{1} CHAPTER ONE

TRAVEL LITERATURE AND GEOGRAPHICAL GUIDES

1. Al-Harawi on Antioch, Tiberias and its surroundings, Acre, Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Hebron, and Ascalon

Abu al-Hasan ʿAli son of Abu Bakr al-Harawi (d. 1215) was born sometime in the mid-twelfth century in Mosul to a family that hailed from Herat in modern Afghanistan. He was a celebrated traveler who journeyed throughout the Islamic world and Byzantine lands. It is said that he was a bit of a graffiti artist, as he was known to write his name on the walls of places he visited. Al-Harawi is most remembered for his A Lonely Wayfarer’s Guide to Pilgrimage, a geographical guide to Islamic sacred sites and shrines, many of which were shared with Jews and Christians. The parts that deal with sites and shrines in Syria–Palestine are very useful for scholars of the Crusades as they furnish important information about social and religious life at the time, the conditions of many Islamic sacred places under Crusader control, as well as interrelations between Muslims and Franks in some localities. His reputation was so honored that the governor of Aleppo, Saladin’s son, al-Zahir (r. 1183–1216), constructed a college for him there. He died in Aleppo in 1215.1

The city of Antioch2

In it, there is the tomb of Habib al-Najjar3 about whom God has revealed: ﴾A man came running from the other end of the city . . .﴿ (Qurʾan {2} 36:20).4 Its mountain (Mount Silpius) was a sacred place to which people from far away came on pilgrimage. It is one of those cities where the foreigner finds comfort away from his hometown.

Tiberias and its surroundings5

East of Lake Tiberias is the tomb of Solomon son of David—peace be upon them—though in truth Solomon is buried next to his father David in Bethlehem in the cave where Jesus—peace be upon him—was born. Also, east of Lake Tiberias are the tombs of Luqman the Wise and his son.6 Luqman’s tomb is also in Yemen at a mountain called Laʿat ʿAdan, which will be mentioned later.

In Tiberias are the tombs of Abu ʿUbayda son of al-Jarrah7 and his wife. We visited them, as noted earlier. God knows best what is the truth. Some say that his tomb is in northern Jordan (al-Urdunn),8 others say it is in Beit Shean (Baysan). He died during the Plague of Emmaus.9 God knows best. At the foot of Mount Tiberias is the tomb of Abu Hurayra—may God be pleased with him.10 Some say that he was buried in al-Baqiʿ,11 others say in al-ʿAqiq.12 God knows best.

{3} In Tiberias is a spring named after Jesus son of Mary—peace be upon them—and the Church of the Tree. This is where the miracle involving Jesus son of Mary—peace be upon them—and the tanner that is mentioned in the Gospel took place. It was the first of his miracles.13 Outside of Tiberias is the shrine of Sukayna daughter of al-Husayn14—peace be upon them—which we visited previously in Damascus;15 and a shrine that some say contains the tomb of ʿAbd Allah son of al-ʿAbbas son of ʿAli son of Abu Talib16—may God be pleased with them all.

Hattin17

Also called Hutaym, Hattin is a village on the mountain where the tombs of Jethro and his wife are located.18 It is also said that Jethro’s tomb is in Mecca. God knows best. The renowned battle of Hattin took place near this village in the year 583 (1187). The kings of the Franks were taken captive and Jerusalem was conquered. So, too, the coastal and the frontier areas.

Kafar Manda19

The road from Tiberias to the city of Acre passes by a village called Kafar Manda, some say it is Midian. God knows best. We visited Midian east of Mount Sinai, which will be noted, God willing. In Kafar Manda is the tomb of Zipporah, the wife of Moses. In it is the well from which he removed {4} the rock and watered Zipporah’s and her sister’s flocks.20 The rock remains there to this day. It also has the tombs of two of Jacob’s sons; some say they are Asher and Naphtali. God knows best. Near these locations is a mountain called al-Tur (Mount Gerizim) upon which some say that Moses—peace be upon him—saw the heavenly fire, and that it was there that almighty God spoke to him and sent him to Pharaoh.21 God knows best.

Nazareth (al-Nasira)22

Nazareth is the city where the home of Mary daughter of ʿImran23 was located. She was from there, and for this reason they (the Christians) are called Nazarenes.24

Acre25

The city of Acre should have been included in the section of the pilgrimage to the coastal areas, but we are mentioning it here because it is in the proximity of Tiberias. The Spring of the Cattle is located in it. They say that the cattle were created there for Adam to plow the land. Next to this spring is a shrine attributed to ʿAli son of Abu Talib26—may God be pleased with him. The Franks, however, made it into a church and appointed an official to oversee its construction and maintenance. On his first morning there, he reported: “I saw a man who said to me, ‘I am ʿAli son of Abu Talib. Tell {5} them to restore this place as a mosque, otherwise whoever resides in it will perish.’ ” The Franks dismissed what he said and appointed someone else in his place. The next morning, they found his replacement dead. Then the Franks restored it as a mosque; it remains so until this day. God knows best. Some say that the tomb of Salih—peace be upon him—is in the prayer niche27 of the mosque; however, in truth Salih’s tomb is where we noted before.28 God knows best. Some also say that Salih’s tomb is in Mecca. Acre is called Acre (ʿAkka) because it is where the tomb of ʿAkk is located. Some allege that he is a prophet. Between the years 585 (1189) and 587 (1191), many people were martyred in the renowned battles and wars on the plain outside Acre. The battles and skirmishes continued day and night during this time.

The pilgrimage29 to noble Jerusalem and its surroundings30

In Jerusalem is the Dome of the Rock, the place from which the Prophet Muhammad—may God bless him and grant him salvation—was made to ascend to heaven. His footprint is on the Rock from which he was made to ascend. I saw this Rock during the time of the Franks; it is on the northern side of the Dome. The part that contains the footprint is surrounded by an iron structure in the form of a house and it is currently located at the southern edge of the Rock. The iron structure is constructed atop a platform to protect it. The footprint measures a full handspan. The height of the structure is two cubits,31 and its circumference is more than four cubits. Below the Dome of the Rock is the Cave of Spirits where it is said that God gathers the spirits of the believers. Fourteen steps lead down to this cave. They also say that the tomb of Zachariah—peace be upon him—is located in it. God knows best. On the ceiling of this Dome I read the following inscribed in gold:

{6} In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. ﴾God. There is no god but He, Living and Everlasting. Neither slumber overtakes him nor sleep. To Him belongs what is in the heavens and what is on the earth. . . .﴿ (Qurʾan 2:255)32

The Dome of the Rock has four gates. I entered it during the time of the Franks in the year 569 (1173). Opposite the gate to the Cave of the Spirits, near the iron grill that surrounds the Rock, is an image of Solomon the son of David—peace be upon him. West of that gate is a leaded gate above which is a golden image of the Messiah adorned with jewels. Above the eastern gate, which is adjacent to the Dome of the Chain, is an arch on which is written the name of al-Qaʾim bi-Amr Allah, the commander of the faithful,33 the quranic chapter True Devotion (112:1–4), as well as other praises and exaltations of God.34 The rest of the gates are the same; the Franks did not alter them. Next to the Dome of the Rock to the east is the Dome of the Chain where Solomon son of David—peace be upon them—used to mete out justice.35 North of the Dome is the residence of the priests which contains pillars and other architectural wonders that I will mention when I discuss the monuments and artifacts, God willing.

In the Aqsa Mosque is the prayer niche of ʿUmar son of al-Khattab36—may God be pleased with him. The Franks did not alter it. I read the following on the ceiling of the dome of the Aqsa Mosque.

In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. ﴾Glory to Him who carried His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Furthest Mosque, whose precincts We have blessed ﴿ (Qurʾan 17:1). May God give victory to his servant and vicegerent, Abu al-Hasan ʿAli, the Imam al-Zahir li-Iʿzaz Din Allah, the commander of the faithful.37 Peace {7} be upon him, his pure ancestors, and his most honorable descendants. Our lord, the august vizier, and intimate friend of the commander of the faithful, Abu al-Qasim ʿAli son of Ahmad, ordered the restoration and gilding of this dome—may God aid him and grant him victory. All of this was completed at the end of Dhu al-Qaʿda in the year 426 (5 October 1035). It is the handiwork of the artisan ʿAbd Allah son of al-Hasan al-Misri.

All of the inscriptions and reliefs are made of gold. The Franks did not alter any of the verses of the Noble Qurʾan or the names of the Caliphs that are above the gates.

I read the following inscription on a large stone in a wall to the north of the Aqsa: “The length of the Aqsa Mosque Sanctuary is 700 cubits—the royal cubit38—and its width is 455.”39

The portico of the Dome of the Rock is supported by sixteen marble columns and eight piers. The interior dome is supported by four piers and twelve columns. Surrounding the Dome are sixteen windows. The circumference of the Dome is 160 cubits. The circumference of the entire structure is 384 cubits. The circumference of everything, including the Dome of the Chain and other adjacent structures is 482 cubits. The height of the iron grill that surrounds the Rock is the measure of two standing persons. The Dome of the Rock has four iron gates: one leads to the Gate of Mercy; another to the Gate of Gabriel; a third to the South; and a fourth to the Dome of the Chain, whose circumference is 60 paces. The height of the Cave of the Spirits is the measure of a standing individual and an arm length. Its width is eleven paces from east to west, thirteen paces from north to south, and its staircase has fourteen steps. On the east side of the ceiling is an opening, the width of which is one and a half cubits. The circumference of the Cave is 50 cubits.

The Dome’s portico is 15 paces wide, and its length from south to the north is 94 paces. The height of the Dome of the Rock is 60 cubits; its circumference is 96. The circumference of its square base is 160 cubits. The length of the Aqsa Mosque, from south to the north, is 148 cubits.

{8} According to what the locals say, Solomon son of David’s stable is beneath the Aqsa Mosque. It contains huge stones; the feed troughs are still there until today. It also includes a cave which is said to contain the cradle of Jesus son of Mary—peace be upon them. To the north of the Aqsa Mosque Sanctuary is the pool of the Children of Israel that Nebuchadnezzar is said to have filled with their heads.40

In Jerusalem is a Jacobite church that contains a well where it is said that the Messiah washed himself and where the Samaritan woman converted at his hand.41 They visit it and believe in its cures. Also in Jerusalem is the Tower of David—peace be upon him—and his prayer niche, which is mentioned in the Noble Qurʾan.42

Outside of Jerusalem, there are pilgrimage sites, which include the Pool of Siloam.43 Its water is like that of the Zamzam44 well in Mecca; it comes from underneath the Dome of the Rock and flows in the valley to the south of the city. Also, the Church of the Ascension, from where it is said that the Messiah—peace be upon him—was raised up to heaven. There is as well the Church of Zion, where it is said that the table descended to Jesus son of Mary and his disciples.45

The Kidron Valley contains the tomb of Mary mother of Jesus—peace be upon them—to which one must descend thirty-six steps.46 Beneath its dome are sturdy marble columns—sixteen of them, eight red and eight green. It has four gates, each of which has six sturdy marble columns. It contains a {9} cloister that is now the shrine of Abraham the Friend47—peace be upon him. It also contains many artifacts, columns, and wondrous architecture.

On the Mount of Olives is the dwelling and tomb of Rabiʿa al-ʿAdawiyya. However, Rabiʿa al-ʿAdawiyya’s tomb is actually in Basra, which we will mention in the Iraqi part of the journey.48 This Rabiʿa who was buried on the Mount of Olives was the wife of Ahmad son of Abu al-Hawari.49 The Mount of Olives also contains many blessed places and tombs of righteous people and Successors50—may God be pleased with them—but people (Muslims) cannot visit them because the Franks have taken possession of the country.

