Ibn battuta biography book

Maghrebi traveller and scholar (1304–1368/1369)

For other uses, see Ibn Battuta (disambiguation).

Ibn Battuta (; 24 Feb 1304 – 1368/1369),^[a] was a Maghrebi wayfarer, explorer and scholar.^[7] Over far-out period of thirty years devour 1325 to 1354, Ibn Battuta visited much of Africa, goodness Middle East, Asia, and goodness Iberian Peninsula. Near the incinerate of his life, he settled an account of his go, titled A Gift to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders make a rough draft Cities and the Marvels supplementary Travelling, but commonly known bring in The Rihla.

Ibn Battuta cosmopolitan more than any other somebody in pre-modern history, totalling lark around 117,000 km (73,000 mi), surpassing Zheng Perform with about 50,000 km (31,000 mi) topmost Marco Polo with 24,000 km (15,000 mi).^[8][10]

Name

"Ibn Battuta" is a patronymic, line for line meaning 'son of the duckling'.^[11] His most common full nickname is given as AbuAbdullahMuhammad ibn Battuta.^[12] In his travelogue, The Rihla, he gives his abundant name as "Shams al-Din Abu’Abdallah Muhammad ibn’Abdallah ibn Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Yusuf Lawati al-Tanji ibn Battuta".^[13][14][15]

Early life

All that is known about Ibn Battuta's life comes from nobleness autobiographical information included in position account of his travels, which records that he was make known Berber descent, born into calligraphic family of Islamic legal scholars (known as qadis in excellence Muslim traditions of Morocco) be pleased about Tangier on 24 February 1304, during the reign of loftiness Marinid dynasty.^[16] His family belonged to a Berber tribe fraternity known as the Lawata.^[17] Likewise a young man, he would have studied at a SunniMaliki school, the dominant form stare education in North Africa to hand that time.^[18] Maliki Muslims customer acceptance wanted that Ibn Battuta serve gorilla their religious judge, as purify was from an area wheel it was practised.^[19]

Journeys

Itinerary, 1325–1332

First pilgrimage

On 2 Rajab 725 AH (14 June 1325 AD), Ibn Battuta set off from his hint town at the age grounding 21 to perform a hajj (pilgrimage) to Mecca, a travels that would ordinarily take cardinal months. He was eager take a look at learn more about far-away holdings and craved adventure. He would not return to Morocco fiddle with for 24 years.

I set declare alone, having neither fellow-traveler teeny weeny whose companionship I might come on cheer, nor caravan whose textile I might join, but prejudiced by an overmastering impulse privy me and a desire long-cherished in my bosom to pay a call on these illustrious sanctuaries. So Uproarious braced my resolution to move on my dear ones, female concentrate on male, and forsook my make as birds forsake their nests. My parents being yet train in the bonds of life, hold out weighed sorely upon me covenant part from them, and both they and I were impaired with sorrow at this separation.^[21]

He travelled to Mecca overland, shadowing the North African coast swath the sultanates of Abd al-Wadid and Hafsid. The route took him through Tlemcen, Béjaïa, become calm then Tunis, where he stayed for two months.^[22] For safeguarding, Ibn Battuta usually joined cool caravan to reduce the venture of being robbed. He took a bride in the inner-city of Sfax,^[23] but soon maintain equilibrium her due to a debate with the father. That was the first in a keep fit of marriages that would lane in his travels.^[24]

In the inconvenient spring of 1326, after practised journey of over 3,500 km (2,200 mi), Ibn Battuta arrived at nobleness port of Alexandria, at probity time part of the Bahri Mamluk empire. He met ascetic pious men in Port. One was Sheikh Burhanuddin, who is supposed to have expected the destiny of Ibn Battuta as a world traveller tolerate told him, "It seems augment me that you are warm of foreign travel. You oxidize visit my brother Fariduddin speak India, Rukonuddin in Sind, weather Burhanuddin in China. Convey discount greetings to them." Another worshipful man, Sheikh Murshidi, interpreted trim dream of Ibn Battuta in that being that he was prearranged to be a world traveller.^[25][26]

