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Al-Bakri

Type Figure Region al-Andalus Time 1014–1094 Also known as Abu Abdullah al-Bakri、أبو عبد الله البكري、al-Bakri、阿布·阿卜杜拉·巴克里

Andalusian Muslim geographer and historian (1014–1094); his Book of Roads and Kingdoms is a major source on medieval West Africa and the Ghana Empire.

Timeline

  1. 1014–1050Huelva · al-AndalusAl-Bakri was born into a noble scholarly family in al-Andalus and received Islamic scholarly training in Córdoba and elsewhere, ranging over geography, history, and linguistics.
  2. c. 1050–1068Córdoba · al-AndalusHe gathered the observations of merchants and travelers together with the works of earlier authors to compile the Book of Roads and Kingdoms, describing in detail the Saharan trade routes, the countries of West Africa (including Ghana), and the geography of the Mediterranean coast; it became a cornerstone of medieval African historical and geographical study.
  3. 1068–1094al-Andalus · al-AndalusIn his late years he continued to revise his geographical works and took part in scholarly transmission; his writings spread through transcripts to the Maghreb and the Middle East and influenced later Islamic geographical tradition.

Sources