Syed Lorenzo Bukhari

Thesis

Muslim-Maronite relations during the seventh and eighth-centuries.

Supervisor: Dr Harry Munt

Co-supervisor: Simon Ditchfield

Research

My research seeks to understand social and political relationships between Christians and Muslims in the early Islamic period by specifically focusing on the Maronite Christian community of the seventh and eighth-centuries. While much research has been carried out in the past few decades to understand the nature of early Muslim-Christian interactions, the Maronite community which functioned as an important group living under early Islamic rule, is often overshadowed by research into other larger Christian communities that existed under Muslim rule. Therefore, this current thesis endeavours to contribute to the growing mosaic of research on early Muslim-Christian relations, by shedding light on this community’s relationship with Muslims in the early Islamic world.

Presentations

‘Who were the Maronites in the early Islamic period?’ - Annual Joint PhD Conference in Historical Studies Lund-York-Bielefeld, June 2024.

‘Postulating a new dating for the Maronite Chronicle (Manuscript).’ - History Department PGR Conference, University of York, January 2024.

‘Islamic World Community Seminar: Christian-Muslim relations in the Levant and medieval chronicles.’ - Queen Mary University of London, October 2023.