A tenthcentury traveler from baghad to the volga river. Ibn fadlan s account of his journey is only about 60 pages long. Jun 26, 2001 from the historians point of view, the risala is valuable not only for its description of the bulgars, but also for the fact that ibn fadlan encountered alrusiya rus, protorussian nordic settlers in slavic russia while he was at the bulgar capital. The risala ibn abi zayd al qaywaranis manual of islamic law translated by aisha bewley. A tenthcentury traveler from baghad to the volga river ahmad ibn fadlan on. The embassy brought profound changes in the situation of the eastern europe, and was one of the major steps in the chain of events that resurrected bulgar from a vassalage to a dominant position in the premongol eastern europe. Ibn fadlan has been described as a keen observer and good narrator, and the risala contains valuable ethnographic accounts of early europe. Arab travellers in the far north a short essay ahmed ibn fadlan was an arab traveller from baghdad, iraq ibn fadlan was a 10thcentury arab muslim traveler, famous for his account of his travels as a. This article provides a fresh, annotated translation of ibn fadl.
Ibn fadlan was a 10thcentury arab muslim traveler, famous for his account of his travels as a member of an embassy of the abbasid caliph of baghdad to the king of the volga bulgars, known as his risala account or journal. Jul 26, 2012 in 922 ad, an arab envoy from baghdad named ibn fadlan encountered a party of viking traders on the upper reaches of the volga river. Anyway to get back on track, this of course lead me to read ibn fadlan and the land of darkness, and it was a case of leaving the very best till last. Jan 31, 2012 micheal crichtons eaters of the dead the th warrior starring antonio banderas was a mashup of ibn fadlan s manuscript and the beowulf saga. The basis for this exhibition is the book by ahmad ibn fadlan, an arabic diplomat and the secondranking official in the embassy of abbasid caliph almuqtadir to almysh, the emir of volga bulgaria, in 921922.
Amade ibne fadalane wikipedia, a enciclopedia livre. In 922, ibn fadlan recorded sacrifices and mortuary customs among the rus. Ahmad ibn fadlan chronicled the voyage of an embassy sent from baghdad by the caliph almuqtadir to the capital of a finnougric khanate located on the upper reaches of the volga, a locale that had recently converted to islam. He agreed to leave town on a mission to open diplomacy with the bulgars, as a way of getting out of the public eye, and out of possible scandal. Arab travellers in the far north penguin classics by paul lunde, caroline e. Risala 921 ce at vikinganswerlady ibn fadlan was an arab chronicler. May 21, 2015 each man has an axe, a sword, and a knife and keeps each by him at all times. When ibn fadlan was giving his account of the rusrussiyah, his overall tone is generally objective, but there are some parts where he finds the rusrussiyah barbaric and uncivilized in a sense.
A viking burial described by arab writer ahmad ibn fadlan. Zdenek vanas artistic rendition of ibn fadlans account. Ibn fadlan was employed by the abbasid caliph in baghdad when he was accused of an illicit love affair that would ruin his reputation and his career. Ibn fadlan wrote an account of his journeys with the embassy, called a risala. Ibn fadlans arabic text apparently to heighten the readers sense of the rus described by him as. Ibn fadlan and the land of darkness pdf new pdf download. Then if we leave the ibn fadlan account for a moment and look at different norse burial sites around scandinavia.
May 16, 2010 ibn hibbans collection contains 2647 hadiths, which do not appear in the collections of bukhari or muslim, published in legal order in the book mawarid alzaman ila zawaid ibn hibban by nur aldin ali b. May 12, 2012 home culture a viking burial described by arab writer ahmad ibn fadlan. Ibn fadlan is the most popular eyewitness account of the learned traveler on an official mission from bagdad to bulgar in 922 ad. Ibn fadlan and the land of darkness, arab travellers in the far. So by knowing this then we can also assume that the burial ceremony is something that originated from the areas where the rus had either settled or came from. Ahmad ibn fadlan chronicled the voyage of an embassy sent from ibn fadlan s risalah is considered the only extant firsthand account of the. This is the first english translation of the famous risala, letters by the tenthcentury traveler ibn fadlan, one of the great medieval travelers in world history, akin to ibn batutta. Ibn fadlan was an arab missionary sent by the caliph in baghdad to the king of the bulghars.
