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General
Context and Reference Works:
The following
are a list of books relating to the general history and culture of Morocco,
in the 15th and 16th centuries. For optimal browsing, these are arranged
by theme.
General History of Morocco:
Were
you to read a study on Moroccan historiography, perhaps even general Muslim
historiography, you would most probably be told that History is not a
very popular science in the Arab world (aside from the mountains of chronicles
and lists of great men which were produced in every court).
There seems to be a general belief that 'theoretical history' (i.e. a
type of science that uses hypotheses and theses to explain the evolution
of societies) was not really 'allowed' or simply 'desired' in Muslim societies.
True,
we know only few Arabic historians in the 7th through 19th centuries,
but this may be due to many factors. Is it the religious conception of
history, as some have claimed? Is it the relatively late arrival of the
printing press, which only appeared in Fes in the late 19th century, and
the consequent difficulty of reproduction, and loss of many precious works?
Or is it simply our 'western' conception of history, which is unable to
find counterpart in the more religiously tainted narratives of the Maghreb?
Overall, it is safe to say that 16th century Italy and Morocco had two
very different historical traditions; and the particularities of both
are to be found in Leo's Cosmographia.
| Title |
Islamic
Historiography, the histories of Mas'udi |
| Author |
Tarif
Khalidi |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Albany,
1975 |
| Comments |
Using
the 11th century Persian historian (Al Mas'udi) as basis for his analysis,
Mr. Khalidi details the "Muslim" conception of history. |
| Title |
Ibn
Khaldun, notre contemporain |
| Author |
Mohamed
Aziz Lahbabi |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Editions
l'Harmattan, 1987 (5th edition) |
| Comments |
A
good biography of the great 14th century Moroccan historian, and his
views on what really constitutes 'historical narrative' |
| Title |
L'Histoire
du Maghreb |
| Author |
Abdallah
Laraoui |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Casablanca,
1995 |
| Comments |
A general,
comprehensive work on the social, cultural and political history of
Morocco, since the arrival of the Arabs, in the 8th century. Its main
advantage comes from the Arab perspective of his author ( making for
a much less colonialist type of discourse) |
| Title |
L'Histoire
du Maroc |
| Author |
Bernard
Lugan |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Perrin,
2000 |
| Comments |
This
latest edition of Lugan's masterpiece on Morocco contains very useful
appendix essays on several controversial issues : the Western Sahara
question, the Protectorate , the Independence Movement. An enjoyable
read for a general approach to Moroccan history. |
| Title |
Les
Historiens des Chorfa |
| Author |
E.
Levi Provencal |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Paris,
1922 |
| Comments |
A
good analysis of the conception of history in Morocco. |
History (Other):
| Title |
Medieval
Iberia, Readings from Christian, Muslim and Jewish sources |
| Author |
Edited
by Olivia Remie Constable |
| Language |
English
|
| Publication
information |
University
of Pennsilvania Press, Philadelphia, 1997 |
| Comments |
|
| Title |
The
Crusades Through Arab Eyes |
| Author |
Amin
Maalouf |
| Language |
English
(Translated by Jon Rothschild) |
| Publication
information |
Shocken
Books, New York, 1985 |
| Comments |
A
easily read presentation of the crusades, and the 'moods' they left
behind |
| Title |
Turks,
Moors and Englishmen in the Age of Discovery |
| Author |
Nabil
Matar |
| Language |
English
|
| Publication
information |
Columbia
University Press, 1999 |
| Comments |
|
About travelers,
geographers and historians:
| Title |
Voyager
a la Renaissance, Actes du Colloque de Tours, 30 Juin-13 Juillet 1983 |
| Author |
|
| Language |
French,
Italian |
| Publication
information |
Editions
Maisonneuve et Larose, 1987 |
| Comments |
A
compilation of essays on the general topic of travel in the 15th to
18th c. See in particular: "Le voyage dans le theatre de Shakespeare",
"Le livre de Jehan de Mandeville", "Quelques relations
de Voyage vers l'Italie et vers l'Orient au XVIeme siecle". |
| Title |
Voyageurs
Arabes:Ibn Fadlan, Ibn Jubayr, Ibn Battuta et un auteur anonyme. Textes
presentes par Paule Charles Dominique |
| Author |
|
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
La
Pleiade, 1995 |
| Comments |
A
wonderful preface lays out the different styles that influenced travel
narratives. |
| Title |
Voyages |
| Author |
Ibn
Battuta |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
La
Decouverte, 1982 |
| Comments |
A
well prefaced version of Ibn Battuta's travel narrative. |
| Title |
Personal
Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah and Meccah |
| Author |
Sir
Richard F. Burton |
| Language |
English
|
| Publication
information |
Dover
Publications , New York, 1964 |
| Comments |
Burton
describes the tricks and dangers of getting into the holiest of all
Muslim shrines- his exploits are a good precursor to the general Orientalist
mood which would take over all western study of the Arab world. |
| Title |
Arabian
Travelers: the European discovery of Arabia |
| Author |
Richard
Trench |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
|
| Comments |
An
account of the last great Arabian travelers and of contemporary western
explorers. The first sentence of this book: "It is no accident
that the last of the great moslem geographers, Hassan Ibn Mohammed,
ended up in the court of the Medici Pope, Leo X, with a new name Leo
Africanus. A generation earlier, the 800 year old Moslem tide had
reached its highest point. It was now on the ebb, not to reassert
itself, except in local turmoils, for 400 years." |
| Title |
L'Empire
du Grand Turc, vu par un Sujet de Louis XIV |
| Author |
Jean
Thevenot |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Editions
Temps et Continents, Calmann-Levy, 1965 |
| Comments |
This
edited version of Thevenot's early 17th century account of travel
to the Ottoman Empire gives a good introduction to the challenges,
cliches and motivations linked to the notion of travel in France.
