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University of Konstanz, International Conference (25 October, 31 October, 8...
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University of Konstanz, International Conference (25 October, 31 October, 8 November 2024): Emerging Historical Perspectives on Christian-Muslim Interactions in and Around the Mediterranean (c. 630–1614)

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2025) | Viewed by 4920

Special Issue Editors

Dr. James Wilson

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of the History of Religions, University of Konstanz, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
Interests: history of the medieval Mediterranean; Christian-Muslim relations; interreligious communication
Dr. Eric Böhme

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of the History of Religions, University of Konstanz, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
Interests: history of the medieval Mediterranean; Christian-Muslim relations; interreligious communication
Dr. Alejandro Peláez Martín

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of the History of Religions, University of Konstanz, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
Interests: history of the medieval Mediterranean; Christian-Muslim relations; interreligious communication
Dr. Marco Demichelis

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Cultures, Languages and Literatures, Alma Mater University of Bologna, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Interests: history of the Arab–Islamic world; Islamic studies; Qur’anic studies; history of Islamic–Christian dialogue and relations
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

For much of the medieval millennium, interfaith Muslim and Christian groups coexisted in urban centres and rural areas in and around the Mediterranean. The Special Issue focuses on the various exchanges that took place between these diverse religious communities during the Middle Ages (c. 630–1614) across several geographical areas, including Iberia, Sicily, southern Italy, and the Near East.

Over the past three decades, a new wave of revisionist and interdisciplinary methodologies, ranging from gender and global history to medievalism and the history of emotions, have broadened our epistemological horizons, creating innovative avenues of enquiry that provide new ways of thinking about the historical roots of Christian-Muslim relations. Yet despite these recent methodological advances, and the various ways in which they enhance our understanding of oecumenical interactions, few studies have attempted to apply these new approaches in a trans-Mediterranean context from the Umayyad-Abbasid age to the Ottoman period.

By exploring the complex and much-studied topic of Christian-Muslim relations through the shifting lens of methodologies, this Special Issue aims to foster an interdisciplinary debate that, through comparison and collaboration between scholars from different fields, bridges rigid geographical and temporal frameworks. The main objective is to provide a platform for multi-disciplinary, trans-epochal approaches, which will expand ongoing academic debates relating to this complex, multi-faceted subject.

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 400–600 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send it to the guest editors (emerging-historical-perspectives@uni-konstanz.de) or to Religions editorial office (religions@mdpi.com). Abstracts will be reviewed by the guest editors to ensure that it fits within the scope of the special issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer-review.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. James Wilson
Dr. Eric Böhme
Dr. Alejandro Peláez Martín
Dr. Marco Demichelis
Guest Editors

Hossameldin Ali
Guest Editor Assistant 

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Umayyad Christianity

  • “Convivencia”-al-Andalus
  • Christian “Conciliarism” and Islam
  • approaches to translation
  • Islamic law and Christian otherness
  • trade activities
  • knights and literature
  • early European oriental studies
  • communication at times of crisis or hardship
  • medieval soundscapes
  • urban environments

