Since our establishment, we have presented our readers with foundational and source works.
Among these are the 6-volume (4000 pages) Mecmau't-Tefâsir, the 23-volume (23,000 pages) Kütüb-ü Sitte and its Commentaries, the 8-volume (4300 pages) Mu'cemu'l-Müfehres lil Hadis, and the 10-volume (6500 pages) al-Mebsut—Arabic texts of works fundamental to the Islamic sciences of tafsir (Qur'anic exegesis), hadith, and fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence); facsimile editions of Ottoman Turkish originals such as the 5-volume (3785 pages) Şakaik-i Nu'maniye and its Supplements, Kâmus-i Türkî (1590 pages), Lügat-x Naci (976 pages), and Redhause Dictionary (2239 pages); the 8-volume (3720 pages) "Islamic Jurisprudence According to the Four Schools," prepared by a commission of distinguished Egyptian scholars under the chairmanship of Prof. Dr. Abdur-rahman Cezîrî; and the 16-volume (10,000 pages) "Qur'an al-Karim Tafsir with Hadiths by Ibn Kathir," the largest tafsir in our language, encompassing the views of all mufassirūn (Qur'anic exegetes) from the Age of Felicity (Asr-ı Saadet) to the present. We have also published over 40 original and translated Turkish works by both classical and contemporary thinkers.
Now, we are pleased to present to you, our esteemed readers, the historical work of the great Islamic scholar, mufassir (Qur'anic exegete), muhaddith (hadith scholar), and historian, Ibn Kathir, entitled "al-Bidāya wa'l-Nihāya," under the name "The Great Islamic History."
In this work, which we present as "The Great Islamic History," the historian Ibn Kathir narrates events in chronological order, beginning with the creation of the universe and continuing with the life stories of all known prophets up to the Prophet Muhammad, the periods of the Age of Felicity (Asr-ı Saadet) and the Rightly Guided Caliphs (Hulefa-i Raşidin), as well as the political, cultural, and economic lives of Islamic states such as the Umayyads, Abbasids, Andalusian Umayyads, Fatimids, Ayyubids, Mamluks, and Seljuks, all conveyed in a fluent style.
By introducing a new methodology to the science of history, Ibn Kathir includes in his book reports whose authenticity he is not certain of, in order to ensure that the reader evaluates historical events correctly. However, he also notes that some of these are strange, Isra'iliyyat (reports of Jewish origin), or unacceptable reports. In this way, he prevents the reader from misjudging historical events, drawing incorrect lessons, or arriving at erroneous interpretations.
Because of these qualities, Ibn Kathir's "al-Bidāya wa'l-Nihāya" is a very important work in the field of history, and although it was written about 700 years ago, it is still considered one of the most important historical sources and remains the most widely read historical work in the Islamic world. We believe that by presenting such a work in Turkish, we are performing a great service.
We spared no expense in the typesetting, arrangement, printing, and binding of this valuable 15-volume work, which consists of 14 regular volumes and 1 index volume of personal and place names. We have tried to do the best that can be done in Turkey.
Here, we owe thanks to Mr. Mehmet KESKİN, who brought the work into Turkish, to Prof. Dr. Ziya KAZICI, faculty member of the Faculty of Theology at M.U., who edited the work without sparing his valuable time, to Mr. Mehmet IRMAK, who assisted us during proofreading and arrangement, and to the staff of Çağrı Publishing, who showed every kind of dedication during the translation and publication of the work. We pray to Allah, the Exalted, to grant us the opportunity to present such new source works to the service of humanity.
Şaban KURT