Encyclopedia of Islam

Further reading: Th. Emil Homerin, From Arab Poet 

to Muslim Saint: Ibn al-Farid, His Verse and His Shrine

(Cairo: American University in Cairo Press, 2001); 

———, Umar ibn al-Farid: Sufi Verse, Saintly Life (New 

York: Paulist Press, 2001); R. A. Nicholson, Studies in 

Islamic Mysticism (Cambridge: Cambridge University 

Press, 1921).

Ibn al-Farid, Abu Hafs Umar

  

329  J

---

Ibn Battuta, Abu Abd Allah Muhammad 

al-Lawati

 

(1304–1377)  famous Muslim world 

traveler from Morocco

Ibn Battuta was arguably one of the most well-trav-

eled figures of the medieval period, whose journey 

spanned almost 30 years and covered three times 

the distance of his more famous European coun-

terpart, Marco Polo (d. 1324). He traveled from 

W

est

 a

Frica

 to c

hina

, receiving patronage, hos-

pitality, and occasionally employment from local 

rulers and Sufi orders. His extended travels effec-

tively demonstrate the links that tied together pre-

modern Islamicate lands, where a Muslim scholar 

could work and wander in many different regions 

in a world without firm borders.

Born in Tangiers, Ibn Battuta began his travels 

with a pilgrimage to m

ecca

 in 1325. From there, 

his wanderlust took him throughout most of 

Islamdom, through the Arabian Peninsula, e

gypt

, 

i

raq

,  Persia,  e

ast

  a

Frica

, Anatolia, the Asian 

steppes, a

Fghanistan

, and i

ndia

. He also ventured 

beyond the realms of Islam, exploring Southeast 

Asia, China, Spain, and West Africa before ulti-

mately retiring to the court of the Marinid ruler in 

m

orocco

, Abu Inan (r. 1348–58). There the 

sUltan

commissioned the Andalusian scholar Ibn Juzayy 

to commit Ibn Battuta’s story to paper, and the book 

was completed by 1357. In spite of certain sections 

borrowed from a previous traveler’s account and 

its tendency to exaggerate, this work marks a new 

style within the travel literature genre, expanding 

on the traditional descriptions of pilgrimage to 

include more personal information and a much 

larger geographical scope. It is also a testament to 

the rich diversity of Islam in this period, with its 

verdant blend of Islamic mysticism, religious law, 

and local custom. For these reasons, it is consid-

ered a historical treasure trove of information for 

Islamicate societies in the 14th century.

Eric Staples