Bernard Lewis – författare

`Whoever lives in our country, speaks our language, is brought up in our culture and takes pride in our glory is one of us.' Thus ran a declaration of modern leaders of Arab states. But what exactly is an Arab, and what has been their place in the course of human history?In this well-established classic, Professor Lewis examines the key issues of Arab development - their identity, the national revival which cemented the creation of the Islamic state, and the social and economic pressures that destroyed the Arab kingdom and created the Islamic empire. He analyses the forces which contributed to that empire's eventual decline, and the effects of growing Western influence. Today, with the Arab world facing profound social and political challenges, it constitutes an essential introduction to the Arabs and their history.

The state of race relations in Islamic societies has often been the subject of optimistic descriptions. Sources as various as Toynbee and Malcolm X refer to a racial Utopia, a colour-blind society. This society is seen as the direct result of the tenets of Islam, in which the only important distinction is that between Believers and Infidels. In support of this view is the indisputable fact that the Koran expresses no racial or colour prejudice. Contradicting it are various historical documents, and such literary sources as the The Thousand and One Nights, which clearly depict the social advantages of possessing white skin, as in the tale of the black slave who is rewarded by becoming white upon his passing into Heaven.

Is it correct to equate Islam with the West, a religious community with a geo-political entity? Islam is not a place; it is a religion. But, in this enlightening and distinguished collection of essays, several of them previously unpublished in English, Bernard Lewis questions the apparent asymmetries between Islam and the West, explores the vast common heritage both communities share and investigates each side's perception of the other.Many of the pieces examine the troubled relations between the two regions since the Middle Ages, focusing in particular on the impact of the West on the Middle East in modern times, and the Islamic responses to Western dominance. Especially timely are articles on the resurgence of Islam and anti-Western sentiment in recent years and on the failure of democratic institutions to take hold in the region. Bernard Lewis is one of the world's leading scholars of the Middle East. He is Cleveland E. Dodge Professor of Near Eastern Studies, Emeritus, at Princeton University. Previously, a permanent member of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey.

Hailed in The New York Times Book Review as "the doyen of Middle Eastern studies," Bernard Lewis has been for half a century one of the West's foremost scholars of Islamic history and culture, the author of over two dozen books, most notably The Arabs in History, The Emergence of Modern Turkey, The Political Language of Islam, and The Muslim Discovery of Europe. Eminent French historian Robert Mantran has written of Lewis's work: "How could one resist being attracted to the books of an author who opens for you the doors of an unknown or misunderstood universe, who leads you within to its innermost domains: religion, ways of thinking, conceptions of power, culture--an author who upsets notions too often fixed, fallacious, or partisan." In Islam and the West, Bernard Lewis brings together in one volume eleven essays that indeed open doors to the innermost domains of Islam. Lewis ranges far and wide in these essays. He includes long pieces, such as his capsule history of the interaction--in war and peace, in commerce and culture--between Europe and its Islamic neighbors, and shorter ones, such as his deft study of the Arabic word watan and what its linguistic history reveals about the introduction of the idea of patriotism from the West. Lewis offers a revealing look at Edward Gibbon's portrait of Muhammad in Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (unlike previous writers, Gibbon saw the rise of Islam not as something separate and isolated, nor as a regrettable aberration from the onward march of the church, but simply as a part of human history); he offers a devastating critique of Edward Said's controversial book, Orientalism; and he gives an account of the impediments to translating from classic Arabic to other languages (the old dictionaries, for one, are packed with scribal errors, misreadings, false analogies, and etymological deductions that pay little attention to the evolution of the language). And he concludes with an astute commentary on the Islamic world today, examining revivalism, fundamentalism, the role of the Shi'a, and the larger question of religious co-existence between Muslims, Christians, and Jews. A matchless guide to the background of Middle East conflicts today, Islam and the West presents the seasoned reflections of an eminent authority on one of the most intriguing and little understood regions in the world.

Bernard Lewis uses the year 1492, a year laden with epic events and riven by political debate, to explore the clash between the Jews, Christendom, and Islam, as well as that between the New World and the Old.

Why did the most advanced civilization in the world lose its power and fall under the domination of others? This book examines how Middle Easterners responded to Western challenges in war, technology, sciences, religion, gender relations and other areas between the 18th and 20th centuries. It reviews the different ways in which the question of what went wrong has been formulated, the various diagnoses of what ails the Middle East, and the prescriptions for its cure.