Beyond the eastern wall is the tomb of Shaddad son of Aws al-Khazraji51 and Dhu al-Asabiʿ al-Tamimi.52 It is said that Shaddad’s tomb is elsewhere in Palestine. But God knows best.

As for the Christian community’s pilgrimage sites, the noblest one is the Church of Refuse.53 It is one of the aforementioned wonders. We will surely provide a description of its structure and all that it contains when we mention the ancient sites. They also have in it a tomb which they call “The Resurrection” because they believe that the Messiah’s resurrection occurred there. The truth is that the site used to be called “Refuse” because it was the garbage dump of the city and it was located outside the town, where also the hands of the wicked were cut off and the thieves were crucified. This is mentioned in the Gospel. But God knows best. They allege that it also contains the rock54 that when it split, Adam rose up from underneath it because it {10} was beneath the crucifix. They also have in Jerusalem the garden of Joseph the Righteous55—peace be upon him—that they visit. As for the descent of light, I resided in Jerusalem long enough during the Frankish period that I was able to determine how it was done.56

The route from Jerusalem to the city of Abraham the Friend57

The tomb of Rachel, the mother of Joseph the Righteous—peace be upon them—is on the right side of the road.

Bethlehem58

Bethlehem is the village, which is the birthplace of Jesus—peace be upon him. It is said that the tombs of David and Solomon—peace be upon them—are there as well. The Church of the Nativity contains artifacts and wondrous marble architecture made of gold inlay and columns. It was constructed more than 1,200 years ago; the date is inscribed in wood and has not changed until our time. Bethlehem is the location of the date palm mentioned in the Noble Qurʾan, ﴾So shake towards you the trunk of the palm . . .﴿ (Qurʾan 19:25).59 It contains the prayer niche of ʿUmar son of al-Khattab—may God be pleased with him. The Franks have not altered it to this day.

{11} The city of Abraham the Friend—peace be upon him60

It contains a cave in which are the tombs of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Sarah—peace be upon them. The tombs of Adam, Noah, and Shem are said to be in this cave as well. The cave is below the actual cave that is visited today.

In 570 (1175) in Alexandria, I studied a small book with the cleric and Hadith memorizer61 Abu Tahir Ahmad son of Muhammad al-Silafi62 that he attributed to a certain man, whose name escapes me—for in 588 (1192), the Franks had confiscated my books during the raid at Khuwaylifa by the English king (Richard the Lionheart).63 He sent a messenger to me, promising to return what he took from me with compensation several times its value and requested a meeting with me, but I did not go to him.

As for the small book I mentioned, it recounts that that man came on pilgrimage to Hebron and befriended the Byzantine custodian of the cave. He bribed him with a gift and asked if he could go down into the cave. The custodian promised him so during the snow season when the pilgrims stop coming. When they stopped coming, he brought him to a stone and lifted it up. He brought a lamp, and they both descended a staircase of about 70 steps and reached a large breezy cave. There, on a slab, was laid Abraham the Friend—peace be upon him—covered in a green robe and the breeze {12} was rustling his white hair. Next to him were Isaac and Jacob—peace be upon them. Then he brought him to a wall inside the cave and said to him: “Sarah is behind this wall.” The man was curious to see what was behind the wall, but he suddenly heard a voice say: “Beware! She is a woman!” They returned whence they came.

I read in the Torah that in this village of Hebron is the cave that Abraham—peace be upon him—had purchased from ʿAfrun son of Suhar al-Hitti for 400 silver coins, and he buried Sarah there. This is what the Torah says in the fifth section of the first book.64 But God knows best. Also, in Hebron, there is the tomb of Joseph the Righteous; it is outside the cave. The truth, however, is what we mentioned earlier (i.e., that Joseph’s tomb is in the village of Balata near Nablus).65

The author of this book, ʿAli son of Abu Bakr al-Harawi—may God pardon him and all the Muslims—says: In 569 (1173), I entered Jerusalem. I met there and in the city of Abraham the Friend—peace be upon him—with clerics who told me that in the time of King Baldwin66 part of this cave had fallen in and a group of Franks entered it with the king’s permission and found there Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—peace be upon them—in their tattered burial shrouds. They were leaning against the wall with scarves over their heads and their faces were bare. The king renewed their shrouds and sealed the place in 513 (1119).

The knight Byron, who was living then in Bethlehem and was known among the Franks for his courage and old age, told me that he had entered this cave with his father and saw Abraham the Friend, Isaac, and Jacob and their faces were bare. I asked: “How old were you?” He replied: “Thirteen years.” He then said to me: “The knight Godfrey son of George is one of those who the king had charged with renewing their shrouds and repairing the part of the cave that had fallen in. He is still alive.” I inquired about him and was told that he had died only a few days ago. The author of this book (al-Harawi) says: “If that is true, then I have seen someone who had seen Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—peace be upon them—while awake and not in his sleep.

{13} The route from Jerusalem to Ascalon67

They say that Bayt Jibrin (Gibelin) is the town that almighty God mentioned in Surat al-Maʾida (The Table) in the story of Moses.

﴾O people, enter the holy land which God has marked out for you, and do not go back to your old ways, only to end up as losers. They said: O Moses, in this land there are men of great might. We will not enter it until they leave it. When they leave, we will enter it.﴿ (Qurʾan 5:21–22)

They say that the City of Giants,68 about which these verses were revealed, is the city of Jericho. Others say that it is the city of ʿAmman, which is more correct. Bayt Jibrin contains antiquities. On the road from it to Ascalon is the Valley of Ants69 where they say that the ant spoke to Solomon son of David—peace be upon them.70

The frontier town of Ascalon is a noble site that few can rival with respect to its beauty and fortifications. Hadiths from the Messenger of God—may God bless him and grant him salvation—were transmitted about it and about garrisoning there for war. The well of Abraham the Friend—peace be upon him—is there. They say that he dug it with his own hands. God knows best. The shrine of the head of al-Husayn—may God be pleased with him—was once there. After the Franks took the city, the Muslims moved the head of al-Husayn to Old Cairo71 in the year 549 (1154).72

{14} The author of this book ʿAli son of Abu Bakr al-Harawi says: I entered the frontier town of Ascalon in 570 (1174) and resided at the shrine of Abraham—peace be upon him. I saw there on that very spot the Messenger of God in a vision and he was among a group of people. I greeted him, kissed his hand, and said: “O Messenger of God! How wonderful it would be if this frontier town was in Muslim hands.” He replied: “It will be in Muslim hands and will also be a lesson for mankind.” When I awoke, I inscribed what I saw on the southern wall of the shrine and dated it. Indeed, Jerusalem and Ascalon were conquered in 583 (1187). Many merchants and soldiers saw this inscription, dated 570 (1174). God knows best.73 Many righteous people and Successors whose tombs are unknown are buried in Ascalon’s cemetery. So, too, in Gaza, Acre, Tyre, Sidon, and all the towns along the coast.

Questions

1. 1. In his A Lonely Wayfarer’s Guide to Pilgrimage, on what kinds of information does al-Harawi focus in his descriptions of places he visited?
2. 2. Why might this information be of interest to Muslim pilgrims?
3. 3. How does al-Harawi depict places that were sacred to Jews, Christians, and Muslims—e.g., Jerusalem, Hebron, etc.?
4. 4. What can we learn about the importance of visions and dreams from the accounts al-Harawi records?
5. 5. How does al-Harawi depict the Franks and his interactions with them?
6. 6. What did the Franks do to Muslim sacred places, especially the Dome of the Rock and the Aqsa Mosque, after they controlled them?

 

{15} 2. Ibn Jubayr on the Christians of Mount Lebanon and trade between Muslims and Franks74

Ibn Jubayr was born in 1145, in Valencia, Spain. He belonged to an Arab family of the tribe of Kinana. His family name comes from his ancestor ʿAbd al-Salam son of Jubayr al-Kinani, who came to Spain during the Umayyad period in 740 with the army sent by the Umayyad Caliph Hisham son of ʿAbd al-Malik (r. 724–743) to put down a Berber uprising. Ibn Jubayr was a judge and an administrator in Granada under the Almohads. His pilgrimage journey, which he recounts in his Travel Narrative, lasted from 1183 to 1185. The book describes in detail his experiences and keen observations of daily life while on his journey from Granada to Mecca and back to Spain, much of it spent traveling on Genoese ships. The sections on Crusader territories in Palestine and Norman Sicily are rich with details about Crusader–Muslim encounters. He apparently did not rejoin government service when he returned to Spain. He also undertook two more journeys to the east, but he did not report on them. His second trip lasted from 1189 to 1191; he embarked on his third trip in 1217. He settled in the cosmopolitan city of Alexandria in Egypt, where there was a substantial community of Muslims from Spain and North Africa. While in Alexandria, he served as a teacher of Sufism (Islamic mysticism) and Hadith. He died in Alexandria in November 1217.75

The Christians of Mount Lebanon

One of the marvelous things one hears was that the Christians who live around Mount Lebanon when they see there some Muslim hermits, they bring to them food and treat them well. They say: “These live as hermits for the sake of the great and glorious God. It is, therefore, an obligation to share things with them.”

This mountain is one of the most fertile mountains of the world. It has many varieties of fruits, gushing water, and expansive shade. It is rarely empty of someone practicing a life of solitude and asceticism. If the {16} Christians treat the opponents of their faith in this way, should not this be the way Muslims treat each other?

War and harmony between the Christians and Muslims

One of the marvelous things talked about was that the blazes of conflict flare up between the two factions—Muslims and Christians—and often the two camps meet and battle lines are drawn between them. Yet, Muslim and Christian companions go in between without any hindrance. At this time, that is the month of Jumada I 580 (August 1184), we witnessed an example of that when Saladin76 marched with all the Muslim troops to attack the castle of Kerak, one of the most invincible of Christian castles.77 It obstructs the road to Hijaz, hindering the Muslims’ way overland. Between it and Jerusalem is a day’s travel or a little more. It is located in the finest part of the land of Palestine. It has an imposing view over a vast region of numerous settlements; it is said they exceed 400 small towns. So, this sultan readied the attack against it, tightened the blockade around it, and laid siege to it for a long time.

Yet, the traffic of caravans between Egypt and Damascus via the Frankish dominions does not cease. Likewise, the traffic of Muslims between Damascus and Acre. And the Christian merchants, none of them is hindered or interfered with. The Christians levy in their countries a tax from the Muslims in return for specific protection. Christian merchants also pay a tax in Muslim lands on their merchandise. There is harmony between them and tolerance in all circumstances. The people of war are preoccupied in their war, the general public is in a state of well-being, and the world goes to the winner.

This is the conduct of the people of this land during war. Likewise, the unfolding conflict between the commanders78 and monarchs of the Muslims. Neither citizens nor merchants are interfered with. Protection does not abandon them in any circumstances, whether during peacetime or war. The affairs of this land are too marvelous to be recounted here. May God, with His grace, exalt the word of Islam.

