Ian D. Morris

Tidbits of wisdom on the origins of Islam
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Who steals the common from the goose?

March 7, 2018 6 Comments

A friend of mine shared this poem, which I enjoyed, but I was sceptical of the dating.     Variants of this poem are quoted in books and magazines going back to the nineteenth century. Usually it is borrowed as… Continue Reading →

Mecca before Islam: 3) Dabanegoris regio

January 2, 2018 4 Comments

The third in a series on pre-Islamic sources adduced for Mecca. Previous: 2) Macoraba. Next: 4) Narsai’s homily. “a flumine Canis, ut Iuba, …gens Taludaei, Dabanegoris regio, mons Orsa cum portu…” “After the Dog’s River, according to Juba, there is… the Taludaei tribe, the Dabanegoris… Continue Reading →

Latin, Mecca, South Arabian

Mecca before Islam: 2) Macoraba

March 24, 2017 36 Comments

UPDATE: Following the success of this blog post, I developed it into a peer-reviewed article, which was published in Al-‘Usur al-Wusta: The Journal of Middle East Medievalists, vol. 26 (2018). You can read the article open-access here. Needless to say,… Continue Reading →

Mecca, South Arabian

Mecca before Islam: 1) Diodorus and the Kaaba

February 27, 2017 11 Comments

The first in a series on pre-Islamic sources adduced for Mecca. Next: 2) Macoraba.   “Hieron d’ hagiōtaton hidrutai, timōmenon hupo pantōn Arabōn perittoteron.” “A very sacred temple has been established there which is highly revered by all the Arabs.” —Diodorus Siculus,… Continue Reading →

Greek, Ka‘bah, Mecca

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