%0 Journal Article
%T La fronti¨¨re entre le bil¨¡d al-isl¨¡m et le bil¨¡d al-N¨±ba : enjeux et ambigu t¨¦s d¡¯une fronti¨¨re immobile (VIIe-XIIe si¨¨cle) The frontier between bil¨¡d al-isl¨¡m and bil¨¡d al-N¨±ba: issues and ambiguities of fixed boundary (seventh-twelfth century)
%A Robin Seignobos
%J Afriques : D¨¦bats, M¨¦thodes et Terrains d'Histoire
%D 2011
%I Centre d¡¯?tudes des Mondes Africains
%R 10.4000/afriques.800
%X Le bil¨¡d al-N¨±ba occupe dans la nomenclature juridique et id¨¦ologique arabo-musulmane une position particuli¨¨re. L¡¯¨¦chec de la conqu¨ºte de la Nubie au viie si¨¨cle a d¨¦bouch¨¦ sur la signature d¡¯un trait¨¦ de paix unique qui a fait de cet espace un territoire ¨¤ part. Ces sp¨¦cificit¨¦s ne resteront pas sans effet sur l¡¯appr¨¦hension de la fronti¨¨re qui s¨¦pare les pays d¡¯Islam de la Nubie. S¡¯effor ant de d¨¦finir la limite du bil¨¡d al-isl¨¡m, les g¨¦ographes arabes semblent unanimes ¨¤ d¨¦signer Assouan comme la derni¨¨re ville fronti¨¨re de l¡¯islam charg¨¦e de d¨¦fendre l¡¯¨¦gypte de l¡¯ennemi latent que demeure, malgr¨¦ la paix, le pays des Nubiens. N¨¦anmoins, en examinant plus attentivement ces t¨¦moignages, ce dispositif frontalier se r¨¦v¨¨le en r¨¦alit¨¦ plus complexe. Il se structure autour d¡¯un ¨¦l¨¦ment naturel, la premi¨¨re cataracte, qui, loin de constituer la barri¨¨re infranchissable que certains de ces auteurs souhaiteraient y voir, forme plut t un espace de transition entre ces deux mondes. Or, c¡¯est justement en tirant parti des porosit¨¦s de cette fronti¨¨re que l¡¯islam parvient, sans que cette d¨¦marcation soit v¨¦ritablement remise en question, ¨¤ ¨¦tendre son influence bien au-del¨¤ de celle-ci. Bil¨¡d al-N¨±baholds a special place in the Arab-Islamic juridical and ideological nomenclature. As a consequence of the failure to conquer Nubia in the 7th century, a peace treaty was signed that singled out this territory. These specificities were not devoid of consequences on the perception of the frontier between Islamic countries and Nubia. When delimiting bil¨¡d al-isl¨¡m, Arabic geographers unanimously agreed in designating Aswan as the last frontier-town of Islam, in charge of defending Egyptian territory from potential Nubian enemies.A closer examination of the sources brings to light the unexpected complexity of this frontier system. It was apparently shaped around a geographical feature ¡ª the first cataract ¡ª which, far from being the impassable barrier described by some authors, was a place of transition between the two worlds. Taking advantage of this porous boundary, Islam gradually extended its influence far beyond Egypt¡¯s southern bounds without substantially reworking the borderline.
%K territoire
%K g¨¦ographes arabes
%K fronti¨¨re
%K Islam
%K territory
%K Sudan
%K Egypt
%K Arab geographers
%K Nubia
%K frontier
%K Soudan
%K ¨¦gypte
%K Nubie
%U http://afriques.revues.org/800