The Mediterranean in the 14th century

The figure of Ibn Khaldun

(1332-1406)

 

 

Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406 CE/732-808 AH) was one of the greatest Muslim intellectuals. He belonged to an Andalusi (from Al-Andalus – Muslim Spain) family who had settled in the province of Seville. His ancestors played an important role in the history of Seville and in his Autobiography he showed that he was proud of his Andalusi background.

 

"My forebear [Khaldun b. Uthman], on arriving in al-Andalus, established his place of residence in Carmona with a group of people from Hadramawt. The house he built was occupied by his descendents until they moved to Seville and enlisted in the regular Yemenite army. "

 

 

His family’s lineage forms part of the city’s Arab history as from the 8th century and, by the 10th century, it was one of the most important families in Seville. The Banu Khaldun have left their mark on the place-names in both the city and the surrounding area.

 

When the Christian kingdoms reached Seville, in around 1248-49, Ibn Khaldun’s family emigrated and left Seville for North Africa. After a short stay in Ceuta, they ended up settling in Tunisia.

 

"My ancestors emigrated to Tunisia in the
middle of the 7th Century (13th Century in the Christian calendar), as a result of the exodus caused by the victory of the son of Alphonso,
King of Galicia (he is referring to Ferdinand III)."

 

 

Many of the great families who had a long cultural tradition and who had served the Andalusi kings emigrated to the Maghreb where they formed a new noble class whose services were often used by local rulers. 

 

Ibn Khaldun himself received a refined education in keeping with the style of the times and became a master of certain subjects such as the Arabic language. He himself tells us about some of the subjects he studied such as the Koran or rational sciences such as Mathematics, Logic and Philosophy. He also had a broad knowledge of jurisprudence which he was to use throughout his life in the service of numerous rulers of the Maghreb.

 

After some years in the service of the regents of Ifriqiya, he decided to emigrate to al-Andalus, the land of his forefathers, and went to live in the Kingdom of Granada, the last Andalusi redoubt. There, he made friends with the Vizier of Granada, Ibn al-Khatib, whom he had previously met in the Court of the Marinids in Fes. After winning the favour of the Nasrids he was sent on a diplomatic mission to meet Peter I the Cruel in Seville to ratify a peace treaty.

 

As a result of palace intrigues in the Court of Granada, he was forced to return to Maghreb where he retired to the town of Qalat Ibn-Salama, in what is today Algeria, and began writing his great work Al-Muqaddima.

 

 

The Arabic title of Ibn Khaldun’s “Universal History” is the “Book of Experiences” (Kitab al-‘ibar) which has three main parts. The first is a large “Introduction” (Muqaddima) with admirable reflections on human civilization; it is followed by a history of peoples and dynasties and finally, as a finishing touch, a long, exceptional “autobiography”, in which Ibn Khaldun describes and defines himself and takes stock of his own worth.

 

In the final stages of his life he lived in Cairo, the capital of the Mamluk sultanate, one of the most important Muslim states of the time which extended across both Syria and Egypt. Ibn Khaldun described it thus:

 

"Metropolis of the world, garden of the universe, meeting-point of nations, ants’ nest of peoples, favoured seat of Islam, centre of power."

 

 

Here he spent time reading and writing and on several occasions was appointed as a judge. He also taught at the Djami‘a al-Azhar, the first university in Cairo:

 

"I began teaching a course at the Djami‘a al-Azhar. Later I was introduced to the Sultan, who received me in a most affable way and awarded me a
pension to be paid out of his gift fund,
as was his custom with sages."

 

 

He accompanied the Mamluk Sultan to Syria when Damascus was being besieged by Timur Leng one of the great Asian conquerors, with whom he had talks to try to prevent the city being sacked. Ibn Khaldun died in Cairo in 1406.

 

His life, marked by both accord and disaccord, was spent in Mahgreb, al-Andalus and Egypt.

 

His most famous work, al-Muqaddima, an Introduction to Universal History, still arouses great interest even today and has been translated into most of the world’s main languages.