Articles liés à Mission to the Volga

9781479899890: Mission to the Volga
Couverture souple
ISBN 10 : 1479899895 ISBN 13 : 9781479899890
Editeur : New York University Press, 2017

Synopsis

The earliest surviving instance of sustained first-person travel narrative in Arabic

Mission to the Volga is a pioneering text of peerless historical and literary value. In its pages, we move north on a diplomatic mission from Baghdad to the upper reaches of the Volga River in what is now central Russia.

In this colorful documentary from the tenth century, the enigmatic Ibn Fadlan relates his experiences as part of an embassy sent by Caliph al-Muqtadir to deliver political and religious instruction to the recently-converted King of the Bulghars. During eleven months of grueling travel, Ibn Fadlan records the marvels he witnesses on his journey, including an aurora borealis and the white nights of the North. Crucially, he offers a description of the Viking Rus, including their customs, clothing, body painting, and a striking account of a ship funeral. Together, these anecdotes illuminate a vibrant world of diversity during the heyday of the Abbasid Empire, narrated with as much curiosity and zeal as they were perceived by its observant beholder.

An English-only edition.

Les informations fournies dans la section « Synopsis » peuvent faire référence à une autre édition de ce titre.

À propos des auteurs

Aḥmad ibn Faḍlān was a member of a diplomatic mission sent by the Abbasid caliph al-Muqtadir in 309-310/921-922 to the king of the Volga Bulghars. His is the only existing record of that mission.

James E. Montgomery is Sir Thomas Adams's Professor of Arabic at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Trinity Hall. His three most recent books of hunting poetry are A Demon Spirit, In Deadly Embrace, and Fate the Hunter. In 2024 he was elected Fellow of the British Academy.

Tim Severin is a British explorer, film-maker, and lecturer. He received the Thomas Cook Travel Book Award for his 1982 non-fiction book The Sindbad Voyage and is noted for his Viking historical fiction series (2005).

Les informations fournies dans la section « A propos du livre » peuvent faire référence à une autre édition de ce titre.

Éditeur
New York University Press
Date d'édition
2017
Langue
anglais
ISBN 10 
1479899895
ISBN 13 
9781479899890
Reliure
Broché
Nombre de pages
108
Coordonnées du fabricant
non disponible
Personne responsable
non disponible