From Byzantine to Islamic Egypt : religion, identity and politics after the Arab conquest / Maged S.A. Mikhail.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mikhail, Maged S. A., 1974- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Egypt--Civilization--638-1798.

Egypt.

Egypt--History--640-1250.

Egypt--Religion--640-.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (445 pages)

Place of Publication:

London, [England] ; New York, [New York] : I.B.Tauris, 2016.

Summary:

"The conquest of Egypt by Islamic armies under the command of Amr ibn al-As in the seventh century transformed medieval Egyptian society. Seeking to uncover the broader cultural changes of the period by drawing on a wide array of literary and documentary sources, Maged Mikhail stresses the cultural and institutional developments that punctuated the histories of Christians and Muslims in the province under early Islamic rule. From Byzantine to Islamic Egypt traces how the largely agrarian Egyptian society responded to the influx of Arabic and Islam, the means by which the Coptic Church constructed its sectarian identity, the Islamisation of the administrative classes and how these factors converged to create a new medieval society. The result is a fascinating and essential study for scholars of Byzantine and early Islamic Egypt."--Page 4 of cover.

Contents:

Charting the course

The conquest : event, text, and memory

Christian elites : the dialect of duty and faith

Religious conversion and social cohesion

Language, identity, and assimilation

The long eighth century : a cultural bridge

Muslim elites, urban administration, and rural justice

Metamorphosis of the Muslim community

Ideologies and jurisdictions

A church and community in transition

Polemics and the construction of communal identities

Webs of significance.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780857736826

0857736825

9780857725585

0857725580