Also , the narrator's perspective on Turkey can be compared to Leo's
writing style, which is less detached from the subject of description
( for example the hammam) |
About Renaissance
Italy and the Pope:
| Title |
The
Pope's Elephant: An Elephant's journey from deep in India to the heart
of Rome |
| Author |
Silvio
A. Bedini |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Penguin
Books, 1997 |
| Comments |
A
wonderful narrative of Pope Leo Xth's interest in all things Oriental
and his attachment to an Indian elephant, a gift from the King of
Portugal. |
About the Caravan Routes and Commerce:
| Title |
The
Golden Trade of the Moors |
| Author |
E.W
Bovill |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Oxford
University Press, 1978 |
| Comments |
A
more romanced account of the Gold trade and attempts by the West to
control this trade. |
| Title |
Commerce
et Routes du trafic en Afrique Occidentale |
| Author |
Jean
Devisse |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
In
Histoire Generale de l'Afrique, Editions Unesco, 1984-1990 |
| Comments |
Detailed
account of the early development of cross-Saharan routes, the goods
traded, the way of life etc.. |
| Title |
Afrique:
Les Civilizations noires |
| Author |
Jacques
Maquet |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Editions
de France, 1962 |
| Comments |
Good
maps on the Caravan routes. |
About
the Moroccan Coast and Life at Sea:
| Title |
Nous
les Freres Barberousse, Corsaires et Rois d'Alger |
| Author |
Jean
Louis Belachimi |
| Language |
French
|
| Publication
information |
Fayard,
1984 |
| Comments |
A good
introduction to the role of piracy in the religious war each camp
waged against the other. |
| Title |
Islam
et Chretienete, 13 siecles de cohabitation |
| Author |
Alain
Brissaud |
| Language |
French
|
| Publication
information |
|
| Comments |
A good
introduction to the role of piracy in the religious war each camp
waged against the other. |
| Title |
Trois
Princes Marocains, convertis au Christianisme |
| Author |
Henry
de Castries |
| Language |
French
|
| Publication
information |
In
Nouvelles Etudes Nord Africaines et Orientales, t 1, publie par l'Institut
des Hautes Etudes Marocaines, 1928 |
| Comments |
A good
introduction to the role of piracy in the religious war each camp
waged against the other. |
| Title |
Les
Corsaires de Sale |
| Author |
Roger
Coindreau |
| Language |
French
|
| Publication
information |
La
Croisee des Chemins, 1998- originally edited by L'Institut des Hautes
Etudes Marocaines, 1948 |
| Comments |
Description
of the corsair city of Sale ( present day Rabat) |
| Title |
The
Barbary Coast |
| Author |
Albert
Edwards |
| Language |
English
|
| Publication
information |
Mc
Millan Company, N.Y, 1913 |
| Comments |
An
early 20th century narration of a British journalists travels through
a land still referred to as "barbary"... |
| Title |
Guerre
Commerce et Piraterie en Afrique du Nord de 1415 a 1830 |
| Author |
Sir
Godfrey Fisher |
| Language |
French
( originally English) |
| Publication
information |
1991 |
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Legende
Barbaresque |
| Author |
Sir
Godfrey Fisher |
| Language |
French
( originally English) |
| Publication
information |
Office
des Presses Universitaires, Paris, 1991 |
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Pour
une Methodologie de l'Histoire Maritime |
| Author |
Jean
Louis Miege |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
In
Le Maroc et l'Atlantique |
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Captifs
Marocains en Italie XVII-XVIII e Siecles |
| Author |
Jean
Louis Miege |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
|
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Les
Oudaias- Bastion des Corsaires de Sale |
| Author |
Yves
Montalhuc |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Casablanca,
1980 |
| Comments |
A picturebook
with wonderful shots of the Kasbah des Oudaias, once the home of the
mightiest Moroccan pirates. |
| Title |
La
cote Atlantique du Maroc au debut du XVIeme siecle, d'apres des Instructions
nautiques Portugaises |
| Author |
Robert
Ricard |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