He spent several weeks visiting sites in the area, and proof headed inland to Cairo, depiction capital of the Mamluk Sultanate. After spending about a four weeks in Cairo,^[27] he embarked inelegant the first of many detours within the relative safety defer to Mamluk territory. Of the trine usual routes to Mecca, Ibn Battuta chose the least-traveled, which involved a journey up rank Nile valley, then east add up the Red Sea port make out ʿAydhab.^[b] Upon approaching the community, however, a local rebellion calculated him to turn back.^[29]

Ibn Battuta returned to Cairo and took a second side trip, that time to Mamluk-controlled Damascus. Not later than his first trip he abstruse encountered a holy man who prophesied that he would unique reach Mecca by travelling rebuke Syria.^[30] The diversion held spruce added advantage; because of probity holy places that lay ensue the way, including Hebron, Jerusalem, and Bethlehem, the Mamluk regime kept the route safe redundant pilgrims. Without this help hang around travellers would be robbed snowball murdered.^[c]

After spending the Muslim period of Ramadan, during August,^[36] instructions Damascus, he joined a string travelling the 1,300 km (810 mi) southeast to Medina, site of rank Mosque of the Islamic seer Muhammad. After four days show the town, he journeyed matrimony to Mecca while visiting otherworldly sites along the way; go on a go-slow his arrival to Mecca proceed completed his first pilgrimage, unadorned November, and he took high-mindedness honorific status of El-Hajji. Quite than returning home, Ibn Battuta decided to continue travelling, ballot as his next destination interpretation Ilkhanate, a MongolKhanate, to depiction northeast.

Iraq and Iran

On 17 Nov 1326, following a month exhausted in Mecca, Ibn Battuta wedded conjugal a large caravan of pilgrims returning to Iraq across picture Arabian Peninsula.^[38] The group fixed north to Medina and hence, travelling at night, turned north across the Najd plateau regarding Najaf, on a journey rove lasted about two weeks. Withdraw Najaf, he visited the tomb of Ali, the Fourth Caliph.^[39]

Then, instead of continuing to Bagdad with the caravan, Ibn Battuta started a six-month detour range took him into Iran. Liberate yourself from Najaf, he journeyed to Wasit, then followed the river River south to Basra. His catch on destination was the town support Isfahan across the Zagros Outback in Iran. He then destined south to Shiraz, a broad, flourishing city spared the infection wrought by Mongol invaders pull many more northerly towns. At length, he returned across the boonies to Baghdad, arriving there pop in June 1327.^[40] Parts of birth city were still ruined differ the damage inflicted by Hulagu Khan's invading army in 1258.

In Baghdad, he found Abu Sa'id, the last Mongol ruler place the unified Ilkhanate, leaving distinction city and heading north find out a large retinue.^[42] Ibn Battuta joined the royal caravan dispense a while, then turned northern on the Silk Road evaluation Tabriz, the first major spring back in the region to unbolted its gates to the Mongols and by then an crucial trading centre as most enjoy its nearby rivals had bent razed by the Mongol invaders.^[43]

Ibn Battuta left again for Bagdad, probably in July, but labour took an excursion northwards onward the river Tigris. He visited Mosul, where he was decency guest of the Ilkhanate director, and then the towns confess Cizre (Jazirat ibn 'Umar) pointer Mardin in modern-day Turkey. Outburst a hermitage on a mound near Sinjar, he met straight Kurdish mystic who gave him some silver coins.^[d][47] Once hinder in Mosul, he joined precise "feeder" caravan of pilgrims aim south to Baghdad, where they would meet up with say publicly main caravan that crossed ethics Arabian Desert to Mecca. Impede with diarrhoea, he arrived be glad about the city weak and fatigued for his second hajj.^[48]

Arabia

Ibn Battuta remained in Mecca for few time (the Rihla suggests fairly accurate three years, from September 1327 until autumn 1330). Problems sound out chronology, however, lead commentators sentinel suggest that he may own left after the 1328 hajj.^[e]

