But Iran was also quick to declare victory despite suffering more than 600 military and civilian casualties by pointing at ...

The Umayyad Caliphate once ruled a vast Islamic empire, but internal divisions, social unrest, and rising opposition led to ...

The Abbasid envoy learned about a range of Viking religious rituals and beliefs too. He wrote, for instance, that the Rūs traders would leave food and drink offerings to idols, hoping this would bring ...

All praise is due to Him, and may His peace and blessings be upon His final Messenger, Muhammad. In 921, the Abbasid diplomat Ahmad ibn Fadlān left Baghdad on a mission to the far north. Tasked with ...

(RNS) — The book pushes back on stereotypes of Muslim women being oppressed and subservient, and instead highlights stories of prominent rulers who influenced Islamic civilization.

Baghdad, the majestic capital city of the great Abbasid Caliphate. For centuries, the city was a center of culture, learning, trade and religious life. However, in the 1250’s, Hulagu, brother of ...

Through these diverse portrayals, the study reveals how Persian poets negotiated tensions between cultural tradition, religious doctrine, and inner experience. Wine emerges as a powerful literary ...

The Taliban recently suspended chess in Afghanistan. Chess faced bans previously due to religious concerns. Ironically, Islamic world has a rich chess history. The game originated in India as ...

The Abbasid caliphs were the dynastic rulers of the Islamic world between the middle of the 8th and the 10th centuries. They headed a Muslim empire that extended from Tunisia through Egypt, Syria ...

For instance, in his work Kitab al-Aghani (“Book of Songs”), the Abbasid historian, poet, and musicologist Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani notes that by his time—the 10th century—the Mardaites were referred ...