{17} 3. Ibn Jubayr on the cities of Banyas,79 Acre, Tyre, and the Muslims under Frankish rule80

The city of Banyas (Belinas)—may almighty God protect it

This city is the frontier of the Muslims’ lands. It is small and has a fortress, surrounded by a river that meanders beneath the walls and leads to one of the city’s gates, and then into a waterfall that operates a mill. It used to be in the hands of the Franks until it was recaptured by Nur al-Din—may God be merciful to him. Around it is a great deal of arable land extending over a wide plain. A Frankish castle called Hunin (Chastel Neuf) overlooks it; between it and Banyas is approximately three parasangs.81 The farming of the plain is shared between the Franks and the Muslims. They have a stipulation between them known as the partnership stipulation: they share the crops equally. Their livestock are mixed and no harm occurs between them on account of that.

We departed from it on the eve of the aforementioned Saturday to a village known as al-Masiyya near the aforementioned Frankish castle, and we spent the night in it. We departed from it at dawn on Sunday, and crossed on our way between Hunin and Tibnin (Toron) alongside a valley, wooded mostly with sweet bay trees. It was so steep as if a bottomless abyss. Its edges come together and rise up toward the sky. It is known as al-Istil. If troops were to venture into it, they would disappear; there is no escape and no exit for anyone who dares to cross it. The descent to it and ascent from it are two insurmountable obstacles. We marveled at that place. We thus avoided it, and crossed alongside it, emerging next to a large Frankish castle known as Tibnin. It is the location where customs are levied on caravans. Its lady is a sow known as the Queen (Agnes of Courtenay). She is the mother of the pig king (Baldwin IV), lord of Acre—may God destroy it. We spent the night beneath that castle. The people paid a light customs fee; the tax being one Tyrian dinar and one qirat on each head.82 Merchants, however, were not {18} interfered with because they were bound for the place of the cursed king, where they pay the tithe; the tax there was one qirat per dinar, and the dinar is comprised of 24 qirats.

Those on whom this customs fee was imposed were mostly North Africans. Muslims from other parts of the Muslim world were not interfered with. That was because the North Africans had done something that had angered the Franks; that is, an audacious group of them had joined Nur al-Din—may God be merciful to him—in a raid against one of the castles. They looted its riches, and it became well known. The Franks punished them with this customs tax imposed on them individually. Every North African has to pay the aforementioned dinar while crossing their country. The Franks said: “These North Africans used to traverse our land and we were peaceful toward them. We did not impose on them anything. But when they interfered in the war against us and allied themselves with their Muslim brothers, we were obliged to inflict on them this tax.” The North Africans are thus praised for paying this customs fee on account of their provocation of the enemy, which makes it more tolerable and less distressful to them.

We departed from Tibnin—may God destroy it—at dawn on Monday, passing through numerous villages and organized communities. Their inhabitants were all Muslims living alongside the Franks in a state of comfort—may God protect us from temptation. That is because the Muslims hand over to them half of their crops at the time of harvest. They also pay a jizya tax on each head: 1 dinar and 5 qirats.83 The Franks do not interfere with them otherwise. The Muslims also pay a light tax on the produce of trees. They own their houses, and all their affairs are left to them to administer. All the cities along the coast of Syria that are in the hands of the Franks are administered in this way: the rural areas, including villages and small towns, all belong to Muslims. Temptation has satiated the hearts of many of them, for they see that their Muslim brothers in the rural areas and provinces under Muslim control live in a contrary situation to theirs in terms of comfort and good care. This is one of the calamities that befell the Muslims, {19} namely that Muslims would complain about the injustice of their own kind who rule over them, and those under Frankish rule praise the conduct of their adversary and enemy, and feel comfortable under their justice. We complain to God about this situation. Our comfort and solace are what is revealed in the venerable Book: ﴾This is nothing but a trial from You; through it You lead astray whomsoever You will, and guide aright whomsoever You will﴿ (Qurʾan 7:155).

On that aforementioned Monday, we lodged in one of the villages near Acre, around a parasang away. The village head was a Muslim, appointed by the Franks over the Muslims who reside there. He entertained all the members of the caravan with a generous feast. He gathered them, great and small, in one large room in his house, served them a variety of food, and overwhelmed them with his kindness. We were among those who attended this invitation.

We slept that night and then in the morning of Tuesday, the 10th of the aforementioned month (Jumada II 580), which corresponds to 18 September (1184),84 we entered Acre—may God destroy it. We were taken to the Customs House, which is a caravanserai prepared to accommodate caravans. Outside its door were benches covered with cushions, on them sitting Christian scribes with inkwells made of ebony and ornamented with gold. They write in Arabic and they speak it too. Their boss was the Head of Customs who holds the lease to run it. He is known as lord,85 which is an honorific title given to him on account of his position. They also apply it to every prominent appointee who is not a soldier. All levied dues go to the lease holder; the lease for this house is obtained by paying up front a huge sum of money. The merchants dropped their loads in the Customs House and lodged in the upper floor. The load of each one who did not have any merchandise was searched to make sure it did not include any hidden merchandise, and he was allowed to lodge anywhere he desired. All of this was done with good care and friendliness without any harshness or discrimination. We lodged in it in a house we rented from a Christian woman beside the sea. We asked almighty God for fast deliverance and to grant us safety.

{20} The city of Acre—may God destroy it and restore it [to the Muslims]

Acre is the base of the Frankish cities in Syria. It is the anchor of vessels sailing the sea like mountaintops.86 It is the harbor for every ship, and comparable in greatness to Constantinople. It is the gathering place for ships and traveling companions, and where Muslim and Christian merchants from faraway places meet. Its streets and alleys are so crowded with traffic that one barely finds a place to walk. It beams with infidelity and injustice, and overflows with pigs and crosses. It is stinky and dirty; it is full of filth and excrement. The Franks took it over from the Muslims in the first decade of the sixth century (twelfth century); the world of Islam wept dearly over its loss and it became one of the distresses. Its mosques were transformed into churches, and its minarets into bell towers. Of its congregational mosque, God kept undefiled a part that remained in the hands of Muslims as a small place for prayer, where foreigners gather to fulfill the duty of prayer. In its prayer niche is located the tomb of the prophet Salih87—may God bless him and all prophets and grant them peace. May God guard this spot from the filth of infidels on account of the blessing of this sacred tomb.

In the east side of the city is the Spring of the Cattle from which God brought forth cattle for Adam88—may God bless him and grant him peace. The descent to this spring follows steep stairs. Over it is a mosque whose prayer niche is preserved. The Franks had installed a prayer niche for them on its eastern side. The Muslim and the infidel gather in it; each turns toward his prayer direction. It is under the control of the Christians; they venerate it and protect it. God saved a prayer spot in it for the Muslims.

We stayed in Acre two days, and then departed to Tyre overland on Thursday, the 12th of the aforementioned Jumada, which corresponds to the 20th of the aforementioned September. We passed on our way by a great castle known as al-Zab (Casal). It overlooks numerous small towns and communities, including a small walled town called Iskandaruna (Iscandelion). We were seeking in Tyre a boat that we were told was sailing toward Bijaya,89 in the hope that we could embark on it. We arrived on the eve of {21} the aforementioned Thursday, because the distance between the two cities was around 30 miles.90 We lodged in it in a caravanserai prepared for the lodging of Muslims.

The City of Tyre (Sur)—may God almighty destroy it

This is a city that is the epitome of invincibility. It does not submit or acquiesce to any conqueror. The Franks prepared it as a sanctuary for their emergencies, and made it a secure refuge. Its streets and alleys are cleaner than Acre. Its people are less inclined to infidelity, and more inclined, in character and intention, to be good to Muslim foreigners. Their manners are more pleasant, and their houses are larger and more spacious. The status of Muslims in it is nicer and more tranquil. For Acre is larger, more brutal, and inclined to infidelity.

As for its invincibility and fortification, it is something more marvelous than can be described. That is because of its two gates: one landward and the other seaward. The sea surrounds it except from one side. The landward gate is reached after going through three or four entryways, which are constructed into the walls around it. As for the seaward gate, it is an entrance between two constructed towers leading into a harbor. Nothing more marvelous is to be found in any coastal cities. It is surrounded from three sides by the city walls, and from the last side it is enclosed by a wall made of plaster. Ships come in under the walls and anchor inside. A huge chain stretches between the two aforementioned towers, preventing entry or exit when extended. There is no way for boats to come in unless the chain is removed. On that gate there are guards and agents who keep a close eye on everyone who enters or exits. This harbor is something to truly marvel at in terms of its location. Acre’s has a similar location and description, but it cannot accommodate such large ships as that of Tyre, but rather they have to anchor outside and only small boats can enter. The harbor in Tyre is more perfect, more beautiful, and more spacious.

We stayed in Tyre 11 days; we entered it on Thursday and departed from it on Sunday, the 22nd of the aforementioned Jumada, which corresponds to the last day of September. That is because we found the boat in which we were hoping to sail too small and thought better not to sail in it.

{22} A Frankish wedding in Tyre

One spectacle of the vanities of the world that we saw while in Tyre was a bride’s wedding, which took place on one of the days by the harbor. For that, all Christians—men and women—assembled and lined up on both sides of the betrothed bride’s door. Horns were blowing, as well as reeds and other entertaining instruments. Then she came out swinging between two men, holding her from the right and left as if they were her brothers. She was beautifully outfitted and elegantly dressed, dragging a trail of golden silk strips in accordance with their customary dressing style. On her head there was a golden band decorated with a woven mesh made of gold. A similar one was arranged on her chest. She was swaggering in her jewelry and clothes, proceeding very slowly like a dove or a passing cloud. We ask protection from God against the temptation of such sights. In front of her were the city’s most notable Christian men in their most splendid clothes, dragging behind them their robes. Following her were her peers and her kind of Christian women, swinging in the most precious dresses, and swaggering in the most boastful jewelry. The entertaining instruments were leading the way. The Muslim and other Christian spectators lined up on both sides of the street, gazing at them without any reproof. They paraded her until they brought her to the house of her groom, and spent that day feasting. Coincidence made us see this spectacle of vanity, from the temptation of which God is sought for protection.

The Muslims of Acre

We returned to Acre by sea, arriving on the morning of Monday, the 23rd of the aforementioned Jumada, which corresponds to the first day of October. We booked our fare on a large boat intending to sail to Messina, one of the towns of the island of Sicily. God almighty, by His majesty and power, is the guarantor to make it smooth and easy.

During our stay in Tyre, we lodged in a mosque that remained in the hands of the Muslims. They had other mosques in it, but one of the Muslim elders of Tyre told us that they were confiscated from them in the year 518 (1124). Acre was captured 12 years before Tyre after a long siege and because of the famine that befell the inhabitants. We were told that it brought them to a state from which we beseech God to save us. Pride drove them to initiate a plan, but God held them back from it. They decided to gather their spouses and children in the great mosque and kill them with the sword in order to protect them from being enslaved by the Christians. Then they were to march against their enemy in a resolute assault and fight {23} them truly until they all died together and God’s decree was realized. But their jurists and some God-fearing individuals among them stood in their way, and they all agreed to hand over the town and leave it peacefully. That was what ended up happening, and they dispersed in the Muslim lands. The love of the homeland lured some to return to live among the Franks after they guaranteed security of person and property, which was granted to them according to conditions they stipulated. ﴾God’s decree will prevail﴿ (Qurʾan 12:21)—glory be to Him. May His power reign and His will prevail on earth. There is no excuse before God to reside in one of the towns of the infidels except while crossing it, especially if one were to find an alternative in Muslim lands. That is because of the hardships and horrors that he will encounter in their lands, such as humiliation and submissive (dhimmi) status,91 and such as hearing what causes pain in the hearts regarding the blasphemy of the Prophet Muhammad—whose mention God venerated and whose rank He exalted—especially from that wretched and base people of theirs. Also, there is the absence of cleanliness, the intermingling with pigs, and prohibitions all of which cannot be listed or enumerated. Beware, beware of entering their lands. God almighty is the one to be asked for proper absolution and forgiveness from this sin in which the foot slipped, and which one could not foresee until regret has set in. He—glory be to Him—is the Master of that; there is no Lord but He.