Ibn fadlan and the rusiyyah the university of new mexico. The manuscript of ibn fadlan midbook test medium, including multiple choice, short answer, short essay, and indepth essay questions. A substantial portion of ibn fadlans account is dedicated to the description of a people he called the rus or rusiyyah. It was such trading raiders from the rus that ibn fadlan met along the volga in 922. Other books known by the shorthand ar risala risala by ahmad ibn fadlan. In his risala, ibn fadlan describes the social customs, rituals and burial rites of the rus. The rus appear as traders who set up shop on the river banks nearby the. Ahmad ibn alabbas ibn rashid ibn hammad ibn fadlan a. Ibn fadlan s account of the rus dear viking answer lady. A treatise on maliki fiqh abdullah ibn abi zayd alqayrawani 310922 386996 translated by alhaj bello mohammad daura, ma london including commentary from aththamr addani by alazhari abu muhammad abdullah, a maliki faqih known as shaykh alfaqih and little malik.
Ahmad ibn fadlan met with the vikings in volga bulgaria. Sep 27, 2010 ahmad ibn fadlan ibn alabbas ibn rashid ibn hammad was a 10 th century muslim arab writer and traveller who led an embassy to the king of the volga bulgars. The travels of ibn fadlan muslim heritagemuslim heritage. Ibn fadlan and the great unwashed 1415 march 2016 mbi al jaber building, corpus christi college, oxford ibn fadlans vivid eyewitness report of his mission to the bulgars on the middle volga in 9212 is probably one of the most widely known and intensively studied of early arabic texts. This is the first english translation of the famous risala, letters by the tenthcentury traveler ibn fadlan. A tenthcentury traveler from baghdad to the volga river most of our students, with mixed results, were introduced to the medieval arab traveler, ibn fadlan, through antonio banderas portrayal in the 1999 movie the th warrior based on michael crichtons 1976 novel eaters of the dead. Ive heard that michael crighton wrote a book based on ibn fadlan s account of the varangian rus, describing scandinavian traders in 900s russia. He wrote ar risala and annawadir and several other books. In 922 ad, an arab envoy from baghdad named ibn fadlan encountered a party of viking traders on the upper reaches of the volga river. This risala is of great value as a history, although it is clear in some places that inaccuracies and ibn fadlan s own. That crichtons first book was so successful owes much to ibn fadlan. This little book interweaves some of fadlan s observations with the beowulf legend, and is a most entertaining read. Professor majid khadduri has done an admirable service in making this valuable work available in english, his excellent translation uses not only the original manuscripts of ibn jamaa and alrabi, found at dar alkutub, the national library in cairo, but also authoritative editions published earlier in this century, namely the bulaq and. Nothing is known about ibn fadlan other than what can be inferred from his risala.
The oseberg ship, a wellpreserved viking ship discovered in a large burial mound at the oseberg farm near tonsberg in vestfold county, photo. Throughout the journey, ibn fadlan recorded his observations on the bulgars and their interactions with local finnic tribes. Ibn fadlan came from a civilization where things were a little bit more sophisticated than the rusrussiyah, thus his words. Another 150 pages are reports by other arab travellers, geographers and historians of medieval expeditions to the northlands. His account is most known for providing a description of the volga vikings, including an eyewitness account of a ship burial. Download ibn fadlans journey to russia pdf search engine. Volga route from baghdad to bulghar opened in the hermitagekazan centre. Get your kindle here, or download a free kindle reading app. Risalah fiqh, a summary of religious prescriptions in islamic jurisprudence al risala by muhammad ibn idris ashshafii.
The risalah portrays ibn fadlan as a man educated in the islamic sciences, a physician and man of law, and a sometime missionary. A viking burial described by arab writer ahmad ibn fadlan by thornews on may 12, 2012 7. In his rihlarisala travel narrative, account or journal, ibn fadlan, who in the tenth century, accompanied a mission from the caliph. When ibn fadlan was giving his account of the rusrussiyah his. Most scholars identify them with the rus or varangians, which would make ibn fadlans account one of the earliest portrayals of vikings. Notes on the risala of 1851, to the rewriting of the adventure ibnfadlan. However, im also aware that crighton is a wellknown fiction writer. Immediately download the ahmad ibn fadlan summary, chapterbychapter analysis, book notes, essays, quotes, character descriptions, lesson plans, and more everything you need for studying or teaching ahmad ibn fadlan. Pernille hermann, jens peter schjodt, and rasmus tranum kristensen, ed.
Arab travellers in the far north penguin classics 9780140455076 by ibn fadlan and a great selection of similar new, used and collectible books available now at great prices. Ibn fadlans arabic text apparently to heighten the readers sense of the rus. His chronicle called risala includes detailed information and observations about them. On 19 february 2016, the exhibition ibn fadlans journey. In that, his account contrasts with that of the persian traveler ibn rustahwhose impressions of the rus were more favourable. In his subsequent report on his mission he gave a meticulous and astonishingly objective description of viking customs, dress, table manners, religion and sexual practices, as well as the only eyewitness account ever written of a viking ship cremation. Download full ibn fadlans journey to russia book in pdf, epub, mobi and all ebook format.
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