Overview

A revelatory history traversing the ancient roots of Islam in Europe This revelatory history explores the ancient roots of Muslim Europe, tracing their journey through the Mediterranean. Our odyssey begins in the little-known Sufi lodges in Cyprus, where Muslims arrived in 647AD. From there, we travel through the continent - visiting places such as Sicily, Malta, Portugal and Spain - encountering red-haired European Sultans and Arabic-speaking Christian Kings. We meet forgotten Muslim pioneers, such as Abbas Ibn Firnas who gave us flight and Ibn Sina who gave us modern medicine. We see the Islam-inspired mudejar art of fourteenth-century Christians in Spain, and how such cross fertilisation birthed Europe's 'Renaissance'. We discover the long-forgotten tombs of European Muslims who knew the Prophet Muhammad, and the author - award-winning writer Tharik Hussain - becomes the first Muslim in over 900 years to pray inside the remains of a nameless Sicilian Mosque. To remedy Europe's Islamic amnesia, this ambitious history reveals that Islam is no side show to Western culture - but rather has been integral to its development over 1,400 years.

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9780241742822

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Reviews

A vital, important and sharply observant new voice . . . In an age of growing Islamophobia, when ignorant commentators constantly depict Muslims as the Other, as dangerous outsiders, Hussain reminds us of the long history and the complex, mixed syncretic culture of European Islam, and nudges us to remember the massive debt Europe still owes to the Muslim world . . . A book I’ve been longing for someone to write -- William Dalrymple Uncovers a world of which few are fully aware -- Colin Thubron A perspective-shattering work showing that, far from being fatal to Western culture, Islam has been integral to the development of Europe for more than 1,400 years . . . Muslim Europe reads as both a revisionist work of history and a voyage of discovery -- Caroline Sanderson A vital, eye-opening journey into a Europe we were never taught about. A truly extraordinary work of rediscovery that pulls back the veil on a millennium of forgotten history and shows us that Europe has always been far more diverse, interconnected and culturally rich than we’ve been led to believe. With the curiosity of a traveller and the rigour of a historian, Tharik uncovers forgotten stories that challenge everything we think we know about the continent’s past. An important and necessary book for these times -- Levison Wood, author of WALKING THE NILE Tharik Hussain is just the kind of travelling companion we need in polarised times like these: curious, empathetic, erudite. An absolutely fascinating book, expertly threading past and present with a revelatory light -- Sophy Roberts, author The Lost Pianos of Siberia 

A vital, important and sharply observant new voice … In an age of growing Islamophobia, when ignorant commentators constantly depict Muslims as the Other, as dangerous outsiders, Hussain reminds us of the long history and the complex, mixed syncretic culture of European Islam, and nudges us to remember the massive debt Europe still owes to the Muslim world … A book I’ve been longing for someone to write and Hussain is the man to write it -- William Dalrymple

A vital, important and sharply observant new voice . . . In an age of growing Islamophobia, when ignorant commentators constantly depict Muslims as the Other, as dangerous outsiders, Hussain reminds us of the long history and the complex, mixed syncretic culture of European Islam, and nudges us to remember the massive debt Europe still owes to the Muslim world . . . A book I’ve been longing for someone to write -- William Dalrymple Uncovers a world of which few are fully aware -- Colin Thubron A perspective-shattering work showing that, far from being fatal to Western culture, Islam has been integral to the development of Europe for more than 1,400 years . . . Muslim Europe reads as both a revisionist work of history and a voyage of discovery -- Caroline Sanderson A vital, eye-opening journey into a Europe we were never taught about. A truly extraordinary work of rediscovery that pulls back the veil on a millennium of forgotten history and shows us that Europe has always been far more diverse, interconnected and culturally rich than we’ve been led to believe. With the curiosity of a traveller and the rigour of a historian, Tharik uncovers forgotten stories that challenge everything we think we know about the continent’s past. An important and necessary book for these times -- Levison Wood, author of WALKING THE NILE

Author Information

Tharik Hussain is an award-winning author and journalist specialising in global Muslim heritage and culture. He has written for newspapers such as The Times, Guardian and Telegraph, magazines such as National Geographic Traveler, and broadcast media such as Al Jazeera and the BBC. For the latter, he produced award-winning radio program America's Mosques. Tharik has written or contributed to travel books on areas including the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Europe, and his book on Islam in the Western Balkans, Minarets in the Mountains, was longlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize, shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year, and won the Adele Evans Award.

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