Storytellers and Storytelling in Islamic Egypt until the End of the Ikhshidid State (38– 358 AH/ 658– 969CE)

This research paper explores storytelling and storytellers in Islamic Egypt up to the end of the Ikhshidid period (38–358 AH / 658–969 CE), focusing on their roles, contributions, and influence in spreading religious sermons and raising public awareness through moral and instructive narratives, particularly religious ones. The paper also highlights the most prominent storytellers appointed by the rulers and aims to shed light on the importance of storytellers and their positive impact on both individual and societal life, even in political events, as seen during the Umayyad era when storytelling took place in mosques.
Furthermore, the study examines the role and function of storytellers, along with the risks associated with this position, which led the state to give them special attention and institutionalize the profession by assigning fixed salaries and official positions. In addition to storytelling, they were entrusted with other significant roles such as Qur’an recitation, futuwwa (youth leadership), supervision of endowments (ahbas), and the judiciary. The judiciary, in particular, was one of the most prominent religious and administrative positions in the history of Islamic Egypt. Moreover, storytellers played a vital role in the scientific and intellectual life of the time and contributed to preserving history through the oral transmission contained in their stories and narratives, which later laid the foundation for the establishment of the historical school in Egypt.