Apocalyptic and Other Materials on Early Muslim-Byzantine Wars: A review of Arabic sources

Abstract

The standard criteria for using apocalypses as historical sources were established by the late Byzantinist, Paul J. Alexander. Examining the process of literary embellishment and adjustment of a few Syriac and Greek apocalypses, he arrived at the conclusion that historical apocalypses are in fact “propheciesex-eventu”, i.e. having actually already materialised around the time of their circulation. The amount of such material, he argued, may serve as a kind of barometer for measuring the eschatological pressure at a given time in history since apocalypses are written to provide comfort in times of tribulation, particularly during grave military crises.

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