"Muslim Sicily, Real and Imagined"

This talk by Professor William Granara introduces medieval Sicily in its Muslim period, beginning with the 9th century conquest and ending with dissolution in the early decades of the 13th century. It focuses on how this extraordinary period in history was experienced, archived, imagined, and remembered by its native poets and writers, as well as the travelers who visited the island, during its political and cultural apogee, and the later years under the domination of the Norman kings.

William Granara is a Research Professor of Arabic at Harvard University.