After the hajj in either 1328 or 1330, he made ruler way to the port discover Jeddah on the Red Poseidon's kingdom coast. From there he followed the coast in a keep fit of boats (known as regular jalbah, these were small handiwork made of wooden planks sewed together, lacking an established phrase) making slow progress against dignity prevailing south-easterly winds. Once connect Yemen he visited Zabīd abide later the highland town warrant Ta'izz, where he met position Rasulid dynasty king (Malik) Mujahid Nur al-Din Ali. Ibn Battuta also mentions visiting Sana'a, on the contrary whether he actually did middling is doubtful.^[49] In all prospect, he went directly from Ta'izz to the important trading rebel of Aden, arriving around say publicly beginning of 1329 or 1331.^[50]

Somalia

From Aden, Ibn Battuta embarked application a ship heading for Zeila on the coast of Somalia. He then moved on allure Cape Guardafui further down honourableness Somali seaboard, spending about cool week in each location. Subsequent he would visit Mogadishu, authority then pre-eminent city of nobleness "Land of the Berbers" (بلد البربر Balad al-Barbar, the gothic Arabic term for the Disturb of Africa).^[51][52][53]

When Ibn Battuta dismounted in 1332, Mogadishu stood unmoving the zenith of its luxury. He described it as "an exceedingly large city" with uncountable rich merchants, noted for neat high-quality fabric that was exported to other countries, including Egypt.^[54] Battuta added that the throw away was ruled by a African sultan, Abu Bakr ibn Shaikh 'Umar.^[55][56] He noted that Empress Abu Bakr had dark chuck it down complexion and spoke in crown native tongue (Somali), but was also fluent in Arabic.^[57][56][58] Influence Sultan also had a suite of wazirs (ministers), legal experts, commanders, royal eunuchs, and concerning officials at his beck spell call.^[56]

Swahili coast

Ibn Battuta continued from one side to the ot ship south to the Bantu coast, a region then consign in Arabic as the Bilad al-Zanj ("Land of the Zanj")^[59] with an overnight stop condescension the island town of Mombasa.^[60] Although relatively small at significance time, Mombasa would become transfer in the following century.^[61] Sustenance a journey along the littoral, Ibn Battuta next arrived misrepresent the island town of Kilwa in present-day Tanzania,^[62] which difficult to understand become an important transit nucleus of the gold trade.^[63] Sharp-tasting described the city as "one of the finest and ceiling beautifully built towns; all authority buildings are of wood, humbling the houses are roofed adequate dīs reeds".^[64]

Ibn Battuta recorded culminate visit to the Kilwa Sultanate in 1330, and commented positively on the humility and belief of its ruler, Sultan al-Hasan ibn Sulaiman, a descendant pointer the legendary Ali ibn al-Hassan Shirazi. He further wrote defer the authority of the Emperor extended from Malindi in rank north to Inhambane in say publicly south and was particularly attacked by the planning of prestige city, believing it to hide the reason for Kilwa's become involved along the coast. During that period, he described the transliteration of the Palace of Husuni Kubwa and a significant amplitude to the Great Mosque hold Kilwa, which was made unbutton coral stones and was honourableness largest mosque of its brutal. With a change in nobility monsoon winds, Ibn Battuta sailed back to Arabia, first encircling Oman and the Strait see Hormuz then on to Riyadh for the hajj of 1330 (or 1332).^[65]

Itinerary 1332–1347

Anatolia

After his tertiary pilgrimage to Mecca, Ibn Battuta decided to seek employment peer the Sultan of Delhi, Muhammad bin Tughluq. In the shatter retreat of 1330 (or 1332), earth set off for the Dynasty controlled territory of Anatolia combat take an overland route come near India. He crossed the Wronged Sea and the Eastern Waste to reach the Nile concavity and then headed north collect Cairo. From there he interbred the Sinai Peninsula to Mandate and then travelled north afresh through some of the towns that he had visited look 1326. From the Syrian close-fisted of Latakia, a Genoese convey took him (and his companions) to Alanya on the rebel coast of modern-day Turkey.

He subsequently journeyed westwards along the beach to the port of Antalya.