Seeing Islam as Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam (Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam) [Hardcover]

Robert G. Hoyland (Author)

Book Description

Series: Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam | Publication Date: January 1998

This book offers a new approach to the vexing question of how to write the early history of Islam. The first part discusses the nature of the Muslim and non-Muslim source material for the seventh- and eighth-century Middle East and argues that by lessening the divide between these two traditions, which has largely been erected by modern scholarship, we can come to a better appreciation of this crucial period. The second part gives a detailed survey of sources and an analysis of some 120 non-Muslim texts, all of which provide information about the first century and a half of Islam (roughly A.D. 620-780). The third part furnishes examples, according to the approach suggested in the first part and with the material presented in the second part, how one might write the history of this time. The fourth part takes the form of excurses on various topics, such as the process of Islamization, the phenomenon of conversion to Islam, the development of techniques for determining the direction of prayer, and the conquest of Egypt.

Because this work views Islamic history with the aid of non-Muslim texts and assesses the latter in the light of Muslim writings, it will be essential reading for historians of Islam, Christianity, Judaism, or Zoroastrianism--indeed, for all those with an interest in cultures of the eastern Mediterranean in its traditional phase from Late Antiquity to medieval times.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert Hoyland was Lecturer in Arabic and Islamic History, Pembroke College, Oxford, and is now a Research Fellow in the History of the Middle East at St. John's College, Oxford. He has written a number of articles of an interdisciplinary nature on cultures of the Middle East.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 872 pages
• Publisher: Darwin Pr (January 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0878501258
• ISBN-13: 978-0878501250
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #257,235 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read the book, please!, September 9, 2002

By 

Majhul (New England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seeing Islam as Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam (Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam) (Hardcover)

Two of the reviews posted here suggest that the we might title them "Seeing 'Seeing Islam. . .' as Others Saw it." The New York reader's propoganda for Hagarism and other far-fetched perspectives is explicitly taken on and refuted in Hoyland's Chapter 13. Chapter 14 begins, saying "... it is a strong argument in favor of [Muslim witnesses] that they do frequently coincide with what is said by [non-Muslim witnesses]."
This book is mostly a sober, almost 19th-century style translated collection of all the sources refering to Muslims and Islam in the first (roughly) two centuries of Islam. These sources are organized (a bit frustratingly for this reader) by the language of their origin (rather than chronologically). Execurses collect early Muslim sources, and various chapters meticulously discuss the sources, how they can be used, and other methodological issues. The author then carefully, soberly, and very persuasively draws conclusions about the original Muslim self-identity, the cultus, the nature of the early community's religiosity (or religiosities) etc. It is a tour de force work, invaluable for those interested in Early Islam and it puts paid to speculative, thinly evidenced, and frankly hostile works like that of Nevo and Koren. It's a pity that it is so difficult to find, however.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Resource, April 30, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Seeing Islam as Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam (Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam) (Hardcover)

Hoyland provides an invaluable resource for student of early islam. Cataloguing and summarising all the early non-Muslim sources referring to Islam, he has created a text that not only lists hard-to-find references, but lucidly summarises them as well.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Remarkable Must-have history book of early Islam, November 16, 2009

By 

T. Hakmi "tiamo" (Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Seeing Islam as Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam (Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam) (Hardcover)

I started reading this book in hopes I can get better understanding of 7th-8th century AD from sources other than Muslim sources. Prof. Hoyland did not disappoint with this treasure book.

His unbiased analytics of the scriptures, cross referencing every material with numerous other sources as to establish the validity of the source is a great task that he had undertaken eagerly. I can't imagine the amount of research that went into this book, quite astonushing.

The book is close to 800 pages, but only 600 pages deal discuss the work and 200 pages of references. It is clear the author took keen care of examining all materials available including architectural designs relating to that period.

The book in my opinion explains why you simply shouldn't take scriptures of Muslim/non-Muslim sources alike for being true. Many of the old scriptures include apologetic works, polemical stories and sometimes right out exaggerations.

This book serves to correct what Crone and others assumed by taking scriptures of non-Muslim and claiming it to be the only explanation for how was Islam in 7th century. The book is packed with scripture quotations from the Greeks to the Chinese on issues related to the rise of Islam.

The book showed that Muslim sources of 9th/10th AD describe closely in the same way the events that non-Muslims had written in 7th/8th AD.

I'll be keeping this book in my library and pass it on to my children. It is a treasure of historical magnificance. The sad part though, the same issues arose during that period between Christians, Jews and Muslims still exist until today. It is clear no siding is winning, and no Messaiah is coming.

Kudos to the author, he and all those took part in producing this work deserve our gratitute.