La réponse d’al-Sijilmāsī (IXe/XVe siècle) à l’appel d’al-Maghīlī au meurtre des juifs du Touat 

Abstract

Ibn Hilāl al-Sijilmāsī, a legal scholar of the Tafilalt, and his contemporary colleague, al-Maghīlī of the Touat were important legal authorities of the oasis region in the 9th/15th century. The latter was well-known as the instigator of a violent dispute concerning the Jewish communities of the Sahara and as the person who called for the elimination of the Jews in the Touat. Al-Sijilmāsī, was asked to give his opinion on the subject, and wrote a long rebuttal of al-Maghīlī's positions. This reply was published in al-Sijilmāsī's collection of legal case (Nawāzil). This paper suggests an interpretation of the situation based on the study and analysis of his reply. First, we examine the scholars’ profiles for what they tell us about the links between these oases (Touat and Tafilalt) and extant Maghrebin regional centres, notably Tlemcen and Fez. We then analyse the themes developed by al-Sijilmāsī in his reply, namely the failure of power, the risk of discord (fitna), the issue of taxes and implications for relations with Saharan Jewish communities in the oases.

Keywords

• Touat
• Al-Sijilmāsī
• Al-Maghīlī
• Sijilmassa
• Tafilalt
• medieval Sahara