From ‘Oriens Christianus’ to Islamic Near East

The volume offers a new contribution to the study of the Near East and Eastern Mediterranean during Late Antiquity, the Early Islamic and Medieval periods. Originating from a two-day workshop held at the Chair of Byzantine Studies at Freie Universität Berlin (Dec. 7th–8th, 2017), it approaches Christian-Muslim coexistence between the fourth and tenth centuries CE through an interdisciplinary lens. The objective is to present a unified and holistic approach to Late Antique and Early Islamic Studies (LAESSI), revealing the interactions that shaped the transformation from Oriens Christianus to Islamic Near East (OCINE). The edited volume gathers an international, interdisciplinary group of scholars to explore and better understand the Near Eastern milieu in Late Antiquity and the Early Islamic period. Divided into three sections, Historiographical Cross-Pollination , Theological Cross-Pollination , and Cultural Cross-Pollination , the chapters examine the coexistence of Christian and Muslim cultural spheres in an intellectual space of complex interactions and exchanges. Discussions include a variety of perspectives on geography, historiography, philosophy, theology, imperial eschatology, and perceptions of the ‘other’, as well as monasticism, ecclesiastical structures, and the influence of art, epigraphy, and music in Christian-Muslim encounters. Through this framework, the volume aims to uncover the ways these cross-pollinations impacted the development of diverse regions, cultures, languages, and religious traditions. TABLE OF CONTENTS MANOLIS ULBRICHT, JENS SCHEINER Introduction 11 HISTORIOGRAPHICAL CROSS-POLLINATION EVANGELOS CHRYSOS Arabia minor, Arabia magna in Theophanes: A Short Reflection on the Late Antique World-View 19 REINHOLD F. GLEI The Sophistication of Arguments in Theodore Abu Qurra’s Dialogues with Muslims 31 YULIA FURMAN The End of Mu?awiya’s Reign and That of the Whole World, or Why Write a Universal History Before the End of Times 41 JONATHAN STUTZ Christian Rome in Syriac and Arabic Historiography 55 ALFONS H. TEIPEN Changing Perceptions of Jews, Christian Rulers, and Arabs in Early Sira-Maghazi Literature 73 THEOLOGICAL CROSS-POLLINATION ADRIANO DUQUE Columba’s Death as a Mirror for Monastic Ideals in 9th Century Córdoba 91 NESTOR KAVVADAS ‘Jerusalem Connection’ – A Communication Network Between Early Islamic Palestine, Constantinople, and Italy 111 CULTURAL CROSS-POLLINATION MARCUS MILWRIGHT The Shock of the New? Qur?anic Content in the Inscriptions of the First Islamic Century 127 SERAFIM SEPPÄLÄ A Symbol in Tension: The Cross in the Earliest Christian-Muslim Encounter 151 MANOLIS ULBRICHT Cultural Heritage in Religious Musical Traditions of the Eastern Mediterranean: A Study of the Byzantine Second Mode (??. ß?) and Its Relation with the Maqam huzam 167 Index 201 List of Contributors 211