Royal Pilgrims from Takrūr According to ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jazīrī (12th–16th Century)

Abstract

This piece is a presentation and a translation of al-Jazīrī’s al-Durar al-farāʾiḍ chapter on the royal pilgrims from Takrūr. This chapter presents notably an entirely new account on the pilgrimage of Idrīs b. ʿAlī, greatest sultan of Borno. The Cairene Sufi historian al-Jazīrī was at the time heading the office administrating the pilgrimage to Mecca. He was then at the center of the information traffic. An introduction presenting the author, his work, and royal pilgrims from West Africa opens the article, followed by the translation and the Arabic text.