Muslim captives

Muslim captives are among the misfortunes that whoever travels to their lands witnesses. The Muslim men are shackled in chains and forced to do hard labor as if they were slaves. The Muslim women are treated likewise, with iron anklets on their legs. Hearts weep over them and pity benefits them not at all.

One of the benevolent things that almighty God has arranged for the North African captives in these Syrian lands under the Franks is that every Muslim in these and other parts of Syria designates a portion of his wealth specifically to liberate the North Africans on account of them being away {24} from their country and that they have no person to save them other than the great and glorious God. They are after all foreigners, separated from their lands. Thus, the Muslim monarchs of these parts, noble ladies, as well as affluent and wealthy people spend their money in this purpose. Nur al-Din—may God be merciful to him—made a vow during an illness that struck him to spend 12,000 dinars to ransom North African captives. When he was cured from his illness, he sent the money for their ransom. Among those dispatched in the deal were a group who were not from North Africa; they were from Hama, from the farmlands around it. He ordered them to be returned and replaced with North Africans. He said: “These should be liberated by their families and neighbors. The North Africans are foreigners and have no families.” Behold the benevolence of almighty God toward this North African people!92

God had also foreordained that they should have in Damascus two men who are among the most prosperous, noble, and rich merchants, who bask in wealth. One of them was named Nasr son of Qawwam93 and the second one was Abu al-Durr Yaqut, the freed slave of al-ʿAttafi. All their trading is along this Frankish coast and no one else has a say there. They have honest partners, and caravans come and go carrying their merchandise. Their level of riches is immense, and their status before Muslim and Frankish princes is substantial. The great and glorious God has chosen them to liberate the North African captives with their money and the money given to them by those who make bequests. They are sought for this because of their well-known honesty, trustworthiness, and spending their own money in this cause. No North African is saved from captivity except at their hands. They have been doing this for a long time, expending their money and exerting their efforts to save the Muslim servants of God from the hands of the infidels, the enemies of God. God almighty ﴾wastes not the reward of the virtuous﴿ (Qurʾan 12:90).

{25} An unhappy coincidence

Of the unhappy coincidences, from the evil of which we beseech God, was that we were accompanied on our way to Acre from Damascus by a North African man from Buna in the district of Bijaya. He was a captive and was saved at the hands of the aforementioned Abu al-Durr and became one of his young servants. He arrived with his caravan to Acre. While captive, he had befriended the Christians and picked up many of their habits. Satan kept enticing and tempting him until he renounced the religion of Islam. So, he became an infidel and converted to Christianity during our stay in Tyre. We left for Acre and were told about his affairs, that he had been baptized and had become abhorrent. He put on the girdle94 and brought hell quickly upon himself. ﴾The verdict of torment will have come true﴿ (Quran 39:71) for him, ﴾an evil accounting﴿ (Qurʾan 13:18) awaits him, and an abyss is the ﴾final destination﴿ (Qurʾan 78:22). We implore the great and glorious God to confirm us in the firm confession in this world and the hereafter, to cause us not to deviate from the ﴾pristine faith﴿ (Qurʾan 2:135),95 and to let us die Muslims by His grace and mercy.

This pig, the lord of Acre, who is called by them king (Baldwin IV), is hidden from view. God has afflicted him with leprosy, hastening His vengeance upon him.96 His affliction preoccupied him during his boyhood rather than the pleasures of his world. He suffers in it and ﴾the torment of the hereafter is more grievous and longer-lasting﴿ (Qurʾan 20:127). His chamberlain and regent is his maternal uncle the count (Raymond III of Tripoli), who is the treasurer and the levied money is sent to him. He is also the most senior in terms of rank, prestige, and importance in the cursed Frankish dominions. The cursed count is the lord of Tripoli and Tiberias. He is a person of status and standing among the Franks. He is well qualified for kingship and the next candidate for it. He is also perceived as shrewd and cunning. He was the captive of Nur al-Din for almost 12 years or more, but then was able to free himself with a huge sum during the time of Saladin, at the beginning of his reign. He acknowledges to Saladin his servitude and emancipation.

{26} Caravans from Damascus cross via the wilderness of Tiberias because of the accessibility of its road. But mule caravans pass through Tibnin because of its ruggedness, for its road is shorter. Lake Tiberias is famous; its water is sweet. Its width is approximately 3 or 4 parasangs, and its length is around 6 parasangs. But estimates about it vary, and what is said here is closer to the truth even though we did not see it. Its width varies in size in terms of wideness and narrowness. Near there are many of the prophets’ tombs, God’s blessings on them, such as Jethro (Shuʿayb), Solomon, Judah (Yahuda), Reuben (Rubil),97 and Shuʿayb’s daughter (Zipporah) the wife of Moses the Interlocutor of God, and others.98 God’s blessings and peace be upon them all. Mount Tabor is near to it.

Between Acre and Jerusalem is a distance of 3 days’ march. Between Damascus and Jerusalem are around 8 days. It is to the southwest99 of Acre in the direction of Alexandria.100 May God—with His might and power—restore it to the Muslims’ hands and purify it from the hands of the polytheists.101

Acre and Tyre

These two cities, Acre and Tyre, have no orchards directly around them. Instead, they are in a vast plain connected to the seacoast. Fruits are brought to them from nearby orchards. They control expansive districts and the mountains close to them are inhabited with villages from which fruits are brought to them. They are the most precious of cities. To the east of Acre, toward the edge of town, there is a creek with running water. Along the seacoast, it has a sandy beach the beauty of which is beyond compare, and its hippodrome is without equal. The lord of the city goes out to it every morning and evening, and the soldiers gather in it. May God destroy it.

As for Tyre, it has by its landward gate a gushing spring that one descends to via stairs. Wells and water sources are plentiful in it; every house has one.

{27} Almighty God—by His grace and benevolence—will surely restore to Tyre and its sister cities the word of Islam.

In the sailing boat

On Saturday, the 28th of the aforementioned Jumada, which corresponds to the 6th of October—by the grace of God on the Muslims—we embarked on the boat, which was one of the large ships, taking with us water and provisions. The Muslims secured their places away from the Franks. Also embarking were Christians, known as pilgrims; they were the pilgrims to Jerusalem, a countless crowd, probably more than 2,000 persons. May God—by His grace and benevolence—relieve us from their company, through speedy deliverance, anticipated ease, and graceful favor. There is no deity other than He. So, by the will of the great and glorious God, we stayed in the boat awaiting a favorable wind and the completion of loading.

Questions

1. 1. How does Ibn Jubayr represent the Franks and his interactions with them?
2. 2. What does he say about the living conditions of the Muslims who live under Frankish rule?
3. 3. What types of relations do they have with Muslims from outside Frankish territories?
4. 4. What rights and disabilities do they have?
5. 5. How do the Franks treat them?
6. 6. Do the Muslims have access to their religious spaces and sacred sites?
7. 7. According to Ibn Jubayr, how do Muslims treat each other in the regions of Syria in which he traveled?
8. 8. How does Ibn Jubayr depict the role of God in the events that unfold in Syria?

 

{28} 4. Yaqut al-Hamawi on Ascalon, Jaffa, Caesarea, Atlit, Acre, Tyre, Margat, Saône, and Kerak102

Yaqut al-Hamawi was a renowned traveler and scholar. He is sometimes referred to as Yaqut al-Rumi (the Byzantine—though to conceal his previous status as an enslaved person, he adopted the following genealogy: Shihab al-Din Abu ʿAbd Allah Yaʿqub son of ʿAbd Allah al-Hamawi). Born somewhere in the Byzantine territories around 1179, Yaqut was enslaved as a very young child, and taken to Baghdad at around age six. His master provided him with an Islamic education so that he could be useful to him in his business. In fact, Yaqut made numerous business trips to Syria on behalf of his master. Around 1200, the two men had a falling out and his master manumitted and dismissed him but re-employed him several years later. During his frequent travels, Yaqut met many notable scholars and kept copious notes on the places he visited, which he later integrated into two major works: his geographical gazette The Dictionary of Countries and his literary gazette The Dictionary of Authors. He stated, for instance, that he got the idea to write The Dictionary of Countries in 1218, during his studies in Merv, located near Mary in modern-day Turkmenistan. He completed the first draft in Aleppo in 1224, the final draft in 1228. Yaqut’s The Dictionary of Countries is an extremely valuable compendium of geographical and toponymic information on cities, towns, and villages in the Islamic Near East. In addition to this type of information, he also includes some biographical details on important scholars who hailed from these places as well as information on literary and poetic subjects related to them. The Dictionary of Authors is equally valuable, especially for the scholars who flourished in the twelfth and early thirteenth centuries. He died in Aleppo in 1229.103

{29} Ascalon (ʿAsqalan)104

With an “a” vowel above the ʿA, no vowel above the soft S, then a Q, and an N at the end.105 Ascalon is in the third zone. From the west its longitude is 55°; its latitude is 33°.106 It is a foreign name as I was told. Some have mentioned that the word Ascalon means the front part of the head, which means that if it is indeed Arabic it indicates the nearest part of Syria.

Ascalon is a Syrian city in the province of Palestine on the Mediterranean coast between Gaza and Bayt Jibrin. It is called, by some, the Bride of Syria, but so too is Damascus. Many Companions107 and Successors settled there, and a large group of scholars transmitted hadiths in it.

It flourished under Muslim rule until it was conquered by the Franks—may God curse them—on 27 Jumada II 548 (18 September 1153). It remained in their hands for 35 years until Saladin Yusuf son of Ayyub wrested it from them in 583 (1187). But then the Franks received reinforcements, recaptured Acre and set out for Ascalon. Fearing that what happened to Acre would happen to Ascalon, Saladin demolished the city’s fortifications in Shaʿban 587 (September 1191).

. . .108

The Prophet—may God bless him and grant him salvation—said about Ascalon of Syria: “I present to you the two brides—Gaza and Ascalon.” The first to conquer Ascalon was Muʿawiya son of Abu Sufyan during the caliphate of ʿUmar son of al-Khattab—may God be pleased with him. Many reports and hadiths about Ascalon and its merits were transmitted by the Prophet Muhammad—may God bless him and grant him salvation—and by his Companions. Among them, ʿAbd Allah son of ʿUmar who said: “Each thing has its quintessence; the quintessence of Syria is Ascalon.” To report more would take too long.

{30} Jaffa (Yafa)109

With an F and an elongated A at the end. It is a city on the Mediterranean coast in the third district of Palestine between Caesarea and Acre (sic).110 From the west its longitude is 56°; its latitude is 33°.

In 442 (1050), Ibn Butlan111 wrote in his treatise, “Jaffa is a barren town. Those born in it have a low survival rate. One even cannot find a teacher for boys there.”

Saladin conquered the town when he captured the coast in 583 (1187). The Franks took it in 587 (1191). The Monarch112 al-ʿAdil Abu Bakr son of Ayyub reclaimed it from them in 593 (1196) and laid waste to it.

