İbn Cübeyr

İbn Cübeyr (Ebü'l-Hasen Muhammed) is an Andalusian traveler and author who lived in the XII. century. With his travelogue, he is one of the pioneering figures who set an example for Islamic geography and travel literature written after him.

Life and Death

Ibn Jubayr, who spent the last period of his life in Mısır, passed away in İskenderiye in 614/1217 (Cilt 1, s. 162).

His Travelogue

His most renowned work is his travelogue, also known by the names er-Rihle, Rihletü İbn Cübeyr, or Rihletü'l-Kinânî. This work is considered one of the finest examples of its genre and served as a model for numerous travelogues written after it. Travelers and authors such as İbn Battûta, Şerîşî, Abderî, and Makrîzî, among others, did not hesitate to quote pages from İbn Cübeyr (Cilt 1, s. 162).

Importance of the Work

Ibn Jubayr recorded his journey day by day, covering the countries and cities he passed through, along with the human communities living there, choosing to convey his observations in a vivid style. In this respect, his work is an important source from geographical, historical, sociological, and folkloric perspectives. The work is also valuable for its detailed treatment of sea voyages in the Mediterranean in the XII. century, including ships, sailors, ports, and customs (Cilt 1, s. 162).

Since a significant portion of Hicaz, Mısır, Suriye, Filistin, and el-Cezîre, located on the route İbn Cübeyr traveled, was under Eyyûbî rule, his work is also a valuable source for the social history of the Eyyûbîs (Cilt 1, s. 162).

Influence on Later Sources

Ibn Jubayr also became a reference source for geographers after him. Himyerî, while writing his alphabetically arranged geographical encyclopedia er-Ravżü'l-Miʿṭâr fî Ḫaberi'l-Âḳṭâr, utilized İbn Cübeyr, along with İdrîsî and Ebû Ubeyd el-Bekrî (Cilt 2, s. 46).