Muhammad ibn Iyas

Ibn Iyas (* 1448, † after 1522) was a historian and an important witness to the last years of Mamluk rule in Egypt. His work serves as a primary source for the rise and fall of more than two hundred and fifty years of Mamluk rule (see Burj - Mamluk ) on Egypt ( and Syria ) and the first years of the domination of the Ottomans.

Chronicle

Ibn Iyas was the author of a multivolume history of Egypt with the title Badai Alzuhur Fi Wakayi Alduhur ( a German translation part is entitled: "everyday notes of an Egyptian citizen "), which includes several thousand pages.

The last ruler of the Mamluk Qansuh al - Ghuri, who had fallen as many of its soldiers in the late summer of 1516 at the Battle of Marj Dabiq against the powerful Ottoman is described therein as follows:

"He was tall, rough-hewn, with a big belly, white in color, with a round face, fat surrounding eyes and a booming voice. He was a majestic, dignified king who respect and reverence inspired by his audiences and people like to look at her. And would not have been his cruelties (...), he would have been the best of the Circassian king, yes, the best ruler of Egypt at all! "

An Arabic edition was published, among others, in the Bibliotheca Islamica 6

Translations

• Ibn Iyas: everyday notes of an Egyptian citizen. Library of Arabic classics. Translated from the Arabic and edited by Annemarie Schimmel. Edition Erdmann, Lenningen 2004, ISBN 3-86503-014-9 ( partial translation ).
• Ibn Iyas: Badai Alzuhur Fi Wakayi Alduhur. abridged and edited by Dr. M. Aljayar, Almisriya Lilkitab, Cairo 2007, ISBN 977-419-623-6.
• Journal d'un bourgeois du Caire. Chronique d' Ibn Iyas. Traduit et annote par Gaston Wiet. 1955