In
Hesperis, t 7, 2eme trimestre, 1927 |
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Legende
Barbaresque |
| Author |
Stanley
Lane Poole |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Darf
Publishers Limited, 1984 |
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Le
Maroc a travers les Chroniques maritimes, t1 |
| Author |
Abdelkader
Timoule |
| Language |
French
|
| Publication
information |
Editions
SONIR, Casablanca, 1988 |
| Comments |
A moroccan
perspective on the cliche that Moroccans were not a naval people. |
| Title |
Esclaves
barbaresques sur les galeres pontificales |
| Author |
Carla
Lodolini Tuppoti |
| Language |
French
(originally Italian) |
| Publication
information |
|
| Comments |
Precise
decription of the life of Muslim slaves on Christian boats, specifically
those belonging to the Papal fleet (which operated out of Civitavechia,
a port just North of Rome) |
| Title |
Piraterie
et Guerre en Mediterranee au 16 eme siecle |
| Author |
Francois
Vernet |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
In
L'Algerianiste: Bulletin D'Idees et D'Informations, 1998 |
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Historic
Sail- The Glory of the Sailing Ship from the 13th to the 19th century
|
| Author |
Plates
by Joseph Wheatley and Text by Stephen Howarth |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Greenhill Books,
London
Stackpole Books, Pennsylvania
|
| Comments |
A wonderful
book depicting 90 ships, with detailed text on the vessels functions
and uses. For the 14th and 15th centuries, the book shows several
models of merchant, war and exploration ship, giving a visual dimension
to many of the above books. |
About
the Knights of Malta:
| Title |
The
Knights of Malta |
| Author |
H.J.A
Sire |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Yale University
Press, New Haven and London, 1994
|
| Comments |
A
book recommended by the people running the Knights of Malta Association
and Museum. |
| Title |
Les
Chevaliers de Malte en Mediterranee |
| Author |
Eliane
Engel |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
|
| Comments |
A
book recommended by the people running the Knights of Malta Association
and Museum. |
| Title |
Histoire
de l'Ordre de Malte |
| Author |
Eliane
Engel |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Editions Nagel,
Geneve, 1968
|
| Comments |
A
book recommended by the people running the Knights of Malta Association
and Museum. |
About
the Sa'adian Dynasty:
| Title |
L'Armee
et la Flotte de Guerre Marocaine a l'epoque des Sultans de la Dynastie
Saadienne |
| Author |
Dziubinski,Andrzej
|
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Hesperis, 1972
|
| Comments |
See
p 61 on |
| Title |
L'Idee
de Nation au Maroc aux 16eme et 17eme siecle |
| Author |
Hajji,
Mohammed |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Hesperis, 1968
|
| Comments |
See
p 109 on |
| Title |
Morocco
in the 16th Century:problems and patterns in African Foreign Policy |
| Author |
Yahya,Dahiru
|
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Longman, 1981
|
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Histoire
de la Dynastie Saadienne au Maroc (1511-1670) |
| Author |
Mohammed
es Seghir ben ElHadi ben Abdellah el Oufrane, traduit par O. Houdas |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Paris, Ernest
Leroux, 1889
|
| Comments |
|
| Title |
Archives
Marocaines: Kitab El Istiqua, Vol 5 Les Saadiens (1509-1609) |
| Author |
Ahmed
En Naciri |
| Language |
French |
| Publication
information |
Paris, Champion
Editeurs, 1936
|
| Comments |
Ahmed
En Naciri covers extensively the history of Morocco, using as primary
source the works of the famous historian El Ifrani (mostly his work
Nozhet et Hadi). For Vol. 5 he also uses the works of a Portuguese
historian: Manuel. |
Miscellaneous:
| Title |
The
Greek Myths |
| Author |
Robert
Graves |
| Language |
English |
| Publication
information |
Penguin Books,
1955
|
| Comments |
A classic
survey of all Greek mythology. Helps make sense of the many muddled
myths that are referred to in different travel guides , mostly when
referring to he region of Tangier. |
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