Ibn Selim el-Aswani

Who is Ibn Selim el-Aswani?

Ibn Selim el-Aswani was a tenth-century Egyptian diplomat who was dispatched to Nubia and left a written record of his travels. He traveled through much of Lower Nubia to the Makurian capital at Dongola. He was dispatched to the court of Georgios II by the Egyptian General Jawhar on behalf of the Caliph to demand the resumption of the baqt payments and to encourage the Makurians to convert to Islam. His mission was rebuffed, but the record of his voyage, which survive in an abbreviated form published by al-Maqrizi, are one of the most important sources on Medieval Nubia. He describes a quite centralized and prosperous Makurian state. He also describes the Alodian capital of Soba, though he might not have actually visited it. Unlike many other Arab writers, he seems quite favourably disposed to the Christian kingdoms.