Kinship, Camaraderie and Contestation: Fāṭimid Relations with the Ashrāf in the Fourth/Tenth Century.

Abstract

The founding of the Fāṭimid caliphate across the southern Mediterranean, and then in Egypt, Syria and the Ḥijāz at the turn of the fourth/tenth century, necessitated its negotiation with the ashrāf, those who claimed lineal descent from the Prophet Muḥammad, and who by this time had gained significant influence as a social class based on their charismatic descent. While other dynastic powers fostered relationships with various members of the ashrāf, the...