Additional Contributions of ‘Abd al-Ḥaqq al-Islāmī to the Muslim-Jewish Polemic
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.3989/alqantara.2016.005Keywords:
Polemics, ‘Abd al-Ḥaqq al-Islāmī, al-Sayf al-Mamdūd, dalā’il al-nubuwwa, ‘Uzayr, Midrash, gematriaAbstract
‘Abd al-Ḥaqq al-Islāmī, a fourteenth-century Muslim polemicist of Jewish origin, has been somewhat obscured in research due to doubts about the uniqueness and originality of his thinking and the extent of his Jewish education. This article, part of a broader research effort presently under way, attempts to surmount these doubts by demonstrating that ‘Abd al-Ḥaqq made a unique contribution to the oeuvre of Muslim anti-Jewish polemics, displayed originality in his extensive use of gematria and adaptation of source material to his agenda, and possessed no small amount of Jewish knowledge. The last-mentioned is reflected in his familiarity with the structure and messages of the Bible, at least a superficial acquaintance with parts of the Oral Law, and possibly some proficiency in Hebrew.
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