Seeing Islam as Others Saw It
Seeing Islam As Others Saw It: A Survey and Evaluation of Christian, Jewish and Zoroastrian Writings on Early Islam from the Studies in Late Antiquity and Early Islam series is a book by scholar of the Middle East Robert G. Hoyland. The book contains an extensive collection of Greek, Syriac, Coptic, Armenian, Latin, Jewish, Persian, and Chinese primary sources written between 620 and 780 AD in the Middle East, which provides a survey of eyewitness accounts of historical events during the formative period of Islam. The book presents the evidentiary text of over 120 seventh-century sources, one of which (Thomas the Presbyter) contains what Hoyland believes is the "first explicit reference to Muhammad in a non-Muslim source:" According to Michael G. Morony, Hoyland emphasizes the parallels between Muslim and non-Muslim accounts of history emphasizing that non-Muslim texts often explain the same history as the Muslim ones even though they were recorded earlier. He concludes "Hoyland's treatment of the materials is judicious, honest, complex, and extremely useful." Sources Greek sources A Christian Apologist of 634 John Moschus Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem Pope Martin I Maximus the Confessor Anti-Jewish Polemicists of the Seventh Century The Miracles of S. Demetrius and S. George Anastasius of Sinai Patriarch Germanus Cosmas of Jerusalem Stephen the Sabaite John the Eremopolite A Greek-Coptic Papyrus Berlin Papyrus 10677 Timothy the Stylite West Syrian, Coptic and Armenian sources Fragment on the Arab Conquests Thomas the Presbyter Homily on the Child Saints of Babylon Gabriel of Qartmin Sebeos, Bishop of the Bagratunis Benjamin I, Patriarch of Alexandria Maronite Chronicle George of Resh'aina Daniel, Bishop of Edessa Athanasius of Balad, Patriarch of Antioch Isaac, Patriarch of Alexandria John, Bishop of Nikiu Theodotus of Amida Jacob of Edessa Zacharias, Bishop of Sakha Simeon of the Olives A Coptic Papyrus Theophilus I of Alexandria Letter of Bishop Jonah East Syrian sources Isho'yahb III of Adiabene Chronicle of Khuzestan Rabban Hormizd John bar Penkaye Hnanisho' the Exegete John of Daylam Isho'bokht, Metropolitan of Fars Abbots of the Monastery of Sabrisho' Isho'dnah of Basra Thomas of Marga Latin sources Fredegar, a Frankish Chronicler Arculf Willibald Later testimonia Historia miscella Morienus the Greek Chinese sources T'ung tien The Official T'ang History Ts'e-fu yuan-kuei Apocalypses and visions Syriac texts Ps.-Ephraem Ps.-Methodius Edessene Pseudo-Methodius and John the Little Bahira Pseudo-Ezra Copto-Arabic texts Pseudo-Shenoute Apocalypse of Pseudo-Athanasius Apocalypse of Samuel of Qalamun and Pisentius of Qift Coptic Apocalypse of Daniel Book of the Rolls Greek texts Pseudo-Methodius, Greek translation Greek Apocalypse of Daniel Vision of Enoch the Just Stephen of Alexandria Life of Andrew the Fool Hebrew texts The Secrets of Rabbi Simon ben Yohai Pesiqta rabbati Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer Jewish Apocalypse on the Umayyads Signs of the Messiah On That Day Hazzan Daniel Persian texts Bahman Yasht Jamasp Namag Bundahishn Denkard A Pahlavi Ballad on the End of Times The Prophecy of Rostam Persian Apocalypse of Daniel Muslim Arabic texts Signs of the Hour `Abd Allah ibn al-Zubayr and the Mahdi Tiberius, Son of Justinian An Apocalyptic Chronicle