Ibn Khaldun-Towards a Non Euro-Centric Approach of Modern Social Sciences: Prof Syed Farid Alatas-Islamic Circles-Apr 28, 2020
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Ibn Khaldun-Towards a Non Euro-Centric Approach of Modern Social Sciences by Prof Syed Farid Alatas (University of Singapore) and hosted Dr Alyaa Ebbiary [SOAS, London]
Amazon:Ibn Khaldun (Makers of Islamic Civilization):Syed Farid AlatasIbn Khaldun (1332-1406) was one of the most remarkable Muslim scholars of the pre-modern period. He founded what he called the science of human society or social organization, as well as a new methodology for writing history and a new purpose for it, namely to understand the causes of events. While his ideas had little impact on the development of Muslim thought for several centuries, they hugely impressed European thinkers from the nineteenth century on--some of them proclaimed Ibn Khaldun a progenitor of sociology and modern historiography.This book introduces the reader to Ibn Khaldun's core ideas, focusing on his theory of the rise and decline of states. It presents the story of Ibn Khaldun's life, his political ups and downs, and some features of his character that contribute to an understanding of the development of his ideas. The central concept of 'asabiyya (group solidarity) and the factors that lead to its dilution are explained in detail, as also the method of testing (historical) reports for their plausibility. Alatas provides an extended discussion of Ibn Khaldun's views on education and knowledge, and on society. He recounts the reception of Ibn Khaldun in his own time and in the modern period, in the Islamic world and in the West: the range of responses include those who thought Ibn Khaldun merely reworked ideas found in the works of al-Farabi and in the Ikhwan al-Safa' to those who compare him to the giants of Western political and sociological thought, from Machiavelli to Marx. The book also includes a comprehensive list of the various editions and translations of Ibn Khaldun's works into European and non-European languages and also an annotated list of major works in Arabic, English, and other Western languages, which would aid the reader in further research.
Syed Farid Alatas teaches sociology at the National University of Singapore and is also head of its Department of Malay Studies. He has authored Democracy and Authoritarianism in Indonesia and Malaysia: The Rise of the Post-Colonial State (1997) and Alternative Discourses in Asian Social Science: Responses to Eurocentrism (2006). He has co-edited Asian Inter-Faith Dialogue: Perspectives on Religion, Education and Social Cohesion (2003) and Asian Anthropology (2005). He has also contributed to scholarly journals and essay collections, several articles on Ibn Khaldun, with particular emphasis on the application of his concepts and methodology in contemporary issues in the social sciences, educational philosophy, and culture.
The writings of Ibn Khaldūn, particularly the Muqaddimah (Prolegomenon) have rightly been regarded as being sociological in nature. For this reason, Ibn Khaldūn has been widely regarded as the founder of sociology, or at least a precursor of modern sociology. While he was given this recognition, however, few works went beyond proclaiming him as a founder or precursor to the systematic application of his theoretical perspective to specific historical and contemporary aspects of Muslim societies in North Africa and the Middle East. The continuing presence of Eurocentrism in the social sciences has not helped in this regard: it often stands in the way of the consideration of non-Western sources of theories and concepts.
This book provides an overview of Ibn Khaldūn and his sociology, discusses reasons for his marginality, and suggests ways to bring Ibn Khaldūn into the mainstream through the systematic application of his theory. It moves beyond works that simply state that Ibn Khaldūn was a founder of sociology or provide descriptive accounts of his works. Instead it systematically applies Khaldūn’s theoretical perspective to specific historical aspects of Muslim societies in North Africa and the Middle East, successfully integrating concepts and frameworks from Khaldūnian sociology into modern social science theories. Applying Ibn Khaldūn will be of interest to students and scholars of sociology and social theory.
posted by NFIE @ 6:41 PM
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