William Montgomery Watt

William Montgomery Watt ( born March 14, 1909 in Ceres, † October 24, 2006 in Edinburgh) was a Scottish scholar of Islam. Some of his more than thirty books have become standard works of Islamic Studies.

Watt studied in Edinburgh, Jena and at Balliol College, Oxford. He was successively Lecturer, Senior Lecturer and finally Reader of Arabic at the University of Edinburgh from 1934 to 1938 Assistant Lecturer in Moral Philosophy, 1946-1947 Lecturer in ancient philosophy and 1947-1964. In 1964 he became a professor at the University of Edinburgh. There he taught until his retirement in 1979. Watt was a member of the Iona Community.

Criticism by Patricia Crone

In his books about the Prophet Mohammed Watt took the view that the rise of Mecca was involved to an international trading center early 7th century indirectly in the development of Islam. The procedure initiated by this development -solidarity among the Quraysh, the ruling tribe of the city, have made it necessary to create a new ethical system. Then Mohammed had been with his new religion a response. The refutation of this view Patricia Crone dedicated her book Meccan Trade and the Rise of Islam ( Princeton, 1987). She tried to prove that Watts idea of ​​Mecca stands as an international trading center on no secure foundation. Here they questioned among other Watts thesis that the Meccans to 590 defeated the Lakhmids in so-called Fidschār wars and thus had the opportunity to control the caravan routes to Iraq. Crone pointed out, that can be derived not a victory of the Meccans from Arab sources about these wars and thus Watts thesis is untenable. They also stressed that Mohammed with his message in Medina success had only while he was thrust into Mecca only little acceptance. A real social crisis, as she had Watts for the Mecca diagnosed in the early 7th century, their view can be derived by extra- Qur'anic texts either from the Koran or from.

Works (selection)

  • Muhammad. Prophet and Statesman. In 1961.
  • A History of Islamic Spain. In 1965.
  • The Influence of Islam on Medieval Europe. 1972 (Eng. The influence of Islam on Medieval Europe. Wagenbach, Berlin 1988, ISBN 3-8031-2420-4 ).
  • A Short History of Islam. 1996 ( German Short History of Islam. Wagenbach, Berlin 2002, ISBN 3-8031-2454-9 ).

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