Bernard Lewis is recognized around the globe as one of the leading authorities on Islam. Hailed as "the world's foremost Islamic scholar" (Wall Street Journal ), as "a towering figure among experts on the culture and religion of the Muslim world" (Baltimore Sun ), and as "the doyen of Middle Eastern studies" (New York Times ), Lewis is nothing less than a national treasure, a trusted voice that politicians, journalists, historians, and the general public have all turned to for insight into the Middle East. Now, Lewis has brought together writings on religion and government in the Middle East, so different than in the Western world. The collection includes previously unpublished writings, English originals of articles published before only in foreign languages, and an introduction to the book by Lewis. Acclaim for What Went Wrong?A New York Times Bestseller"Replete with the exceptional historical insight that one has come to expect from the world's foremost Islamic scholar."--Karen Elliott House, Wall Street JournalLewis has done us all--Muslim and non-Muslim alike--a remarkable service.... The book's great strength, and its claim upon our attention, [is that] it offers a long view in the midst of so much short-term and confusing punditry on television, in the op-ed pages, on campuses and in strategic studies think tanks."--Paul Kennedy, The New York Times Book Review Acclaim for From Babel to Dragomans"Lewis has long been considered the West's leading interpreter of Mideast culture and history, and this collection only solidifies his reputation."--National Review"For more than four decades, Lewis has been one of the most respected scholars and prolific writers on the history and politics of the Middle East. In this compilation of more than 50 journal articles and essays, he displays the full range of his eloquence, knowledge, and insight regarding this pivotal and volatile region."--Booklist

What does jihad really mean? What is the Muslim conception of law? What is Islam's stance toward unbelievers? Probing literary and historical sources, Bernard Lewis traces the development of Islamic political language from the time of the Prophet to the present. His analysis of documents written in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish illuminates differences between Muslim political thinking and Western political theory, and clarifies the perception, discussion, and practices of politics in the Islamic world."Lewis's own style, combining erudition with a simple elegance and subtle humor, continues to inspire. In an era of specialization and narrowing academic vision, he stands alone as one who deserves, without qualification, the title of historian of Islam."—Martin Kramer, Middle East Review"A superb effort at synthesis that presents all the relevant facts of Middle Eastern history in an eminently lucid form. . . . It is a book that should prove both rewarding and congenial to the Muslim reader."—S. Parvez Manzor, Muslim World Book Review"By bringing his thoughts together in this clear, concise and readable account, [Lewis] has placed in his debt scholars and all who seek to understand the Muslim world."—Ann K. S. Lambton, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies"[Lewis] constructs a fascinating account of the ways in which Muslims have conceived of the relations between ruler and ruled, rights and duties, legitimacy and illegitimacy, obedience and rebellion, justice and oppression. And he shows how changes in political attitudes and concepts can be traced through changes in the political vocabulary."—Shaul Bakhash, New York Review of Books

The Arab-Israeli conflict has unsettled the Middle East for over half a century. This conflict is primarily political, a clash between states and peoples over territory and history. But it is also a conflict that has affected and been affected by prejudice. For a long time this was simply the "normal" prejudice between neighboring people of different religions and ethnic origins. In the present age, however, hostility toward Israel and its people has taken the form of anti-Semitism-a pernicious world view that goes beyond prejudice and ascribes to Jews a quality of cosmic evil. First published in the 1980s to universal acclaim, Semites and Anti-Semites traces the development of anti-Semitism from its beginnings as a poison in the bloodstream of Christianity to its modern entrance into mainstream Islam. Bernard Lewis, one of the world's foremost scholars of the Middle East, takes us through the history of the Semitic peoples to the emergence of the Jews and their virulent enemies, and dissects the region's recent tragic developments in a moving new afterword. "A powerful and important work, beautifully written and edited, and based on a range of erudition (in the best sense) that few others, if any, could command."—George Kennan

The eleventh-century Muslim world was a great civilization while Europe lay slumbering in the Dark Ages. Slowly, inevitably, Europe and Islam came together, through trade and war, crusade and diplomacy. The ebb and flow between these two worlds for seven hundred years, illuminated here by a brilliant historian, is one of the great sagas of world history.

Against a vivid background of Jewish and Islamic history, Bernard Lewis portrays the Judaeo-Islamic tradition – a cultural relationship parallel to the Judaeo-Christian heritage. He traces its origins in the early Middle Ages, its flowering, and its ending, followed by the incorporation of most of the Jews of Islamic countries into the state of Israel. The book examines the relations of Islam and other religions; the formative and classical periods of the Judaeo-Islamic tradition in medieval Islam; the development of the Ottoman Empire; and its eventual demise in the twentieth century. This book was originally published in 1984.

