Ibn Battuta
Abū Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn Abd Allāh Al-Lawātī (/ˌɪbən bætˈtuːtɑː/; 24 February 1304 – 1368/1369), commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Maghrebi traveller, explorer and scholar. Over a period of thirty years from 1325 to 1354, Ibn Battuta visited most of North Africa, the Middle East, East Africa, Central Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, China, the Iberian Peninsula, and West Africa. Near the end of his life, he dictated an account of his journeys, titled A Gift to Those Who Contemplate the Wonders of Cities and the Marvels of Travelling, but commonly known as The Rihla.
Shaykh Ibn Battuta | |
|---|---|
ابن بطوطة | |
1878 illustration by Léon Benett showing Ibn Battuta (center) and his guide (left) in Egypt | |
| Born | 24 February 1304 Tangier, Marinid Sultanate |
| Died | 1369 (aged 64–65) Marrakesh, Marinid Sultanate |
| Other names |
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| Occupation(s) | Traveller, Geographer, explorer, scholar |
| Era | Post-classical history |
| Notable work | Rihla |
| Arabic name | |
| Personal (Ism) | Shams al-Dīn |
| Patronymic (Nasab) | Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Muḥammad ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Muḥammad ibn Yūsuf |
| Teknonymic (Kunya) | ʾAbū ʿAbd Allāh |
| Epithet (Laqab) | ibn Baṭṭūṭah |
Ibn Battuta travelled more than any other explorer in pre-modern history, totalling around 117,000 km (73,000 mi), surpassing Zheng He with about 50,000 km (31,000 mi) and Marco Polo with 24,000 km (15,000 mi). There have been doubts over the historicity of some of Ibn Battuta's travels, particularly as they reach farther East.