Those from Jaffa are known as Yafuni, including Abu al-ʿAbbas Muhammad son of ʿAbd Allah son of Ibrahim son of ʿUmayr al-Yafuni. The Hadith memorizer Abu al-Qasim113 said, “In Damascus, Abu al-ʿAbbas studied with Safwan son of Salih. In Palestine, he studied with Yazid son of Khalid son of Murashshal, ʿImran son of Harun al-Ramli, Yazid son of Khalid son of ʿAbd Allah son of Mawhab, Ismaʿil son of [Abu] Khalid al-Maqdisi, Abu ʿAbd Allah Muhammad son of Mikhlid al-Musabbahi, Abu Musa ʿIsa son of Yunus al-Fakhuri, Ismaʿil son of ʿAbbad al-Arsufi, and others. Sulayman son of Ahmad al-Tabarani and Abu Bakr Ahmad son of Abu Nasr [al-Qasim son of] Maʿruf son of Abban son of Ismaʿil al-Tamimi related hadiths on his authority. In Jaffa, he transmitted hadiths on the authority of ʿImran son of Harun al-Ramli, and Abu al-Qasim al-Tabarani transmitted from him hadiths he had studied with him in Jaffa as well. Also, from Jaffa was Abu Tahir ʿAbd al-Wahid son of ʿAbd al-Jabbar al-Yafuni, upon whose authority Abu Bakr Ahmad son of al-Qasim son of Maʿruf al-Tamimi al-Samiri—a resident of Damascus—related hadiths.”

{31} Caesarea (Qaysariyya)114

With an “a” vowel atop the Q, a soft S, followed by an elongated A, an R, and a stressed Y. It is a town on the coast of Syria, located in the district of Palestine. The distance from it to Tiberias is 3 days’ march. In the days of yore, it was one of the choicest cities, occupying a spacious area in a pleasant location; it was very rich and well populated. But now, it is not like that. It is closer to a small town than a city.

There is another Caesarea. It is a large and densely populated city in Anatolia, and it is the seat of the Seljuk sultans of Anatolia, who are the descendants of Qilij Arslan.115

In Caesarea, there is a place that people say was the prison of Muhammad son of al-Hanafiyya,116 the son of ʿAli son of Abu Talib. There is also the mosque of Abu Muhammad al-Battal,117 and the bathhouse which people say that the philosopher Apollonius (Balynias)118 built to the Roman emperor and which can be heated with a single oil lamp.119

The ascription to Caesarea is Qaysarani, in deviation of the rule. In ­Almagest, Ptolemy said: “Its longitude is 67° and 20 minutes; its latitude is 41° and 5 minutes. It is at the edge of the fifth zone. Its night sky features at an angle of 12 degrees the Gemini (al-Tawʾam) constellation, as well as the entire constellations of Orion (al-Jawzaʾ), Virgo (al-Sammak al-Aʿzal), and Cassiopeia (Dhat al-Kursi). At 17 degrees, there is also Cancer (al-Saratan) on one side and Capricorn (al-Jadi) on the opposite side. In the easternmost sky where the sun rises, there is Aries (al-Hamal); and in the westernmost where it sets, there is Libra (al-Mizan).” The author of the Astronomical Tables {32} (al-Zij)120 said: “Caesarea’s longitude is 57° and 30 minutes; its latitude is 33° and 20 minutes.”

In the History of Damascus,121 there is an anecdote transmitted on the authority of Yazid son of Samura, who narrated: “We were told by al-Hakam son of ʿAbd al-Rahman son of Abu al-ʿAsmaʾ al-Khathʿami al-Firaʿi, who had witnessed the Battle of Caesarea, that Muʿawiya laid siege to it for 7 years less 1 month. The Byzantine soldiers who were living in the city counted 100,000. There were as well 80,000 Samaritans and 100,000 Jews. A lunatic man, who had been a hostage in the city, showed the Muslims a gap in the city wall; an opening that was wide enough for a loaded camel to enter through it. The day was Sunday, and the people were in church; they had no idea about what was happening and were alarmed to hear ‘God is Greater’ announced at the door of the church. They were all ruined.” Yazid son of Samura also said: “The leader of the fighting men from the Khathʿam Tribe, ʿUmar son of Tamim son of Warqaʾ, was asked to announce the capture of the city, so he climbed atop the church tower and shouted: ‘Let it be known that Caesarea is captured by force.’ ”122

Among those who came from Caesarea in Palestine, there were Ibrahim son of Abu Sufyan al-Qaysarani, who died in 278 (891), and ʿAmr son of Thawr al-Qaysarani, who died in 279 (892). There was also Muhammad son of Muhammad son of ʿAbd al-Rahim son of Muhammad son of Abu Rabiʿa al-Qaysarani, who studied hadiths with Khaythama son of Sulayman in Tripoli (Lebanon), with Abu ʿAli ʿAbd al-Wahid son of Ahmad son of Abu al-Khusayb in Tinnis (Egypt), with Abu Bakr al-Kharaʾiti and Abu al-Hasan Muhammad son of Ahmad son of ʿAbd Allah son of Saffur in al-Massisa (Mopsuestia), and with others. He taught hadiths to a group of people, including Abu Bakr Muhammad son of Ahmad al-Wasiti123 and Abu al-Hasan Jamil son of Muhammad al-Arsufi. There was as well Abu ʿIsa Fudayq son of Salman or Sulayman son of ʿIsa al-ʿUqayli al-Qaysarani, {33} who transmitted hadiths on the authority of al-Awzaʿi,124 Maslama son of ʿAli al-Khushani, and taught hadiths to al-ʿAbbas son of al-Walid son of Subayh al-Khallal, Ibrahim son of al-Walid son of Salama, and others. Fudayq was known for his great piety.

Atlit (ʿAthlith)125

With an “a” vowel above the ʿA, no vowel above the Th, an “i” vowel on the L, a silent I, and a Th. Atlit is the name of a fortress on the Mediterranean coast that is also known as the Red Fortress. The Monarch al-Nasir Yusuf son of Ayyub (Saladin) conquered it in the year 583 (1187).

Acre (ʿAkka)126

With an “a” vowel above the ʿA, and stressing of the K. Abu Zayd127 said: “The sandy desert that is overheated by the sun is called al-ʿakka.” Al-Layth128 said: “Al-ʿAkka comes from the heat, and it designates the excessive increase in heat during summer daytime when the wind is still.” We have mentioned enough information about ʿAkk earlier.129 The author of Almagest (Ptolemy) said: “Acre’s longitude is 66°; its latitude is 31°.” According to Ibn Abu ʿAwn,130 however, its longitude is 58° 25 minutes; its latitude is 33° and 20 minutes. It is in the fourth zone.

Acre is the name of a city on the coast of Syria, in the district of Jordan (al-Urdunn). In our day, it is the best coastal town and the most populated. Abu ʿAbd Allah Muhammad son of Ahmad son of Abu Bakr al-Bannaʾ al-Bashshari said: “Acre is a fortified city with a large mosque that has its own olive orchard which supplies its requirements for lighting oil, and even more. The city was not well fortified until the arrival of Ibn Tulun.131 He had seen Tyre and the walls that enclosed its port, and wanted to have something {34} similar for Acre. He assembled the architects from the neighboring areas and told them about his idea. They informed him that no one could construct such a thing in water in those days. But then, someone mentioned to him my grandfather the architect, Abu Bakr, and said: ‘If any person knows how to build something like that, it would be him.’ Ibn Tulun wrote to my grandfather and brought him from Jerusalem. He proposed to him the idea, and my grandfather replied that it was an easy thing to do. He requested large beams of sycamore wood, and when they were brought, he lined them up beside each other on top of the water and fastened them together following the contours of the land walls. He made an opening on the western side, as an access point. Using stones, he started building on top of these beams, and every time he finished five rows, he fastened them to massive pillars to strengthen the structure. Due to the weight, the beams gradually sank until they landed on the seafloor sand. At that point, he stopped the construction for a whole year in order for the foundation to firmly settle. He then came back and started from where he had stopped. When each side reached the adjacent land wall, he fused the two structures together. He also constructed atop the sea opening an arch, through which the boats accessed the inner harbor. There was as well a chain to close the access after the boats entered, similar to the way it is done in Tyre.”132

Abu ʿAbd Allah al-Bashshari also said: “Ibn Tulun paid my grandfather 100 dinars, not to mention the robes and horses. His name is still inscribed on the sea wall until today.” He said as well: “Enemy pirates used to attack the boats in the inner harbor before the sea wall was constructed.”

Acre was captured around the year 15 (636) by ʿAmr son of al-ʿAs133 and Muʿawiya son of Abu Sufyan.134 Muʿawiya in particular had a major role in its capture and the seizure of the entire coast. Moreover, when he attacked Cyprus, his fleet departed from there, and he decided to rebuild it and repopulate it. He did the same with Tyre. Afterward, Acre was destroyed, and it was reconstructed by Hisham son of ʿAbd al-Malik.135 Acre used to be the center of craftsmanship in the district of Jordan (al-Urdunn). But Hisham decided to move the craftsmen to Tyre, which remained the case until the {35} caliphate of al-Muqtadir136 when Tyre entered a phase of chaotic succession of governors. This chaos allowed Acre to grow again in a beautiful way and for the craftsmen to return to it, which remains the case in our time. Currently, it is in the hands of the Franks.

According to a prophetic hadith, it is said: “Blessed is the one who sees Acre.” Al-Farraʾ137 said: “This land is an ʿakkata or an ʿakkatun land—it cannot be rendered in the genitive case—and it means hot.”138

Back in the day, Acre was in the hands of the Muslims until the Franks captured it. Their leader Baldwin, who was king of Jerusalem, seized it from its Egyptian governor Zahr al-Dawla (Radiance of the Realm) Banaʾ al-­Juyushi, who was originally the slave of the army general Badr al-Jamali139 or his son. The Franks attacked the town from land and sea in 497 (1104). The locals fought them until they ran out of supplies; the Egyptians sent them nothing. They surrendered the city to the Franks, who killed a large number of its people, enslaved another group and sold them beyond the sea. Zahr al-Dawla departed for Damascus, and from there he went to Cairo.

Acre remained in Frankish hands until Saladin Yusuf son of Ayyub conquered it from them in Jumada I of 583 (July 1187). He left there a large garrison and gave them good supplies. The Franks came back and attacked it, making trenches in front of the city walls. Saladin rushed from Damascus to help them and encamped there facing the Franks for 3 years, but the Franks were able to take the city from the Muslims by force on 7 Jumada II 587 (2 July 1191). They brought out the Muslim captives, who were around 3,000 persons, and slaughtered them all. The city remains in their hands until today.

Several scholars came from Acre, among them al-Hasan son of Ibrahim al-ʿAkki, who transmitted Hadith from al-Hasan son of Jarir al-Suri and taught Hadith to ʿAbd al-Samad son of al-Hakam.

{36} Tyre (Sur)140

Spelled with a long “u” vowel and an R at the end. It is in the fourth zone. Tyre’s longitude is 59° and 15 minutes; its latitude is 33° and 40 minutes. In Arabic sur means horn (qarn). According to the Qurʾan commentators that is how sur is used in almighty God’s word, ﴾A day shall come when the horns are blown﴿ (Qurʾan 20:102). It is a famous city in which many ascetics and scholars lived, and some of its natives rose to prominence. It used to be one of the frontier towns of the Muslims. It overlooks the Mediterranean, jutting into the sea like an arm’s fist. The sea surrounds it on three sides; the fourth is protected by its well-fortified gates and impenetrable towers. There is no way to conquer it except through treachery.

