Land Reclamation and Irrigation Programs in Early Islamic Southern Mesopotamia
Self-Enrichment vs. State Control
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20058661 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Peter Verkinderen (corresponding author) |
| Year | 2018 |
| Pages | 500-527 |
| Publication date | 2018-10-18 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | CHAPTER |
| Venue | Authority and Control in the Countryside (SOURCE_BOOK) |
| Publisher | Brill (PUBLISHER • NL) |
| DOI | 10.1163/9789004386549_017 |
| OpenAlex | W2952160713 |
| ISBN | 9789004386549 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 5 |
The countryside is in the first place the locus of agriculture. Since taxation of agricultural lands amounted for the lion's share of the early Islamic empire's income, and its city-based culture was largely dependent on food (and other products) produced in the countryside, it was imperative for the empire to try and keep the countryside under control. This paper will focus on a rather small region in southern Iraq, the area between the Persian Gulf and the great marshland called al-Bai. The epicenter of this region was the city of Basra, which was founded by the invading Muslims as a base for their expeditions into southern Iraq and beyond. They established their camp on the edge of the desert plateau, ca. 20 km west of the presentday Sha al-Arab (which was called the "One-eyed Tigris,"Dijla al-Awr, at the time), and this encampment soon grew to become a mir, a garrison city, and one of the main metropoles of the early Islamic empire
Agronomy · Ancient history · Archaeology · Biology · Geography · Irrigation · Islam · Land reclamation · Mesopotamia · Ancient Near East History · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Eurasian Exchange Networks · History
| Citations per year | 0.4 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2021 - 2025 (5) |
| Highly cited | No |