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 1088 KiB  
Article
Science Expanding Amid Political Challenges: Translation Activities During the al-Mutawakkil ‘Alā’llāh Period (232–247 H/847–861 CE)
by Samet Şenel
Religions 2025, 16(4), 430; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16040430 - 27 Mar 2025
Viewed by 314
Abstract
Translation activities in the Islamic world began during the Umayyad period (41–132 H/661–750 CE) and peaked during the Abbasid era (132–656 H/750–1258 CE), spanning nearly three and a half centuries. Scholars often highlight Caliph al-Ma’mun (d. 218/833) as the most influential patron of [...] Read more.
Translation activities in the Islamic world began during the Umayyad period (41–132 H/661–750 CE) and peaked during the Abbasid era (132–656 H/750–1258 CE), spanning nearly three and a half centuries. Scholars often highlight Caliph al-Ma’mun (d. 218/833) as the most influential patron of these activities. During the reign of Caliph al-Ma’mun, translations into Arabic increased significantly, and texts in fields such as mathematics, medicine, astronomy, and astrology flourished. These activities continued to expand in scope and influence in the following decades. However, existing studies have largely overlooked the translation efforts during the reign of Caliph Mutawakkil ‘Alā’llāh (d. 247/861), despite the significant contributions of figures such as Ḥunayn b. Isḥāq (d. 260/873), Isḥāq b. Ḥunayn (d. 298/910), Ḥubaysh (d. 9th century), Yuḥannā b. Māsawayh (d. 243/857), al-Kindī (d. 256/870), and the Banū Mūsā brothers (d. 9th century). This study examines the individuals engaged in translation activities during al-Mutawakkil’s reign, highlighting their roles within the Abbasid court and intellectual networks. By reassessing the role of al-Mutawakkil’s era in the broader translation movement, this research aims to offer a more nuanced understanding of its significance within the history of science and translation in Islamic civilization. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue University of Konstanz, International Conference (25 October, 31 October, 8 November 2024): Emerging Historical Perspectives on Christian-Muslim Interactions in and Around the Mediterranean (c. 630–1614))
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24 pages, 4256 KiB  
Article
Symbols and Objects of Desire: The Ottoman Fashion Between Representation of the Turk and Manifestation of Power in the Italian Renaissance Peninsula
by Eros Calcara
Religions 2025, 16(1), 15; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16010015 - 27 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1150
Abstract
The 16th century in Italy was an era of great cultural ferment, characterized by an intense exchange of ideas, goods and influences between the various European powers and the neighboring Eastern Empires, including the Ottoman Empire. Despite the climate of hostility, the “metus [...] Read more.
The 16th century in Italy was an era of great cultural ferment, characterized by an intense exchange of ideas, goods and influences between the various European powers and the neighboring Eastern Empires, including the Ottoman Empire. Despite the climate of hostility, the “metus hostilis” towards the Turks, and the conflicts with the latter, during the 16th century, an obsession with what came from the East further developed. This article aims to explore the role of Ottoman fashion and style in the Italian Peninsula during this period, analyzing the artistic, cultural, and social influences that shaped Renaissance aesthetics and taste for these “status symbols”. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue University of Konstanz, International Conference (25 October, 31 October, 8 November 2024): Emerging Historical Perspectives on Christian-Muslim Interactions in and Around the Mediterranean (c. 630–1614))
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15 pages, 521 KiB  
Article
The Conciliarist Idea of Islam in the Quattrocento—Prelude and Legacy
by Marco Demichelis
Religions 2024, 15(9), 1110; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15091110 - 13 Sep 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1305
Abstract
This contribution intends to examine the impact of Conciliarism (1414–1439) on the Christian vision of Islam in the Quattrocento. The analysis of the thought of bishops such as Nicholas of Cusa (d. 1464) and John of Segovia (d. 1458) is understandable only [...] Read more.
This contribution intends to examine the impact of Conciliarism (1414–1439) on the Christian vision of Islam in the Quattrocento. The analysis of the thought of bishops such as Nicholas of Cusa (d. 1464) and John of Segovia (d. 1458) is understandable only through the evolution of the Latin world with regard to Islam, moving from the Corpus Toletanum (12th century) and the impact of the Crusades in the Levant (1096–1291) and in Europe. This forwardness is rooted in the process of “Islamic Christianization,” an analytical operation lasting three centuries, during which Koranic Christology was to play a primary role. It will be through this “Christ-centric” process that from the Renaissance, the Ottoman empire, the great enemy of Western Christianity, will be appreciated for some of its peculiar facets. The weakening of the concept of heresy and of Catholic ecclesiastical authoritarianism in decreeing what heresy was probably one of the “indirect” outcomes of that dialogical “Moment of Vision” between Christianity and Islam. The further fragmentation of the Church of Rome, after the failure of Conciliarism and the outgrowth of the reformed Churches in the 16th century, favored a preliminary different understanding of the religiosity of others. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue University of Konstanz, International Conference (25 October, 31 October, 8 November 2024): Emerging Historical Perspectives on Christian-Muslim Interactions in and Around the Mediterranean (c. 630–1614))
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