The Timbuktu Manuscript Tradition

Abstract

Background: Islam first entered the African continent nearly 1400 years ago. The first Muslims to enter Africa were early follower of the Prophet Muhammad, who sought refuge in Christian Ethiopia in what is often called "'the first .. hijra .. in about the year 615 AD. Just a quarter of a century later many more Muslim Arab · pushed their way into Egypt during the great expansion of the lands of the Caliphate during the caliphate of Umarb. al-Khattab in 640-1. Before the end of the 7th century, the territory of the Caliphate had been extended westowards to the Atlantic Ocean. covering what are now the countrie~ of Libya, Tunisia. Algeria, and Morocco . .