ABSTRACT:
In 921 C.E., the Caliph of Baghdad sent Ibn Fadlan, an Arab missionary, to the King of the Bulghars of the Middle Volga. Ibn Fadlan wrote an account of his history, a Risala, one of the great documents of world history. Frye provides a full English translation and includes letters by other tenth-century travelers and background information to round out this portrait of a pivotal time when merchants, missionaries, and warriors were opening up the world.
Ibn Fadlan journeyed from Baghdad to Bukhara in Central Asia and then continued across the desert to the town of Bulghar, near present Kazan, and described the tribes he met on his way and their customs. His is the earliest known account of a meeting with the Vikings, called Rus, who had reached the Volga River from Sweden. Ibn Fadlan's description of the Rus has generated much discussion about their origins, shockingly free sexual and moral standards, customs, treatment of slaves and women, burial traditions, and trading habits, all explained here in detail.
