Akbar’s Chamber offers a non-political, non-sectarian and non-partisan space for exploring the past and present of Islam. It has no political or theological bias other than a commitment to the Socratic method (which is to say that questions lead us to understanding) and the empirical record (which is to say the evidence of the world around us). By these methods, Akbar’s Chamber is devoted to enriching public awareness of Islam and Muslims both past and present.
The podcast aims to improve understanding of Islam in all its variety, in all regions of the world, by inviting experts to share their specialist knowledge in terms that we can all understand.
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Akbar’s Chamber offers a non-political, non-sectarian and non-partisan space for exploring the past and present of Islam. It has no political or theological bias other than a commitment to the Socratic method (which is to say that questions lead us to understanding) and the empirical record (which is to say the evidence of the world around us). By these methods, Akbar’s Chamber is devoted to enriching public awareness of Islam and Muslims both past and present.
The podcast aims to improve understanding of Islam in all its variety, in all regions of the world, by inviting experts to share their specialist knowledge in terms that we can all understand.
Islam in the Land of Bilal: The Rich Heritage of Ethiopia’s Muslims
Akbar's Chamber - Experts Talk Islam
1 hour 8 minutes 58 seconds
3 months ago
Islam in the Land of Bilal: The Rich Heritage of Ethiopia’s Muslims
Today nearly a third of Ethiopians are Muslims. At around 37 million, that’s a larger Muslim population than many Middle Eastern countries. According to Islamic tradition, fourteen centuries ago the first person appointed by the Prophet Muhammad to call Muslims to prayer was an Ethiopian called Bilal ibn Rabbah. Moreover, some of the Prophet’s companions sought refuge in the Ethiopian Christian kingdom of Axum. Over the following centuries, Islam spread to other regions and ethnic groups in what is now Ethiopia, developing a rich tradition of manuscript written in Arabic and local languages alike. Using the Arabic script (or more recently the Fidäl script), Islamic manuscripts were written in languages as varied as Somali, Harari, Oromo, Afar and Tigrinya. This episode explores the multilingual manuscripts, Sufi traditions, and modern technologies through which Ethiopia’s Muslims have maintained their religious and cultural heritage from the time of Bilal to today. Nile Green talks to Alessandro Gori, co-editor of The Writings of the Muslim Peoples of Northeastern Africa (Brill, 2022).
Akbar's Chamber - Experts Talk Islam
Akbar’s Chamber offers a non-political, non-sectarian and non-partisan space for exploring the past and present of Islam. It has no political or theological bias other than a commitment to the Socratic method (which is to say that questions lead us to understanding) and the empirical record (which is to say the evidence of the world around us). By these methods, Akbar’s Chamber is devoted to enriching public awareness of Islam and Muslims both past and present.
The podcast aims to improve understanding of Islam in all its variety, in all regions of the world, by inviting experts to share their specialist knowledge in terms that we can all understand.
