Iranians in 9th Century Egypt

The Islamic caliphate was an empire of migration, and one is tempted to ask whether migration was indeed the backbone of Islam. The hijra (lit. “migration”) of the prophet Muhammad in 622 a.d. from Mecca to Medina became the blueprint for all later migration.1 During the Arab conquests of the 7th and early 8th centuries, Arab tribes migrated and settled in all parts of the new empire as a military and political elite separated by religion from non-Muslim population majorities.2 Another phenomenon was a long-distance trade with networks of traders traveling over the Silk Road and the Indian Ocean, the proverbial Sindbad being but a representative for many real ones.3 Thirdly, there was a zest for learning in Islamic culture, which is summarized by a famous saying of the prophet Muhammad (“seek knowledge even as far as China!”).4 Migration between the urban intellectual centres of North Africa and the Middle East was a prevalent phenomenon during the whole era of pre-modern Islam, and celebrities such as Ibn Khaldun of Ibn Battuta (both 14th century) are only two examples out of many. Finally, there is the obligation for every Muslim to undertake the pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina at least once in a lifetime, which caused the regular movement of many pilgrims on an annual basis through all parts of the Muslim world.5