The journey of Andalusian Ibrahim bin Yaqub to the Czech lands in the tenth century AD

The Arab traveler Ibrahim bin Yaqoub enjoys a great deal of respect among Czech historians, as he was considered the only blogger ever in the first half of the tenth century; He conveyed – with great care and meticulousness – the features of the formation of the country’s society and the facts of daily Czech life, especially in the capital Prague, which he called a “void” in the “Boima” region known today as Bohemia, a historical region in Central Europe that occupies the western parts and most of the central parts of the present Czech Republic.

According to historical documents that Al-Jazeera viewed at the Czech National Library in Prague at the Old Historical Archives Department, which prohibits borrowing it from the library to ensure that it remains as a documentary material Several quotes by Czech historians show the document written by Ibn Ya`qub, and it is considered an extremely rare historical document for anyone who researches the history and traditions of the Czech nation, as well as what it included in a geo-architectural survey of the city of Prague at the beginning of the tenth century. Read also Jean Douste, Pandemic Diaries and Fantasies of Fear “in the grip of a nightmare”Muhammad Mahdi al-Jawahiri, a contemporary of kings and presidents, died in exile … and this is the secret of his energy His theme of exile, his biography is light, and his traveling amulet … the international photographer, Joseph Kodelka For the sake of literature for a minority .. The French Deleuze and Guatry study the works of the Czech novelist Kafka

Ibn Yaqoub Blog

The quotations indicate that the blog of Ibn Ya`qub and his journey in the Czech countries between the years 966 and 967 was first disclosed by the Czech researcher Yergina Stepkova from 1946 until 1955, where she explained how literally he wrote down the facts in Prague, such as the social life of citizens in the popular markets, and trade And medicine, and that he was appointed by the caliph Abd al-Rahman, who was keen to link the countries of Andalusia commercially – via Central Europe – with the countries of distant China. And regulation and management of the markets, which made a good impression on the public with a good reputation.

Ibn Ya`qub describes “Faragha” – meaning Prague – as a city made of black stone, plaster and solid wood houses, and it is the largest city in Boima – meaning the Czech Republic – intended by foreign merchants from distant countries. The city is divided by a river known today as Vltava, and a bridge connected the two banks. A wooden bridge known today as Charles Bridge or Karlov Most, while descending from the large cathedral castle, a road leading to the popular market.

Across the bridge on the second bank is the Vysehrad Church; Where he used to treat patients from communicable diseases at the time such as measles and ulcers, and there are scattered between the two banks of those houses, which were estimated at about 350 houses, linked by very narrow roads and public markets, and he also conveyed his astonishment at the mixing of race between the black and the blond colors in the hair, and that the grandparents did not resemble Grandchildren, the fact that the majority today are blond.

Among those quotations is also Ibn Ya`qub’s correction of the history of the use of the silver dinar in commercial life, as some historians believed that this was done at the end of the reign of Bolslav I (915-967). Rather, the exchange of goods was a means of buying and selling as well, such as paying with fabrics or clothes, as they were woven very carefully from silk and bartered by buying slaves, gold, or horses.

Professional translation

Professor Lebuch Krupacic – the former head of the Department of Arab and Islamic Studies at the famous Karl University in Prague – confirms that his teacher, the oriental Czech scholar Ivan Harbek – who translated many Islamic books into Czechs, including the Holy Qur’an, literally translated this rare document of the Arab traveler Ibn Ya’qub.

Krupacik added – in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net – that there are many interpretations in the field of dealing with the biography of Ibn Ya’qub, who was a guest in a “void” – as he called it – in 965 and continued there until the year 967 AD, leaving without returning to the country of Cordoba, and at the time of his stay he The country is ruled by Boleslav I (Duke of Bohemia who is respected by Czech historians as a powerful ruler who strengthened the Bohemian state, expanded its territories and trade, and minted Prague’s first local currency).

Ibn Ya`qub’s journey included many European countries, and it is reported that he met the Roman Caesar Otto I (912-973), who was the first emperor of what would later become the Holy Roman Empire, which also controlled the country of Bohemia, that is, the Czech lands, and he was imposing tribute on the ruler Boleslav I. He wrote about the details of his meeting with Tsar Otto, using Arabic and Hijri dates.

Krupacic explains more about that document, which was interesting and distinctive, and he says that the traveler Ibn Ya`qub wrote the most accurate details about the city of Prague, and even the path of the streams of the Vltava River flood he wrote about, and he is credited with the benefit of the municipality of the capital Prague in the twenties of this century from this information to build centers that prevent The river’s flood waters reach the old city of Prague.

Concerning the confusion in determining the religion of Ibn Ya’qub, Krupacic said that historical documents do not confirm or deny that he was a Jew as some promote him, but rather he was a special envoy of the just caliph Abd al-Rahman al-Dakhil who ruled Cordoba, and he adopted it, and it contained many of the characteristics that indicated that he was Also fair in solving problems between merchants, he was known for his good manners, and he may have converted to Islam.

Krupacic points out that Ibn Ya`qub wrote about the Czech people at that time, and conveyed that he was a people serious at work, and if they were not separated into conflicting tribes and groupings, he would have had a great deal in repelling any aggression against him, and that the influence of his ruler Boleslav I was in the vicinity of each of the regions of Bohemia and Moravia. It is western Slovakia, Silesia, Lesser Poland and part of Ukraine.