“The Year According to the Reckoning of the Believers”: Papyrus Louvre inv. J. David-Weill 20 and the Origins of the hijrī Era
Mehdy Shaddel
Abstract The present paper addresses itself to the enigmatic phrase snh qaḍāʾ al-muʾminīn that appears in a papyrus sheet from early Muslim Egypt. It takes issue with earlier interpretations of phrase, arguing it is indeed dating formula probably be read as sanat , and understood “the year according reckoning believers”. Based on testimony this further argued epoch calendar was, all likelihood, originally meant count years Muḥammad’s foundation new community polity at Medina, momentous event Muslims conceived dawn age.
Der Islam|Leiden Repository (Leiden University)