Eyewitness in the Narratives of Early Islamic Conquests: Battle of Dāthin as a Case for the Development of Historical Narrative

Abstract

The battle of Dāthin can be regarded as one of the earliest clashes of Arab Muslim armies against Byzantine forces in Greater Syria in which Arabs gained an important victory. Early Muslim sources, however, include remarkable confusion and misunderstanding when discussing this battle. This confusion has been reflected by later Muslim authors, especially geographers who disagree over the precise name of Dāthin.

In contrast, Christian Greek sources paid significant attention to this battle when the author of Doctrina Jacobi recoded a very significant testimony following the Muslim victory in Dāthin. The Christian narrative, nevertheless, underwent clear confusion despite the fact that it was contemporary to the battle. This confusion can be noted in the name of the battle itself, and the details of the counterpart (Muslim forces) which were transmitted into later Christian chronicles who cited the details of this battle. To resolve those problems, the current study will try to re-construct the full context of the battle of Dāthin based on both Muslim-Christian accounts while employing the narrative of eyewitnesses in reconstructing such a context. In conclusion, the study could draw a logical context that includes more details in terms of the two commanders' names, circumstances, date and results.