The Muslims conquered Tyre in the days of ʿUmar son of al-­Khattab—may God be pleased with him. It remained safely in their hands until 518 (1124) when the Franks attacked it. They laid siege to and harassed it until the city’s residents began to run out of provisions. The ruler of Egypt, al-Amir,141 tried to resupply them with provisions, but a storm stirred up the wind against the fleet and forced it to return to Egypt. Provisions were not able to reach it until 10 days after the people had surrendered the city; the Muslims capitulated on condition of safe passage, and thereafter departed. Only the destitute remained when the Franks took possession of it; they fortified it and reinforced its defenses. It remains in their hands until today. We seek refuge in God and assistance for every good thing, for He does what He wills.

Tyre is in the district of Jordan (al-Urdunn). The distance between it and Acre is 60 parasangs. It is east of Acre.142 Many scholars are named al-Suri because they come from Tyre (Sur). Among them is the Hadith memorizer Abu ʿAbd Allah Muhammad son of ʿAli son of ʿAbd Allah al-Suri. He started the study of hadith at an older age and became an authority. He moved to Baghdad in the year 418 (1027), after he had traveled in Egypt and many places around Tyre, where he copied books on the authority of scholars, hadith masters, and poets. He transmitted hadiths on the authority of ʿAbd al-Ghani son of Saʿid al-Misri, Abu al-Husayn son of Jamiʿ [in Sidon], and Abu ʿAbd Allah son of Abu Kamil [of Tripoli]. He was a great Hadith memorizer, meticulous, virtuous, pious, and fasted frequently. He {37} only broke his fast for the two feasts and for the Days of Sun-drying.143 His refined penmanship was exemplary; he could fit 70 or 80 lines on a Baghdad one-eighth-size paper.144 The Hadith memorizer Abu Bakr al-Khatib,145 the judge Abu ʿAbd Allah al-Damaghani,146 and others transmitted hadiths on his authority. Some scholars allege that when al-Suri died, al-Khatib al-Baghdadi purchased his books from one of al-Suri’s daughters, and that the majority of what al-Khatib wrote, except the History, was taken from al-Suri’s books. Some scholars said: “Al-Suri transmitted 200,000 hadiths.” Ghayth said: “I heard many scholars say, ‘We have never seen a more proficient Hadith memorizer than he.’ ” He died in Baghdad in Jumada II 441 (November 1049).

Margat (al-Marqab)147

With an “a” vowel on the M, a silent R, a Q and a B. It is the noun for a place used for spying. It is also a town and a well-fortified castle overlooking the Mediterranean coast near the city of Baniyas.148 Abu Ghalib Hammam son of al-Muhadhdhab al-Maʿarri149 said about its history: “In the year 454 (1062), the Muslims constructed the castle, which is known as al-Marqab, on the coast near Jabala. It is a castle that when anyone sees it for the first time, he says he has never seen anything like it. Once, the Muslims garrisoned there plotted against the Byzantines. They sold them the castle for a massive sum and sent an old man and his two children as hostages to Antioch {38} to receive the money and agreed on handing them the castle. When the garrison received the money and 300 Byzantine soldiers came to claim the castle, they killed a few and captured the rest, who ransomed themselves with a large sum of money. The garrison ransomed the old man and his two children with a paltry sum; they kept the rest of the money and the castle.”

Saône (Sihyawn)150

With an “i” vowel below the S, followed by a silent H, an “a” vowel above the Y, a silent W, and an N at the end. Al-Azhari151 said that Abu ʿAmr related: “Sihyawn (Zion) is Rome, and it is also said it is Jerusalem.” Al-Aʿsha152 said in his eulogy of Yazid and ʿAbd al-Masih the sons of al-Dayyan—others said this was a eulogy for al-Sayyid and al-ʿAqib the two bishops of Najran.

1. 1- O two masters of Najran, I beg of you: / care for Najran after the calamity that struck it and struck you.
2. 2- For you to do good and to pursue good / is not new for either of you.
3. 3- Should you save Najran, it would demonstrate great leadership; / after all, your father was its master.
4. 4- But if Sihyawn threatens you one day / the field of fierce battle is your domain.

I (Yaqut) say: Sihyawn is a well-known place in Jerusalem where the Church of Zion is located. Sihyawn is also a well-fortified castle on the coast of Syria in the district of Hims, but it is not near the sea. The castle is well fortified and well built on the edge of the mountain, surrounded by wide and deep ravines. It does not have a man-made moat except on one side; its length is around 60 cubits, dug into the bedrock. It has three concentric walls: two surrounding its courtyard, and one around its inner tower. It was in the hands of the Franks for a long time until the Monarch al-Nasir Saladin Yusuf son of Ayyub took it back from them in 584 (1188). Today, it remains in the hands of the Muslims.

{39} Kerak (Karak)153

With an “a” vowel for both syllables and a K at the end. It is a foreign word: The name of a well-fortified castle in southern Syria in the al-Balqaʾ154 mountains, midway between Eilat (Ayala) and the Red Sea in the south and Jerusalem in the northwest. It is on the edge of a steep mountain which is protected by ravines that surround it on all sides except from the northern hillside.

Kerak is also a large village near Baalbek in which there is a wide tomb that the people allege is the tomb of Noah—peace be upon him.

Questions

1. 1. In his The Dictionary of Countries, on what kinds of information does Yaqut focus in his descriptions of the places he writes about?
2. 2. Why would he focus on this kind of information specifically?
3. 3. How does Yaqut react to the Franks’ capture of Muslim towns and their presence there?
4. 4. Al-Harawi, Ibn Jubayr, and Yaqut described some of the same sites in Syria and Palestine. How are their descriptions similar to and dissimilar to one another?
5. 5. Taken together, what can we learn from these three Muslim ­travelers­—al-Harawi, Ibn Jubayr, Yaqut—about Muslim perceptions of Syria and Palestine during the Crusader period?

 

 

1. On al-Harawi and his Kitab al-Isharat, see al-Harawi, A Lonely Wayfarer’s Guide to Pilgrimage: ʿAli ibn Abi Bakr al-Harawi’s Kitab al-Isharat ila Maʿrifat al-Ziyarat, ed. and trans. Josef W. Meri (Princeton: Darwin Press, 2004), xix–xxxiv. Hereafter, al-Harawi, Kitab al-Isharat.

2. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-Isharat, 15.

3. According to Muslim legends, Habib al-Najjar, or Habib the Carpenter, was an early Christian martyr who lived in Antioch and knew some of Jesus’s disciples. He is sometimes identified as St. Agabus, a prophet mentioned in Acts 11:27–28; 21:10–12. Christian tradition remembers him as one of the seventy disciples of Jesus mentioned in Luke 10:1–24.

4. As was often customary for citing quranic passages, al-Harawi only mentioned the first part of this verse; his audience would have known the rest. The full verse reads: ﴾A man came running from the other end of the city, saying: ‘O people, follow the messengers’﴿. Because Muslims consider the Qurʾan to be the very speech of God, it was also customary to highlight quranic quotations in some fashion (e.g., a different colored ink, a different script, etc.) out of respect for the sanctity of the text. We have italicized and bracketed all quranic passages in an effort to convey a similar visual experience for the reader.

5. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-Isharat, 39.

6. Luqman the Wise is one of the pre-Islamic figures mentioned in the Qurʾan. He counseled his son against polytheism and instructed him in proper religious observance (Qurʾan 31:11–19). This passage is too long to reproduce here.

7. Abu ʿUbayda (d. 639) was the commanding general of the conquering Muslim army, and one of the most significant Companions of Muhammad. Ibn Wasil noted his role in the conquest of Damascus. See p. 138.

8. At the time, Jordan (al-Urdunn in Arabic) was the name of an administrative district located around Lake Tiberias and the Jordan River. It is different from the country today called Jordan.

9. An outbreak of bubonic plague, the Plague of Emmaus (ʿAmwas) occurred in Syria (638–639) during the early Islamic conquests.

10. Abu Hurayra (d. 681) was a Companion of Muhammad and his domestic servant. He was one of the most prolific transmitters of hadiths.

11. Al-Baqiʿ is the name of the cemetery located east of Medina in Arabia. Many Companions of Muhammad are buried there.

12. Al-ʿAqiq is a valley located west of Medina in Arabia.

13. There is no such story in the New Testament. It could be an allusion to and a confusion with the quranic story about the miracle of the heavenly table, which in the Qurʾan (5:112–115; see p. 8, footnote 45) is attributed to Jesus, whereas in the New Testament, the story most similar to it is that of Peter’s vision in Jaffa, months after Jesus’s ascension (Acts 10:9–16). In the New Testament, Jesus’s first miracle took place at a wedding in the village of Cana near Nazareth, where he turned water into wine (John 2:1–11).

14. Al-Husayn (d. 680) was a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad and the third Shiʿi imam. See p. 13 (footnote 72).

15. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 31.

16. A grandson of ʿAli son of Abu Talib. See p. 4 (footnote 26).

17. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 41.

18. Jethro the priest of Midian (Shuʿayb in Arabic; also known as Reuel, Exodus 2:18; and Hobab, Numbers 10:29) is the father of Moses’s wife, Zippora (Saffura in Arabic; Exodus 2:16–21). The Druzes—a religious community spread today between Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Israel—claim Jethro as an ancestor, whom they revere as a spiritual founder and chief prophet.

19. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 43.

20. ﴾Arriving at the waters of Midian, he found thereat a concourse of people drawing water and, to one side of them, two women tending flocks. He said: ‘What is the matter with the two of you?’ They said: ‘We cannot give to drink until the shepherds have departed, and our father is an old man.’ So he drew water for them and retired to the shade, saying: ‘My Lord, I am in dire need of some act of goodness that You might send upon me’﴿ (Qurʾan 28:23–24). See also Exodus 2:16–21 and Numbers 20:1–8.

21. Local Muslims adopted these views from the Samaritans, an ethnoreligious community with historical roots to the ancient Israelites. The Samaritans also believe that the binding of Isaac unfolded on Mount Gerizim, and consider it as the true place for the worship of God instead of the Temple in Jerusalem.

22. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 43.

23. The Islamic tradition identifies Mary as the daughter of ʿImran. This confusion resulted from a misreading of the Qurʾan, which uses the Arabic expression bint ʿImran to mean “a descendant of biblical Amram” and not the daughter of a man named ʿImran; see Suleiman A. Mourad, “Mary in the Qurʾan: A Reexamination of Her Presentation,” in The Qurʾan in Its Historical Context, ed. Gabriel Said Reynolds (London: Routledge, 2008), 163–174.

24. Nazarenes (al-Nasara) is the word the Qurʾan uses for Christians.

25. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 43 and 45.

26. The fourth caliph of Islam, ʿAli son of Abu Talib (r. 556–661) was the nephew and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad and the first Shiʿi imam.

27. The prayer niche (mihrab) in a mosque indicates the direction of prayer (qibla); that is, toward the Kaʿba structure in Mecca. Hence, in Acre, the prayer niche would be located in the southern wall.

28. In Shabwa in Yemen. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 255. Salih is one of the ancient Arabian prophets mentioned in the Qurʾan.

29. Ziyara in Arabic. In the Islamic tradition, ziyara refers to a pious visitation or pilgrimage to a holy place, tomb, or shrine other than the Pilgrimage (Hajj) to Mecca.

30. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 71, 73, 75, and 77.

31. A cubit in the medieval Arab world was a unit of length (in Arabic, dhiraʿ), which equaled approximately 51 centimeters or 20 inches.

