Description
Book SynopsisCirca AD 750, both the Islamic world and western Europe underwent political revolutions; these raised to power, respectively, the ʿAbbasid and Carolingian dynasties. The eras thus inaugurated were similar not only in their chronology, but also in the foundational role each played in its respective civilization, forming and shaping enduring religious, cultural, and societal institutions. The ʿAbbāsid and Carolingian Empires: Studies in Civilizational Formation, is the first collected volume ever dedicated specifically to comparative Carolingian-ʿAbbasid history. In it, editor D.G. Tor brings together essays from some of the leading historians in order to elucidate some of the parallel developments in each of these civilizations, many of which persisted not only throughout the Middle Ages, but to the present day. Contributors are: Michael Cook, Jennifer R. Davis, Robert Gleave, Eric J. Goldberg, Minoru Inaba, Jürgen Paul, Walter Pohl, D.G. Tor and Ian Wood.
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction The ʿAbbasid and Carolingian Dynasties in Comparative Perspective D.G. Tor Political Power Inventing the Missi Delegating Power in the Late Eighth and Early Ninth Centuries Jennifer R. Davis Ḥasanwayh b. al-Ḥusayn al-Kurdī (r. ca. 350–369/ca. 961–979) From Freehold Castles to Vassality? Jürgen Paul Culture, Ethnicity, and Geography The Emperor’s Ass Hunting for the Asiatic Onager (Equus hemionus) in the ʿAbbasid, Byzantine, and Carolingian Worlds Eric J. Goldberg Ethnicity in the Carolingian Empire Walter Pohl Across the Hindūkush of the ʿAbbasid Period Minoru Inaba Religion Columbanus, the Columbanian Tradition and Caesarius Ian Wood The Rebel and the Imam The Uprising of Zayd al-Nār and Shiʿi Leadership Claims Robert Gleave Final Summation Comparing Carolingians and ʿAbbasids Michael Cook Index
