British Academy: The UK's National Academy for the Humanities and Social Sciences

Understanding the History of Ancient Israel

Abstract

Early Islamic History

Dr Chase Robinson, University of Oxford

The history of seventh- and early eighth-century Islam has become increasingly contentious over the last 25 years, as revisionists of various stripes have thrown into question the reliability of the early Islamic historiographical tradition, which, though dating in most cases from more than 150 years after the events it purports to relate, narrates the rise of Islam in extraordinary detail. Some critics have repudiated that tradition altogether, working entirely from non-Islamic texts and material evidence instead, while others have tried to salvage elements of it. My brief paper will discuss some of the most salient historiographical issues, focusing on the conquests of the 640s and 650s and the emergence of the imperial state in the 680s and 690s.