{"id":168581,"date":"2025-10-17T13:46:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-17T10:46:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/azbuki.bg\/?p=168581"},"modified":"2025-10-20T13:39:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T10:39:10","slug":"the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/press.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/","title":{"rendered":"The Berbers and Arab Rule in Sicily (9th \u2013 11th Centuries): Recovering the Missing Voices"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Desislava Vladimirova<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Faculty of History,<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Sofia University \u201cSt. Kliment Ohridski\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.53656\/his2025-5-5-ber\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/doi.org\/10.53656\/his2025-5-5-ber<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Abstract. <\/strong>This article explores the elusive presence of Berbers in Islamic Sicily between the 9th and 11th centuries. A major challenge of the topic is the lack of ethnic differentiation in medieval narratives: both Christian and Muslim sources typically categorize Sicily\u2019s population according to religious affiliation, rather than ethnic identity. In contrast to al-Andalus, where Berber communities are more visibly represented in the sources, their presence in Sicily appears fragmentary and often ambiguous.<\/p>\n<p>The aim of the study is to identify, systematize, and interpret the historical evidence relating to Berbers in Sicily. Methodologically, it combines a comparative analysis of data from various medieval Arabic chronicles with a critical review and reassessment of existing historiographical approaches.<\/p>\n<p>A key contribution of the study is the discussion of the possible presence of Berber Christians in Sicily prior to the Islamic conquest of the island in the 9th century. A chronological synthesis of references concerning Muslim Berbers is presented and analyzed. The study situates developments in Sicily within the broader political dynamics of North Africa, with particular emphasis on the role of the Kut\u0101ma Berbers in the 10th century and the increasing involvement of the Berber Zirid emirate in the 11th century.<\/p>\n<p>The article also explores literary stereotypes about the Berbers in Arabic historical writing \u2013 both in general terms and in relation to their role in Sicily. Particular attention is given to the spread of Ib\u0101\u1e0d\u012b Kh\u0101rijism, which may have been introduced by Berber settlers. As a marginal movement within regions dominated by Sunn\u012b Islam, Kh\u0101rijite groups are often depicted in a negative light in Arabic chronicles. The article engages with these contested issues in an effort to offer a nuanced perspective on the Berber presence in medieval Sicily.<\/p>\n<p><em>Keywords<\/em>: Berbers, Islamic Sicily, Mediterranean, Medieval period, Arabic historiography<\/p>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/press.azbuki.bg\/en\/member-login\/\">Log in to read the full text<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Desislava Vladimirova Faculty of History, Sofia University \u201cSt. Kliment Ohridski\u201d https:\/\/doi.org\/10.53656\/his2025-5-5-ber Abstract. This article explores the elusive presence of Berbers in Islamic Sicily between the 9th and 11th centuries. A major challenge of the topic is the lack of ethnic differentiation in medieval narratives: both Christian and Muslim sources typically categorize Sicily\u2019s population according to [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":124332423427287,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[]},"categories":[1],"tags":[14106,14102,14103,14105,14104],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>The Berbers and Arab Rule in Sicily (9th \u2013 11th Centuries): Recovering the Missing Voices - \u0410\u0437-\u0431\u0443\u043a\u0438<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/science.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Berbers and Arab Rule in Sicily (9th \u2013 11th Centuries): Recovering the Missing Voices - \u0410\u0437-\u0431\u0443\u043a\u0438\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Desislava Vladimirova Faculty of History, Sofia University \u201cSt. Kliment Ohridski\u201d https:\/\/doi.org\/10.53656\/his2025-5-5-ber Abstract. This article explores the elusive presence of Berbers in Islamic Sicily between the 9th and 11th centuries. A major challenge of the topic is the lack of ethnic differentiation in medieval narratives: both Christian and Muslim sources typically categorize Sicily\u2019s population according to [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/science.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0410\u0437-\u0431\u0443\u043a\u0438\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Azbuki55\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-17T10:46:07+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-20T10:39:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"\u201e\u0410\u0437-\u0431\u0443\u043a\u0438\u201c\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"\u201e\u0410\u0437-\u0431\u0443\u043a\u0438\u201c\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"28 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/science.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/science.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"\u201e\u0410\u0437-\u0431\u0443\u043a\u0438\u201c\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bel.azbuki.bg\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/de220d282eaa494f914ce0fd838645dd\"},\"headline\":\"The Berbers and Arab Rule in Sicily (9th \u2013 11th Centuries): Recovering the Missing Voices\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-17T10:46:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-20T10:39:10+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/science.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/\"},\"wordCount\":6402,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/bel.azbuki.bg\/en\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Arabic historiography\",\"Berbers\",\"Islamic Sicily\",\"Medieval period\",\"Mediterranean\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/science.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/science.azbuki.bg\/en\/uncategorized\/the-berbers-and-arab-rule-in-sicily-9th-11th-centuries-recovering-the-missing-voices\/\",\"name\":\"The Berbers and Arab Rule in Sicily (9th \u2013 11th Centuries): Recovering the Missing Voices - 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