Islam: The View from the Edge

This concise revisionist account of the historical evolution of Islamic society goes beyond the caliph and the capital. The author abandons the historian's habit of viewing Islamic history from the centre, that is, focusing on the rise and fall of imperial dynasties. Instead, he derives a more accurate understanding of how and why Islam became - and continues to be - so rooted in the social structure of the vast majority of people who lived far from the political centre and did not see the caliphate as essential in their lives.