Aguas nocivas y proverbiales en el África septentrional medieval a través del «kitāb al-masālik wa-l-mamālik» de al-bakrī
-
1
Universidad de Salamanca
info
- Pedro M. Cátedra (dir.)
- Juan Miguel Valero (dir.)
Publisher: Instituto de Estudios Medievales y Renacentistas y de Humanidades Digitales, IEMYRhd ; Universidad de Salamanca
ISBN: 978-84-121557-0-9, 978-84-121557-3-0
Year of publication: 2021
Volume Title: Edad Media
Volume: 3
Pages: 341-354
Type: Book chapter
Abstract
The relevance of water in medieval Arabo-Islamic society is expressed in geographical sources, which transmit all kinds of information and accounts regarding this valuable element. The descriptions of the Islamic world territories made by Medieval Arab geographers include a record of the existing water resources and they often indicate the characteristics of water, such as its quality and taste. Moreover, geographers occasionally warn about the dangers of drinking water from certain places on account of their detrimental effects over human health. The aim of this article is to approach the perception of water in the North of Africa that the Andalusian geographer Abū ‘Ubayd al-Bakrī shows in his work –Kitāb al-masālik wa-l-mamālik– by means of the analysis of a selection of accounts that warn about the harmful nature of water in particular places. Furthermore, the oral expressions and proverbs which accompany the selected texts reflect the perspective of Medieval Arabo-Islamic society in North Africa with regard to the adverse effects of water.