32. Al-Harawi’s audience would have known the remaining part of the verse, which reads: ﴾Who shall intercede with Him except by his leave? He knows their present affairs and their past. And they do not grasp of His knowledge except what He wills. Preserving them is no burden to Him. He is the Exalted, the Majestic.﴿

33. A reference to the ʿAbbasid caliph al-Qaʾim bi-Amr Allah (r. 1031–1075), who must have ordered this inscription to be placed there.

34. Here too, al-Harawi’s audience would have known the chapter, which reads: ﴾He is God, One. God is the Eternal. He neither begets, nor is He begotten. And none is equal to Him.﴿

35. The Dome of the Chain was the first structure built by the Muslims atop the Temple Mount esplanade. It sits exactly in its center. Islamic traditions associate it with King Solomon as the place where he used to hold court, and also as the place where the Judgment will unfold.

36. The second caliph in Islam (r. 634–644), under whom Jerusalem was conquered in 638.

37. The seventh Fatimid caliph (r. 1021–1036).

38. The royal cubit was approximately 60 centimeters or 23.5 inches, longer than the normal or commoners’ cubit (see p. 5, footnote 31).

39. These measurements are clearly for the entire sanctuary, and not for the Aqsa Mosque. It is important to note that Muslim scholars consistently used the expression “Aqsa Mosque” interchangeably to mean the actual structure where the prayers are held and the entire esplanade. The measurements of the Aqsa Mosque are approximately 83 × 56 meters.

40. Possibly the Pool of Bethesda where, according to John 5:1–15, Jesus healed an invalid man.

41. According to John 4:1–42, the story of the Samaritan woman took place in the Samaritan village of Sychar (i.e., Shechem, Nablus) near Jacob’s well.

42. ﴾Have you heard of the litigants who jumped over the wall to his prayer niche?﴿ (Qurʾan 38:21).

43. According to John 9:1–12, the Pool of Siloam is the site where Jesus healed a man who had been blind since birth. The Empress Eudocia (ca. 400–460) endowed the construction of a church at the site to commemorate this miracle.

44. According to the Islamic tradition, the Zamzam well in Mecca is the location where the angel Gabriel provided water to Hagar and her son, Ishmael (Ismaʿil). Its waters are said to have miraculous healing powers as well.

45. ﴾Jesus son of Mary said: “O God our Lord, send down upon us a table from heaven, and it shall be a feast-day for the first and the last among us, and a miracle from You, and grant us Your bounty—You are the best of providers.” God said: “I shall send it down upon you. Whoso among you disbelieves hereafter, I shall torment him with a torment the like of which I shall torment no other human being.”﴿ (Qurʾan 5:112–115)

46. Al-Harawi used Wadi Jahannam here, which is a common mistake among some Muslim scholars. The name is derived from the biblical Valley of Gehenna or Gehennom. It is located south of Mount Zion. Mary’s tomb is at the northern part of the Kidron Valley, between the city and the Mount of Olives.

47. In the Islamic tradition, Abraham is known as the Friend of God (Khalil Allah) or simply as the Friend (al-Khalil).

48. There is also a tomb dedicated to her in Damascus. Born in Basra, and renowned for her extreme virtue and piety, Rabiʿa al-ʿAdawiyya (ca. 718–801) is one of the most famous early ascetics and mystics in Islamic history. See Rkia Elaroui Cornell, Rabiʿa from Narrative to Myth: The Many Faces of Islam’s Most Famous Woman Saint, Rabiʿa al-ʿAdawiyya (Oxford: Oneworld, 2019).

49. An early ascetic and mystic from Syria (d. 845 or 860).

50. The Successors (tabiʿun) belonged to the second generation of early Muslims, who did not receive their teachings about Islam from Muhammad directly, but from one of his Companions. On Companions (sahaba), see p. 29 (footnote 107).

51. A notable Companion of Muhammad. He died in 678.

52. He too was a Companion of Muhammad and died in Jerusalem.

53. Church of Refuse or Kanisat al-Qumama in Arabic is a pejorative pun on Church of the Resurrection (Kanisat al-Qiyama), which is the name by which Eastern Orthodox Christians refer to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (the name used by Roman Catholics and Western Christians).

54. That is the rock of Golgotha or Calvary. The New Testament makes explicit comparisons between Jesus and Adam (Romans 5:12–21; 1 Corinthians 15:21–22), even referring to Jesus as the last Adam (I Corinthians 15:45–49). According to Christian tradition, Jesus was crucified over the place where Adam’s skull was buried. Presently, in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre are two chapels atop Golgotha. To the right is the Catholic chapel of the Nailing to the Cross (the 11th Station of the Cross). To the left is the Orthodox chapel directly over the rock (the 12th Station). Underneath Golgotha is a small cave in which is the Chapel of Adam.

55. This is likely a reference to the chapel and tomb of St. Joseph of Arimathea, which are part of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre complex. According to the New Testament, Joseph of ­Arimathea took responsibility for the burial of Jesus (Matthew 27:57–61; Mark 15:42–47; Luke 23:50–56; John 19:38–42). Al-Harawi’s sources apparently confused St. Joseph of ­Arimathea with Joseph the Righteous, the son of the biblical patriarch Jacob (Genesis 37–50; Qurʾan 12:1–111).

56. This refers to the “Miracle of Holy Fire” that, according to Orthodox tradition, occurs each year on the day preceding Orthodox Pascha or Easter.

57. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 77. As noted above (footnote 47), in the Islamic tradition, Abraham is known as the Friend of God (Khalil Allah) or simply as the Friend (al-Khalil). Hence, the town so closely associated with Abraham is known in Arabic as al-Khalil (Hebron in English). Abraham is also referred to as the friend of God in the Hebrew Bible (2 Chronicles 20:7; Isaiah 41:8) and the New Testament (James 2:23). The word Hebron is inter alia said to derive from the Hebrew word for friend (haver).

58. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 77.

59. This verse ﴾So shake towards you the trunk of the palm and it will drop down on you dates soft and ripe﴿ is part of the Palm Tree story in Qurʾan 19. See Suleiman A. Mourad, “From Hellenism to Christianity and Islam: The Origin of the Palm Tree Story concerning Mary and Jesus in the Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew and the Qurʾan,” Oriens Christianus 86 (2002): 206–216.

60. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 79 and 81.

61. Hadith memorizer (hafiz); that is, a person who has memorized a great deal of hadiths and can recite them without the aid of books or memory prompts. It should be noted that Hadith scholarship was the principal field of Islamic scholarship open to women, some of whom achieved high standing and great renown—hafiza is the feminine form of hafiz. In modern times the honorific title hafiz has come to be applied to someone who has memorized the entire Qurʾan whereas in the Crusader period memorization of the entire Qurʾan was the foundation of all Islamic education. Hence, any Islamic scholar in any discipline would have memorized the entire Qurʾan as part of his/her elementary education. On women Hadith scholars, see Asma Sayeed, Women and the Transmission of Religious Knowledge in Islam (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2013).

62. Al-Silafi was a celebrated scholar of Hadith and a great transmitter of historical accounts and books. He was born in the Muslim East, and traveled westward until he reached Alexandria, where he spent the rest of his life and died there in 1180.

63. Khuwaylifa was a water stop in southern Palestine between Ramla and Ascalon, where Richard the Lionheart and his troops ambushed a Muslim reinforcement army that Saladin had requested from Egypt and looted everything they were carrying. On this ambush, which took place on 11 Jumada II 588 (24 June 1192), see Ibn Shaddad, al-Nawadir al-sultaniyya, 317–319; Ibn Shaddad, The Rare and Excellent History of Saladin, trans. D. S. Richards (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2002), 207–208.

64. Genesis 23:1–20, where Abraham purchased the Cave of Machpelah facing Mamre (Hebron) as a burial place for his wife, Sarah, from Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite for 400 shekels of silver.

65. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 67, which corresponds closely to the account in Joshua 24:32, “The bones of Joseph, which the Children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, were buried in Shechem [Nablus] in a parcel of land that Jacob bought from the sons of Hamor, father of Shechem, for a hundred pieces of silver.”

66. King Baldwin II (r. 1118–1131), Bardawil in Arabic.

67. Al-Harawi, Kitab al-isharat, 81 and 83.

68. Madinat al-Jabbarin in Arabic. Qurʾan 5:21–22 is likely a reference to the biblical story of the Twelve Spies dispatched by Moses to scout out the land of Canaan where near Hebron they saw the giant sons of Anak “and to ourselves we seemed like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them” (Numbers 13:1–13; Deuteronomy 1:22–40).

69. Wadi al-Naml in Arabic.

70. ﴾To Solomon We mustered his troops of jinn, humans, and birds, all held in strict order. Until, when they arrived at the Valley of Ants, an ant said: “O ants, enter your dwellings lest Solomon and his troops should crush you unawares.” He smiled in amusement at its words and said: “My Lord, inspire me to offer thanks for the bounty You bestowed upon me and upon my parents, and to do a good deed of which you will approve, and admit me, through Your mercy, into the company of your virtuous servants”﴿ (Qurʾan 27:17–19).

71. Technically speaking, Cairo (al-Qahira in Arabic) was built by the Fatimids in 969, adjacent to two major settlements: Heliopolis and Fustat. In order to distinguish between Fatimid Cairo and the entire cosmopolitan area comprised of the three cities, Muslim chronicles referred to them collectively as Misr, which is also what they used for Egypt. Hence, we refer to Fatimid Cairo as Old Cairo, and to the three cities as Cairo.

72. The head of al-Husayn, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad who was killed at the Battle of Karbala in 680, was first taken to Damascus where it was buried in the Umayyad Mosque. Then the Fatimids in the tenth century moved it to Ascalon, and from there it was moved in 1154 to Old Cairo, where it was interred in the shrine-mosque named after him—Masjid al-Husayn—which exists there to this day and remains one of Egypt’s holiest places.

73. Here al-Harawi is invoking this expression to say that he was not certain if what he heard about merchants and soldiers seeing his handwriting was correct.

74. Ibn Jubayr, Rihlat Ibn Jubayr (Beirut: Dar Sadir, 1988), 259–261.

75. On Ibn Jubayr, see Yann Dejugnat, “Ibn Jubayr,” Encyclopaedia of Islam, Third Edition; and “La Méditerranée comme frontière dans le récit de voyage (rihla) d’Ibn Jubayr: modalités et enjeux d’une perception,” Mélanges de la Casa de Velázquez 38.2 (2008): 149–170. See also R. J. C. Broadhurst, trans., The Travels of Ibn Jubayr, with a new introduction by Robert Irwin (London: I. B. Tauris, 2020 [1952]).

76. Saladin’s full name was al-Nasir Salah al-Din Yusuf son of Ayyub, that is, Yusuf (Joseph) son of Ayyub (Job). Al-Nasir (Champion) and Salah al-Din (Righteousness of the Religion; Saladin) were his honorific titles. Because the authors of the texts in this anthology at times do not include his honorific, Saladin, for clarity we have added Saladin to his name each time his name appears without it.

77. See Yaqut’s description of Kerak, p. 39.

78. Amir (pl. umaraʾ) was a title used to designate a high-ranking military officer. We have translated amir as “commander” throughout.

79. Banyas (Belinas) is located to the north of Lake Tiberias, at the base of Mount Hermon. It is to be distinguished from the port city of Baniyas (Balanea), which is located on the northern Syrian coast.

80. Ibn Jubayr, Rihlat, 273–283.

81. A parasang was a unit of distance similar to the English league. There is no exact measuring for it, since it is based on the distance a person could cover on foot over a specific period of time. Medieval calculations range between 3 and 5 miles or 5–7 kilometers.

