alMasudi

Al-Masudi, full name Abu al-Hasan Ali ibn Muhammad al-Mas'udi (c. 896–956 CE), was a prominent Arab historian and geographer of the Abbasid era. Born in Baghdad, he traveled widely across the Muslim world and beyond, collecting information from merchants, travellers, and officials. He died in Cairo, Egypt, in 956 CE.

He is best known for his major work Muruj adh-Dhahab wa ma'ad al-Jawahir, commonly translated as Meadows of Gold and Mines of Gems. The text is a sweeping encyclopedia that blends history, geography, ethnography, and biographical material. It covers ancient civilizations, contemporary Islamic and non-Islamic societies, and various regions of the world, including Africa, Asia, and Europe. Al-Mas'udi emphasized breadth of sources, incorporating eyewitness accounts and travelers’ reports alongside traditional histories and legends.

Al-Masudi is often regarded as one of the earliest to fuse geographical description with historical narrative, moving beyond purely dynastic chronicles toward a more expansive view of world history. His work provided a framework for later scholars in the Islamic world and influenced later Western historians who encountered his travel-derived geography. Although some of his accounts mix fact with legend, his method and scope earned him a place as a foundational figure in medieval Islamic historiography and geography.