Against a vivid background of Jewish and Islamic history, Bernard Lewis portrays the Judaeo-Islamic tradition – a cultural relationship parallel to the Judaeo-Christian heritage. He traces its origins in the early Middle Ages, its flowering, and its ending, followed by the incorporation of most of the Jews of Islamic countries into the state of Israel. The book examines the relations of Islam and other religions; the formative and classical periods of the Judaeo-Islamic tradition in medieval Islam; the development of the Ottoman Empire; and its eventual demise in the twentieth century. This book was originally published in 1984.

First published in 1970, The Cambridge History of Islam is the most comprehensive and ambitious collaborative survey of Islamic history and civilization yet to appear in English. On publication it was welcomed as a work useful for both reference and reading, for the general reader, student and specialist alike. It has now been reprinted, with corrections, and for ease of handling the original two hardcover volumes have each been divided into two separate paperbacks.

First published in 1970, The Cambridge History of Islam is the most comprehensive and ambitious collaborative survey of Islamic history and civilisation yet to appear in English. On publication it was welcomed as a work useful both for reference and reading, for the general reader, students and specialist alike. The History has now been reprinted, with corrections, and for ease of handling the original two hardcover volumes have each been divided into two separate paperbacks. Volume 1B covers the history of the central Islamic lands from 1918 to the 1960s.

First published in 1970, The Cambridge History of Islam is the most comprehensive and ambitious collaborative survey of Islamic history and civilization yet to appear in English. On publication it was welcomed as a work useful both for reference and reading, for the general reader, student and specialist alike. It has now been reprinted, with corrections, and for ease of handling the original two hardcover volumes have each been divided into two separate paperbacks.

First published in 1970, The Cambridge History of Islam is a most comprehensive and ambitious collaborative survey of Islamic history and civilization. On publication it was welcomed as a work useful both for reference and reading, for the general reader, student and specialist alike. It has now been reprinted, with corrections, and for ease of handling the original two hardcover volumes have each been divided into two separate paperbacks.

This landmark book probes Muslims' attitudes toward Jews and Judaism as a special case of their view of other religious minorities in predominantly Muslim societies. With authority, sympathy and wit, Bernard Lewis demolishes two competing stereotypes: the Islamophobic picture of the fanatical Muslim warrior, sword in one hand and Qur'?n in the other, and the overly romanticized depiction of Muslim societies as interfaith utopias. Featuring a new introduction by Mark R. Cohen, this Princeton Classics edition sets the Judaeo-Islamic tradition against a vivid background of Jewish and Islamic history. For those wishing a concise overview of the long period of Jewish-Muslim relations, The Jews of Islam remains an essential starting point.

Surveying the population and revenue of six Palestinian cities--Jerusalem, Hebron, Gaza, Ramie, Nabulus, and Safed--in the sixteenth-century, Amnon Cohen and Bernard Lewis consider the numbers, composition, and distribution of the Muslim, Christian, and Jewish population, and discuss the different headings of revenue, the manner of assessment and collection, the yield, and the destination of the money collected. This monograph traces these developments, in detail, over an extended period and for a significant area of the Ottoman Empire. Based on the Tapu registers in Istanbul and Ankara, this book provides to the academic world a collection and analysis of documents previously unavailable and unreadable except to a very small number of people. Translations and annotations of these texts illuminate and explain the terms and institutions found in Ottoman surveys of population and taxation.Professors Cohen and Lewis establish the fact that in the cities of Palestine, population and revenue showed a rather spectacular parallel development towards the middle of the sixteenth-century when the disruptive conditions of the conquest had disappeared and Ottoman administration had been well established. Then, in the latter half of the century, they find a recession again. Originally published in 1978. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Volume II of the High Speed Aerodynamics and Jet Propulsion series. This volume includes treatments of all aspects of combustion necessary to the development of jet and rocket engines. Originally published in 1956. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Surveying the population and revenue of six Palestinian cities--Jerusalem, Hebron, Gaza, Ramie, Nabulus, and Safed--in the sixteenth-century, Amnon Cohen and Bernard Lewis consider the numbers, composition, and distribution of the Muslim, Christian, and Jewish population, and discuss the different headings of revenue, the manner of assessment and collection, the yield, and the destination of the money collected. This monograph traces these developments, in detail, over an extended period and for a significant area of the Ottoman Empire. Based on the Tapu registers in Istanbul and Ankara, this book provides to the academic world a collection and analysis of documents previously unavailable and unreadable except to a very small number of people. Translations and annotations of these texts illuminate and explain the terms and institutions found in Ottoman surveys of population and taxation.Professors Cohen and Lewis establish the fact that in the cities of Palestine, population and revenue showed a rather spectacular parallel development towards the middle of the sixteenth-century when the disruptive conditions of the conquest had disappeared and Ottoman administration had been well established. Then, in the latter half of the century, they find a recession again. Originally published in 1978. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Volume II of the High Speed Aerodynamics and Jet Propulsion series. This volume includes treatments of all aspects of combustion necessary to the development of jet and rocket engines. Originally published in 1956. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Most of the modern states of the Middle East are of recent origin, yet the region is the birthplace of three religions and many civilizations. Bernard Lewis, one of the world's most respected historians of the Middle East, discusses the countries and frontiers; their religions and communities; language and loyalties to place, and Middle Eastern perceptions of outsiders. He also considers the effect of alien ideas and influences including liberalism, nationalism, fascism, socialism and democracy.

