Abstract

This paper examines the role of Abu Ja'far al-Tabari (d. 923 CE), a preeminent scholar from the Caspian region of Central Eurasia, in shaping the Islamic memory of pre-Islamic female divinity. By analyzing both his monumental history, Taʾrīkh al-Rusul wa-al-Mulūk, and his seminal exegesis, Jāmiʿ al-bayān, I investigate how the identities of the three Arabian goddesses (Al-Lat, Al-Uzza, and Manat) were reconstructed to fit the burgeoning Islamic imperial identity.

Utilizing Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA), I argue that Tabari’s narratives function as more than mere records of the past; they are "institutional tools" that categorize the pre-Islamic sacred as a site of "ignorance" (Jahiliyya) while simultaneously preserving the structural memory of these deities. The paper explores the tension between Tabari's Persian-Eurasian intellectual background and the Meccan-centric narratives he systematized. Specifically, I focus on the "Gharaniq" episode and the destruction of the goddess sanctuaries as depicted in his works, illustrating how these events were used to justify the transition of power from tribal-polytheistic centers to a centralized Islamic state. This study provides a fresh perspective on how Central Eurasian scholars played a pivotal role in redefining "spaces and power" by mediating between the Arabian pagan substrate and the universalist claims of the Islamic Umma.