Study Guide: Ibn Khaldun 1

General
Muqaddimah begins with more general observations, gradually becomes more specific
The rest of Muqaddimah covers wide-ranging topics, including history, sociology, philosophy,
geography, economics, political science, etc. (Ibn Khaldun’s idea of a “new science,” ‘ilm al-
umran)
Introduction introduces Ibn Khaldun’s vision of history, then goes through a number of examples
of mistakes past historians have made and the reasons behind such mistakes
His vision of history is repeated in detail in Book One
Criticizes “blind trust in tradition”
Reflects influence of Islamic theology/jurisprudence on past historical writing
Ibn Khaldun offers a general theory of human society and civilization

Forward (pp.5-9) *NOT assigned readings, but in the PDF

The purpose and meaning of history divided into two: surface and inner
Surface: entertains, brings understanding of human affairs and how they change
Inner: speculation, attempts to get at the truth, causes and origins, “how” and “why”
The inner meaning of history means it belongs in the realm of philosophy
Ibn Khaldun recognizes the dangers and shortfalls of the methods of Muslim historians (chain of
authority, similar to fiqh)
Criticizes later historians as introducing history with “form but no substance”
The rest of the forward is autobiographical and introduces the larger project (Kitab al-‘Ibar), of
which the Muqaddimah is a part (Introduction)

Reading 1 (pp.35-43)
Book One Preliminary Remarks
History susceptible to “untruths”: partisanship/opinion, reliance upon transmitters (tradition),
unawareness of purpose of event, assumption of truth (tradition), ignorance of general conditions
of things (sociology), praise of rulers
Biggest reason: ignorance of conditions arising in civilization (general theory)

1
Khaldun’s method focuses on understanding plausibility, normative theories (is the information
consistent with what we know about human civilization?)
**p.39: Khaldun is offering a “new science” (‘ilm al-umran); acknowledges that others may have
done it, but their work is now lost.
NOTE: p.40 includes two anecdotes about Zoroastrian priests (Mobedhan) and Khosraw I
(Anosharwan), evidence of Tabari’s influence (or ibn al-Muqaffa’s Khwaday-namag).
*p.41: repeats Aristotle’s model of civil society (dynasty supported by soldiers, supported by
money produced by the citizens, who are protected by justice).
Khaldun claims his book will flesh out this scheme more fully, with help of God and
without relying on either Aristotle or the Mobedhan.
**p.43: Division of societies between nomad and sedentary, breakdown of the 6 parts of
Muqaddimah
Man is different from other animals because of 4 things: 1) sciences and crafts, 2) the
need for restraining influence of strong authority; 3) methods of acquiring things necessary for
life (making a living), and 4) civilization
NOTE: (p.43) man’s “natural disposition of human beings toward cooperation”

Discussion (Included in Discussion Forum)

How would you describe Ibn Khaldun’s approach to history? How is it something different/new?
How does it compare to other histories (or modern histories)?
What does he mean when he says history belongs as a branch of philosophy?
Ibn Khaldun is sometimes compared with Machiavelli. Do you see any points of similarity?
How would you describe Ibn Khaldun’s views on human nature and/or the “state of nature”
(what humans were like before the development of civilization)?
Is it possible to the read Ibn Khaldun’s idea of the cyclical nature of civilizations as a critique of
modernism or modern “progressivism?”