Tim Mackintosh-Smith

En este libro magistral, Tim Mackintosh-Smith recorre casi tres mil años de historia y hace que cobren vida ante nosotros los pueblos y tribus de la península arábiga que conquistaron numerosas tierras y extendieron su lenguaje por medio mundo. Mackintosh-Smith rastrea los orígenes de ese proceso hasta los albores de la propia lengua árabe, mucho antes del advenimiento del islam, y convierte al árabe, tanto hablado como escrito, en uno de los ejes que definen la identidad cultural compartida por los árabes durante milenios.

Remontándose a la poesía preislámica y a los conflictos entre beduinos y los pueblos sedentarios de Arabia, el autor nos muestra el nacimiento de la escritura árabe, la eclosión de Mahoma y las conquistas del islam, las cruzadas, las dinastías omeya y abasí, el esplendor de al-Ándalus, los problemas de la imprenta en árabe, el dominio turco, el colonialismo, el auge y declive del panarabismo, el florecimiento moderno de la lengua árabe, la Primavera Árabe y el ascenso del islamismo radical.

Esta es la historia definitiva del pueblo y de la cultura árabes a lo largo de tres milenios; una épica historia cuyos ecos pasados resuenan en el presente y son más relevantes que nunca, tanto en Occidente como en Oriente.

Libro del año según The Sunday Times y el Times Literary Supplement… (mere)

I picked up this book for a few reasons: a) I know very little about the history of the Middle East, b) I'm interested in the evolution of languages, both written and oral, and their affect on culture.

In a way, it is a topic too broad for one book. Arabs are a people defined by a common language. And yet it is like saying "English-speakers;" the category is so expansive. And yet there are commonalities. Not all Arabs are Muslim, although understanding Islam is an important part of understanding Arabs. As a result of this, at times, the book felt too long. On the other hand, in having finished it, I just have a cursory understanding of Arabs, so maybe it couldn't have been any shorter.

Arabs have always had settled and nomadic elements. Raiding (a socially-acceptable form of piracy) has been a crucial instrument of interaction between these different groups.

It wasn't until Muhammad and the creation of Islam, half way through this three-thousand year history, that Arabic became a written language. Before this time, Arab empires kept records in Latin. And it is only now, in the age of social media, that written Arabic is found in a form other than the traditional High Arabic. In other words, there has been a gap between the many oral dialects and the written language. Much of the book is spent on Muhammad.

Muhammad, unlike Moses or Jesus, was a warlord. As a role model, Jesus rejected wealth and power. In Islam, there are no such prohibitions.

Another element of note: in pre-history, the Arabian Peninsula was a rainforest. Their decertified state today has only been present for the past few thousand years.

The book is sprinkled with countless anecdotes, which give flavor and character to what otherwise might be a sprawling history.

One other piece of note: the Middle East is generally very anti-Semitic, as the creation of Israel essentially placed Arabs on the receiving end of a colonial push.

Poetry is of utmost importance in Arabic. Poets have been the biggest celebrities of Arab history, and just as politicians in other traditions must have skills in public speaking, Arab politicians must be skilled in poetry.

If you too have curiosities about the Middle East and don't know where to start, this could be an option.… (mere)

Following in the footsteps of Ibn Battutah, the year was 1333 Battutah had now traveled to Delhi, India. Some 600+ years later and Tim Mackintosh-Smith is "hot" on his heels. Smith continues Hall of a Thousand Columns with the same wit and humor found in Travels with a Tangerine. For example here's a line that made me giggle, "For a ship supposed to be leaving on her maiden voyage, she was being annoyingly coy about her virginity" (p 17).
Mackintosh-Smith titled his continuation of Tangerine Hall of a Thousand Columns because he felt that when IB came face to face with the hall he also came face to face with his destiny (p 31). As much as I liked Tangerine is wasn't able to finish Hall.… (mere)