Doubt, Scholarship and Society in 17th-Century Central Sudanic Africa

One Man In His Environment -- Coordinates -- Intellectual History And Philology -- Peripheries -- Sources And Structure -- Dramatis Loci -- A History Of Bornu And Baghirmi As Islamic States -- The Spread Of Islam -- Ethnicity, Religion, Slavery -- Islam And Traditional Religions -- Conclusion -- Muhammad Al-wali -- Biography -- Works -- Reputation -- Education -- Conclusion -- The Scholar's Habitat -- Scholarship -- Religious Leadership -- Intellectual Environment: Genres -- Intellectual Environment: Themes -- Conclusion -- Method And Message -- Al-sanusi's Sughra -- The Kabbe -- Between Oral And Scholarly Text -- Tradition With A Twist -- Conclusion -- Demonising Smokers -- How Tobacco Conquered The Islamic Lands -- Al-wali's Point Of View -- A Folktale About The Devil's Piss -- From Abgar To Al-azhar -- Conclusion -- On Writing -- Author And Authority -- Why Did Al-wali Translate The Fulani Commentary? -- From Orality To Literacy -- Knowing And The Knower. By Dorrit Van Dalen. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 296-313) And Indexes.