fri
Discussion sections
Week 3 (Oct 10). The Quran: formal, literary, and thematic aspects
Mon
The Quran as religious reform
Readings Roger Allen, Quran, in Islam: A Short Guide to the Faith
Daniel Madigan, Themes and Topics, in The Cambridge Companion to the Quran
Wed
Primary
Fri
Week 4 (Oct 17). The first four Caliphs: conquests and governance
Mon
The question of succession
Readings Egger, History of the Muslim World, ch. 2, pp. 3352 (skip pp. 4145 you will read
these for next week)
Primary The shura election council (Tabari)
The battle of Siffin (Tabari)
Wed
Primary
The conquests
The conquest of Syria (Baladhuri)
Umars pact with Syrian Christians (Tabari)
Fri
Discussion sections
Mon
The Umayyads
Readings Egger, History of the Muslim World, ch. 2, pp. 4145, 5261
Primary Fiscal rescript of Umar II (Tabari)
Wed
The Abbasids
Readings Tayeb El-Hibri, The Empire in Iraq, 763861, in The New Cambridge History of Islam
Primary Shuubi (pro-Persian, anti-Arab) poem, Is there a messenger? (Bashshar)
The Quranic Inquisition in the time of Caliph Mamun (Tabari and Jahiz)
Fri
Primary
Wed
Philosophy (guest lecture by Paul Walker)
Readings Hossein Ziai, Islamic philosophy (falsafa), in The Cambridge Companion to Islamic
Theology
Primary Farabi, The Attainment of Happiness and The Political Regime
Ikhwan al-Safa, Epistles, The Case of the Animals versus Man before the King of the
Jinn
Fri
Discussion sections
Texts
Selected epistles, stories, and anecdotes by Abd al-Hamid al-Katib, Ibn al-Muqaffa,
Jahiz, Ibn Qutayba, and Ibn al-Nadim
Marshall Hodgson, The Venture of Islam: Conscience and History in a World Civilization, vol. 1:
The Classical Age of Islam, 1974 [older but still valuable and detailed exposition of Islamic
civilization; contains several useful tables and maps; especially recommended for graduate
students] (online access through library)
Roger Allen and Shawkat Toorawa, eds., Islam: A Short Guide to the Faith, 2011 [succinctly
informative chapters by various scholars on key aspects of the Islamic faith and civilization]
Muhammad Asad, trans., The Message of the Quran, 1980 [Quran, entire, bilingual with
footnotes] (This translation and several others are available free online at http://altafsir.com/
and zekr.org)
Michael Sells, trans., Approaching the Quran, 1999 [Quran, early suras, with commentary
and audio CD]
Ingrid Mattson, The Story of the Quran: Its History and Place in Muslim Life, 2008 [An
overview of the Quran]
Tahera Qutbuddin, ed. and trans., A Treasury of Virtues: Sayings, Sermons and Teachings of Ali,
2013 (online access through library)
Robert Irwin, Night and Horses and the Desert: An Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature, 1999
Geert Jan van Gelder, ed. and trans., Classical Arabic Literature: A Library of Arabic Literature
Anthology, 2013 (online access through library)
David Nicolle, Historical Atlas of the Islamic World, Mercury Books, 2005 [survey of the
Islamic world, with text, maps, and images]
Reference works
A selection of basic reference works dealing with Islamic history and civilization can be found
in the fifth floor reading room of Regenstein Library and/or digitally on our library website.
They include:
Encyclopaedia of Islam. The most important reference work for the study of Islamic
civilization. The 2nd ed. (=EI2), 1954-2004, is complete, and available online through the
Electronic Database page of the UofC Library. The 3rd ed. is currently underway; it has
already published many seminal articles, and can also be accessed online.
Clifford E. Bosworth, The New Islamic Dynasties. Names, dates, and tables of all major
dynasties.
Hugh Kennedy, An Historical Atlas of Islam. Other historical atlases of Islam are also
available.