82. Dinar refers to the common gold coin at the time. A qirat is a silver coin generally worth one-twenty-fourth of a dinar. Qirat is also the word used for the unit of measure itself. The English word carat is likely derived from qirat. Weights and measures often varied from region to region.

83. The jizya tax, according to Islamic law and historical practice, is imposed by Muslim rulers on members of revealed religions (e.g., Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians) and other religious communities in exchange for certain protections and limited freedoms and the acceptance of a range of disabilities imposed on them as inferior persons in the Islamic social order. It is interesting that Ibn Jubayr used the same term to indicate the tax the Franks imposed on the Muslims as jizya. See also p. 23 (footnote 91).

84. Ibn Jubayr often used both lunar (Islamic) and solar (Christian) calendars for dating.

85. Al-Sahib in Arabic.

86. The pun is made here in reference to the verse: ﴾To Him belong running ships, galleons, ploughing the sea like mountain-tops﴿ (Qurʾan 55:24).

87. See al-Harawi’s description of this tomb, p. 5.

88. See al-Harawi’s description of this spring, p. 4.

89. In modern-day Algeria. It is pronounced Bgayet in local Berber language, and Bougie in French.

90. This indicates the medieval Arab mile, which measured between 1.8 and 2 kilometers.

91. Dhimmi, according to Islamic law and historical practice, is the term used to designate the contract status by which members of other revealed religions (e.g., Jews, Christians, Zoroastrians), were afforded certain protections in exchange for paying an annual tax (jizya) and acquiescing to a range of disabilities imposed on them as inferior persons in the Islamic social order. Conversion to Islam changed one’s status from dhimmi to Muslim and removed the obligation to pay the jizya. It is interesting that Ibn Jubayr used the same term to describe Muslims living under Frankish rule. See also p. 18 (footnote 83).

92. It was a common and praiseworthy practice at the time for wealthy Muslims to ransom Muslim captives from the Franks and vice versa.

93. We do not know much about him. But we know about his two sons: Nasir (1172–1238) and Muhammad (1181–1234) who, aside from their profession as merchants, were active in the circles of learning and Hadith scholarship. The family came to Damascus from the city of Rasafa in northern Syria: see al-Dhahabi, Taʾrikh al-islam, 46: 273–274 (Nasir) and 82–83 (Muhammad).

94. Christians were often required to wear a girdle about their waist or some other distinctive apparel to publicly distinguish themselves as Christians. Similar rules applied to Jews as well. See al-Shayzari, The Book of the Islamic Market Inspector: Nihayat al-rutba fi talab al-hisba (The Utmost Authority in the Pursuit of Hisba) by ʿAbd al-Rahman b. Nasr al-Shayzari, trans. R. P. Buckley (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), 121–122. Al-Shayzari (d. ca. 1193) was a twelfth-­century Syrian scholar.

95. As in ﴾the religion of Abraham, of pristine faith﴿.

96. As in ﴾God is Almighty, Vengeful﴿ (Qurʾan 3:4).

97. Judah and Reuben, two of the sons of Jacob.

98. On the tombs of Solomon, Jethro, and Zippora, see al-Harawi on Tiberias, Hattin, and Kafar Manda, pp. 2–4.

99. Jerusalem is to the southeast of Acre. Very likely, this confusion on the part of Ibn Jubayr is the result of the fact that the route from Acre to Jerusalem followed the coast in the direction of the southwest, before it makes a turn past Jaffa to the east, heading up the hills to Jerusalem.

100. This would be correct from a traveler’s standpoint. To go to Jerusalem from Acre, one would have to head southwest along the coast before turning east near Jaffa.

101. Ibn Jubayr was describing his visit to Acre in 1184. Jerusalem remained in Frankish hands for another 3 years, until Saladin conquered it in 1187.

102. Yaqut recorded his geographic notices alphabetically according to the Arabic alphabet. We have arranged them from south to north along the eastern Mediterranean coast and then conclude with Kerak in southern modern Jordan.

103. On Yaqut al-Hamawi, see Claude Gilliot, “Yakut al-Rumi,” in P. Bearman, T. Bianquis, C. E. Bosworth, E. van Donzel, and W. P. Heinrichs, eds, Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition (Leiden: Brill, 1954–2009).

104. Yaqut al-Hamawi, Muʿjam al-buldan (Beirut: Dar Ihya’ al-Turath al-ʿArabi, 1979), 4: 122.

105. Following the style of Muslim lexicographers, Yaqut gave the spelling and the way a name is to be pronounced.

106. These and other coordinates recorded by Yaqut were calculated according to medieval conventions and do not correspond to modern coordinates.

107. The Companions (sahaba) were the early converts to Islam who knew Muhammad personally. Hence, they were considered the best generation of Muslims. The Companions played important roles in the preservation and transmission of Hadith, one of the foundations of Islamic thought and practice. On Successors (tabiʿun), see p. 9, (footnote 50).

108. Yaqut’s brief discussion of another Ascalon, a village near Balkh in Afghanistan, is omitted here.

109. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-buldan, 5: 426.

110. Acre here should read Ascalon. Jaffa is located south of Caesarea and north of Ascalon. Acre is north of Caesarea.

111. Ibn Butlan (d. 1066) was an Arab Christian (Nestorian) physician who wrote a medical book on health, diet, and hygiene, titled Taqwim al-sihha (The Maintenance of Health).

112. The Arabic term here is al-Malik, one of the titles used for Ayyubid and Mamluk sovereigns. While the title al-Malik can be translated as “the King,” we have translated it as “the Monarch” throughout in order to avoid the impression that the Ayyubid and Mamluk sovereigns were kings in the fashion of the European kings. When a ruler is referred to by both titles—al-Sultan al-Malik—we have translated them as “the Sultan and Monarch.” For example, we have rendered al-Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil as “the Sultan and Monarch al-Kamil.”

113. This is none other than Ibn ʿAsakir of Damascus, who included a biography for al-Yafuni in his Taʾrikh, 53: 323–325.

114. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-Buldan, 4: 421–422.

115. Qilij Arslan (r. 1092–1107) was the Seljuk Sultan of Anatolia.

116. The third son of ʿAli son of Abu Talib, but who was not a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad. That is, his mother was Khawla daughter of Jaʿfar of the Hanifa tribe; not Muhammad’s daughter, Fatima, who was the mother of ʿAli’s first two sons, al-Hasan (d. 669) and al-Husayn (d. 680), the second and third Shiʿi imams. He died in 700.

117. An Umayyad general who was famed for his courage and led several campaigns against the Byzantines. He died in battle sometime between 730 and 739.

118. Appolonius of Tyana (d. ca. 100). He was a Hellenic philosopher who lived for some time in Rome and was known for his miraculous visions.

119. Very likely this is a reference to Emperor Titus (r. 79–81), who visited Caesarea after his campaign as Roman general against Judea and his destruction of the Jewish temple in 70. This story of the bathhouse, however, is likely one of the many legends and miracles associated with Apollonius.

120. Very likely, this is a reference to The Book of Astronomical Tables (Kitab al-Zij in Arabic) of al-Battani (d. 929), known in Latin as Albategnius, who was one of the most celebrated Muslim astronomers and mathematicians. He corrected many of Ptolemy’s calculations and observations.

121. Ibn ʿAsakir, Taʾrikh, 15: 23–24.

122. The Arabic word used for “force” is qasran, which was meant as a pun on the name of the city.

123. The author of Fadaʾil al-Bayt al-Muqaddas (Religious Merits of Jerusalem), who died after 1019.

124. A renowned early Muslim jurist and scholar of Hadith. He died in 774 and was buried in Beirut.

125. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-Buldan, 4: 85.

126. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-Buldan, 4: 143–144.

127. Saʿid son of Aws (d. ca. 830) was an Arab grammarian and lexicographer.

128. Al-Layth son of al-Muzaffar (d. 748) was a well-known early Arab philologist.

129. According to al-Harawi, “Acre is called Acre (ʿAkka) because it is where the tomb of ʿAkk is located. Some allege that he is a prophet.” See p. 5.

130. Ibrahim son of Muhammad (d. 934) was an ʿAbbasid administrator and scholar, who wrote a geographical book titled Kitab al-Nawahi wa-l-buldan (On Regions and Cities).

131. Ruler of Egypt (r. 868–884), nominally for the ʿAbbasid caliphs, who extended his power to Syria.

132. See Ibn Jubayr (pp. 20–21, 26–27) for a similar comparison between the two harbors.

133. One of the leading generals of the Muslim army that invaded Syria starting in 634, and then led the conquest of Egypt in 640–642.

134. One of the leading generals of the Muslim army that invaded Syria starting in 634. The caliph ʿUmar son of al-Khattab promoted him to principal commander in Syria after the leading generals died from the Plague of Emmaus (638–639). He was the first Umayyad caliph (r. 661–680).

135. The tenth Umayyad caliph (r. 724–743).

136. The eighteenth ʿAbbasid caliph (r. 908–929).

137. Abu Zakariyya Yahya son of Ziyad al-Farraʾ (d. 822) was one of the most important early grammarians of Arabic.

138. That is, in Arabic, ʿAkka can only be rendered ʿakkata in the accusative case; and ʿakkatun in the nominative case, not ʿakkatin in the genitive case.

139. The famous Fatimid general and vizier of Armenian origin. On his son, al-Afdal, see Chapter 3, p. 63 (footnote 10).

140. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-Buldan, 3: 433–434.

141. The tenth Fatimid Caliph, al-Amir bi-Ahkam Allah (r. 1101–1130).

142. While Tyre is north of Acre on the Mediterranean coast, its precise location is northeast of Acre.

143. Yaqut did not need to name the two feasts as he was referring to the two most important feasts in the Islamic calendar: the Feast of Ramadan (ʿId al-Fitr) at the end of the month of fasting (the 9th month in the Islamic calendar) and the Feast of Sacrifice (ʿId al-Adha) at the end of the Pilgrimage (Hajj) to Mecca on the 10th of Dhu al-Hijja (the 12th month in the Islamic calendar). The Days of Sun-drying (Ayyam al-tashriq) are the 3 days of feasting that follow the Feast of Sacrifice; they are called so because of the pre-Islamic practice of sun-drying the meat of the sacrificed animals to preserve it.

144. Al-thumn al-baghdadi in Arabic. It was one of the best types of paper used at the time, and the one-eighth refers to its size; that is, each original sheet of paper was cut into eight parts.

145. Abu Bakr al-Khatib al-Baghdadi (1002–1071) was the eminent Hadith scholar and author of the Taʾrikh Baghdad (History of Baghdad). He visited Tyre several times.

146. Abu ʿAbd Allah al-Damaghani (1007–1085) belonged to an eminent family of Hanafi jurists in Baghdad. He also served as the chief judge of Baghdad.

147. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-buldan, 5: 108–109.

148. Baniyas (Balanea) is the Syrian port city south of Antioch, between Latakiya and ­Tartus—not the Banyas north of Lake Tiberias described by Ibn Jubayr, p. 17.

149. A chronicler from northern Syria, who flourished in the eleventh century (died around 1096). His Taʾrikh, which he made on the basis of notes his father had collected and to which he added some of his own material, is lost.

150. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-buldan, 3: 436–437.

151. Abu Mansur Muhammad son of Ahmad al-Azhari (895–980) was a famous Arab lexicographer who flourished in Baghdad.

152. A famous pre-Islamic Arab poet who died in 625.

153. Yaqut, Muʿjam al-buldan, 4: 453.

154. The name of the region constituting most of Jordan today.