First published in 1988, Ira Lapidus' A History of Islamic Societies has become a classic in the field, enlightening students, scholars, and others with a thirst for knowledge about one of the world's great civilizations. This book, based on fully revised and updated parts one and two of this monumental work,describes the transformations of Islamic societies from their beginning in the seventh century, through their diffusion across the globe, into the challenges of the nineteenth century. The story focuses on the organization of families and tribes, religious groups and states, showing how they were transformed by their interactions with other religious and political communities. The book concludes with the European commercial and imperial interventions that initiated a new set of transformations in the Islamic world, and the onset of the modern era. Organized in narrative sections for the history of each major region, with innovative, analytic summary introductions and conclusions, this book is a unique endeavour.

Based on parts one and two of Ira Lapidus's history, this book traces the transformation of pre-modern Islamic societies and their transfusion globally.

About the Author
Ira Lapidus is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of California, Berkeley. Throughout his long and illustrious career he has published extensively. His abiding interest has been the relationship between the family, the tribe and the city, and this is exemplified in his current work and previous publications, including Contemporary Islamic Movements in Historical Perspective (1983), Muslim Cities in the Later Middle Ages (1984), Islam, Politics and Social Movements, co-edited with Edmund Burke (1988) and A History of Islamic Societies (1988, 2002).


Book Information
ISBN 9780521732987
Author Ira M. Lapidus
Format Paperback
Page Count 788
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 1000g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 153mm * 40mm