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LATEST ARTICLES

The Levantine Hajj route and the ruins of the people of Lut: A study of the Islamic geographical sources

This article explores the historic Levantine hajj route to Makkah…

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The Ottoman Mosque Fallacy: Places of Worship Facing the Kaaba or “Monuments of Jihad”?

A. J. Deus has got it all hopelessly wrong: A…

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The Petra Fallacy: Early Mosques do face the Sacred Kaaba in Mecca

Dan Gibson, a Canadian amateur archaeologist, is the latest of…

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Islamic Sacred Geography and Finding the Qibla by the Sun and Stars

A survey of the historical sources with an appendix on…

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Manuscript Review: ‘The Indica’ or ‘Al-bayruni’s India,’ by Al-Bayruni​

Bayruni conducted advanced research and wrote original standard works in…

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Arab Translators of Egypt’s Hieroglyphs

Carved in the 13th century bce, fine bas-reliefs on the…

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When the World was Upside Down: Maps from Muslim Civilisation

Great scholars from Muslim Civilisation, indeed, turned the world upside…

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From Petra back to Makka – From “Pibla” back to Qibla

A critique of Dan Gibson, Early Islamic Qiblas: A Survey…

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Manuscript Review: The Book of Routes and Kingdoms, by Ibn Khordadbeh

[Ibn Khordadbeh] grew up to be a knowledgeable scholar, and…

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The Unpublished Works of Arabic Geography: An Overview and a Classification

Islamic geographical texts are not only valuable in terms of…

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Turkey: Home of TURQUOISE

"Did you know the word 'turquoise' is a French word…

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Piri Reis: A Genius 16th-Century Ottoman Cartographer and Navigator

Piri Reis is a well known Ottoman-Turkish admiral, geographer and…

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Al-Muqaddasi and Human Geography: An Early Contribution to Social Sciences

Recent scholarly interest in the genesis of social sciences in…

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1000 Years Amnesia: Environment Tradition in Muslim Heritage

In a seminar organised by the Oxford Centre of Islamic…

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Al-Muqaddasi: The Geographer from Palestine

A notable fact that should be remembered when we talk…

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Knowledge versus Natural Disasters from Arabic Sources

The aim of this paper is to investigate the various…

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Ahmad Ibn Fadhlan in Northern Europe: A Survey of his Account of Russian Vikings in the 10th Century

One of the earliest detailed descriptions of Northern Europe is…

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Yaqut al-Hamawi

Yâqût al-Hamawî was a Syrian biographer and geographer known for…

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Mapping and Picturing: Maps as Records of History

A study of historical maps and sea charts indicates that…

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Turkish Contributions to Islamic Geography

Turkish contributions to geography are vast in content and have…

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Echos of What Lies Behind the ‘Ocean of Fogs’ in Muslim Historical Narratives

This article is an edited version of the article originally…

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Better Directions at Sea: The Piri Reis Innovation

The Ottoman Turk Pîrî Reis is truly a great figure…

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The Oldest Map of Japan Drawn by Mahmud of Kashgar

Although the Japanese map was included for the first time…

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Earliest maps of America

The earliest maps made of America by Columbus have all…

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Aspects of Mineralogy and Gemology in Muslim Civilisation

Many Muslim scholars dealt with minerals and gems and wrote…

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Abbasid Gardens in Baghdad and Samarra

The love of gardens during the Abbâsid period, whether in…

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The Travels of Ibn Jubair

Born in Valencia, Ibn Jubair (Ibn Jubayr) travelled widely, offering…

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The Travels of Ibn Fadlan

In his Rihla/Risala (travel narrative, account or journal), Ibn Fadlan,…

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Piri Reis and his Place in Ottoman Maritime History

When dealing with Turkish history, whether during the Ottoman period…

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Piri Reis maps America

In 1513 Piri Reis presented his famous map of the…

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