The Articulation of Early Islamic State Structures: (The Formation of the Classical Islamic World)

This volume reprints nineteen articles that deal with the formation of the first Islamic state under the 'rightly-guided' and Umayyad caliphs (632-750 CE). The articles (five of which originally appeared in languages other than English and are translated here) trace the crystallization of key institutions of the growing empire and treat such fundamental issues as taxation, military institutions, administrative organization and practices, the barid or official courier and intelligence service, succession, the ruling elites and their income, and questions of legitimation. The volume includes an introduction by the editor that offers an overview of the processes involved and helps place each article in its proper context. It also offers an extensive bibliography of further works relevant to the theme of the volume.

Table of Contents:
Contents: Introduction; Select bibliography; The formation of the Islamic state, Fred M. Donner; The development of the debate around the legitimacy of authority in early Islam, Moshe Sharon; The religious foundation of late Umayyad ideology and practice, Wadad Al-Qadi; New considerations on the nomination of 'Umar II by Sulayman b. 'Abd al-Malik, Tobias Mayer; Raja' ibn Haywa al-Kindi and the Umayyad caliphs, C.E. Bosworth; Elite incomes in the early Islamic state, Hugh Kennedy; Arab and muhajirun in the environment of amsar, Khalil Athamina; Documentary evidence for the early history of the barid, Adam Silverstein; The state archives in the early Islamic era, Meïr M. Bravmann; The content of the papyri on taxation practices, C.H. Becker; The administration of Egypt under the Umayyad khalifs, H.I. Bell; The diwans as registers of the Arab stipendiaries in early Islamic Egypt, Kosei Morimoto; The fiscal rescript of Umar b. Abd al-Aziz: a new evaluation, Azzedine Guessous; The participation of non-Arab elements in the Umayyad army and administration, Falih Husayn; An Arabic inscription from the time of the caliph `Abd al-Malik, Moshe Sharon; The coinage of Syria under the Umayyads, 692-750 AD, Michael L. Bates; The Syrian desert castles: some economic and political perspectives on their genesis, Heinze Gaube; The misr of Ayla: new evidence for the early Islamic city, Donald Whitcomb; Evolution versus revolution: Umayyad elements in the `Abassid regime 133/750-320/932, Irit Bligh-Abramski; Index.

About the Author :
Fred M. Donner is Professor of Near Eastern History at the University of Chicago, USA