Agricultural Activity in Jabal Nafusa through Ibadi Sources in the Medieval Period

Abstract

The study of economic history represents one of the most recent scholarly trends in the field of historical studies. Accordingly, this study sheds light on an important sector of the economy, namely agriculture, drawing on Ibadi biographical and tabaqat works, which contain numerous brief references to the importance of agricultural life in Jabal Nafusa. Economic activities in the mountain were diverse owing to its geographical environment, the abundance of water resources represented by the valleys crossing the mountain, soil fertility, and varied climatic conditions. These factors made the region particularly suitable for agriculture and encouraged Nafusi society to engage in and devote attention to agricultural activity. Agricultural crops in Jabal Nafusa were diverse and included many cultivated products, especially barley and wheat. Olive trees, date palms, grapevines, fig trees, and various vegetables and fruits were also scattered across the mountain slopes, particularly on the eastern side, which was the most densely inhabited and agriculturally fertile. The significance of the present study lies in its examination of agricultural activity in the Jabal Nafusa region in light of Ibadi sources, which provide the general features of the agricultural economy among the mountain's inhabitants. These data reflect the level of civilizational development that characterized this mountainous region in al-Maghrib al-Adna (the Lower Maghreb).