A bestselling account of why the Islamic world has been losing the conflict with the West for 300 years - and the frustration and humiliation this has produced.For many centuries, Islam was the world's greatest, most open, most enlightened, most creative, most powerful civilisation. And then everything changed, as the previously despised West won victory after victory, first on the battlefield and in the marketplace, then in almost every aspect of public and even private life. Bernard Lewis examines the anguished reaction of the Islamic world as it tried to understand why things had changed, and he provides a fascinating portrait of a culture in turmoil. Some Middle Easterners asked not 'who did this to us?' but 'where did we go wrong?'; while others fastened blame on a series of scapegoats, both internal and external - and the results are very much with us today.

The great scholar of Islam directly confronts the events of September 11th and the reasons behind Islamic terrorism in the modern world - a Sunday Times bestseller.President Bush has made it clear that we are engaged in a war against terrorism. But for Osama bin Laden and his followers this is religious war, a war for Islam against infidels, especially the United States, the greatest power in the world of the infidels. In this book Bernard Lewis shows us where the anger and frustration have come from, and the extent to which almost the entire Muslim world is affected by poverty and tyranny.He looks at the influence of extreme Wahhabist doctrines in the Saudi kingdom, where custodianship of Islam's holy places and the revenues of oil have given worldwide impact to what would otherwise have been an extremist fringe in a marginal country. He looks at American double standards, which have long caused Muslim anger, and tells us the real meaning of `Islamic fundamentalism', `jihad' and `fatwa', and why the peoples of the Middle East are conscious of history in a way most Americans find difficult to understand.

On Tuesday, May 29, 1453, the young Sultan Mehemmed, known to history as -the Conqueror, - launched the final assault against the walls of Constantinople and added that imperial capital, as coping stone; to the Empire that his fathers had conquered. As the Sultan's Imam intoned the Muslim creed within the walls of Hagia Sophia, the Greek cathedral become a Turkish mosque, and the curtain went up on a new era. In this, the ninth volume of The Centers of Civilization Series, Bernard Lewis describes the city and its civilization in the great age of the Ottoman Sultanate, between the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries.Under the Ottomans, the city once again became the center of a vest empire and of a flourishing civilization. The conquerors did not destroy the captured Christian city, but took care to preserve and embellish; they added four Muslim minarets to Hagia Sophia, built many fine mosques and palaces of their own, and transformed the shrunken remnant of the Byzantine city into a new and splendid imperial capital.The great new Muslim city of Istanbul which they created became a center of cultural as well we political life. It was the gateway between East and West, the place where Asia and Europe clashed and blended. It was the seat of the Sultans and the Grand Viziers, of the government of the Ottoman Empire. No less interesting than the concepts of government and the Muslim religion practiced by the Ottoman Turks were the imperial place and household and the people of the city.Mr. Lewis relies upon the first-hand accounts of Turkish historians and poets and European travelers, thus enabling the reader to see the city, its people, and their life through the eyes of contemporary participants and observers.

From the first expansion of Islam to the exploits of Saddam Hussein, Middle Eastern society has been fatefully involved with the West. This revised and updated collection of essays by a leading Western expert on Islam and the Middle East gives essential background to the present Middle Eastern conflicts and their interaction, through mutual misunderstanding, with Western conceptions. From the first expansion of Islam to the exploits of Saddam Hussein, Middle Eastern society has been fatefully involved with the West. This revised and updated collection of essays by a Western expert on Islam and the Middle East gives valuable background information in relation to the present Middle Eastern conflicts and their interaction, through mutual misunderstanding, with Western conceptions.