Britain in the Awareness of Muslim Literature; Early Historical and Geographical Knowledge until the time of al-Idrīsī (217 AH/ 833 CE – 560 AH/ 1165 CE)

Abstract

Muslim authors paid a significant interest in European peoples and countries in the view of growing the relationship between Muslim World and Medieval Christian Europe and the flourish of authorship in Muslim scholarship. In fact, a part of the Muslim's interest was given to the British Isles in spite of it is far distance of Muslim lands. Therefore, the present article focuses on principle significant questions; what was Britain for early Muslim authors? and what were the most important reasons for interesting those Muslim authors in it, and what were the most effective factors contributing in developing such interest until the mid-6th AH/ 12th century CE when the geographer al-Idrīsī was alive. Hence, the researcher has to investigate the beginnings of the term "Britain" in Muslim traditional sources since the establishment of authorship in the Muslim world, particularly during first quarter of the 3rd AH/ 9th CE century when the first reference to "Marṭāniyah" was recorded. The al-Idrīsī's account on the British Isles is worthy to examine since he sheds light on its major islands, described in detail the most important British towns and cities in his time, and some of its well-known rivers. He also tried to determine the distances between some of these cities and towns by the mile, with some references to political and economic conditions in the British Isles in his time. All that clarifies the extent of early Muslim interest in the British Isles, seeming limited to the geographical knowledge among most Muslim writings during the period under study.