The Muqaddimah Book Summary - The Muqaddimah Book explained in key points

Listen to the Intro

00:00

The Muqaddimah summary

Name: The Muqaddimah
Rating: 4 (91 reviews)
Author: Ibn Khaldūn

Ibn Khaldūn

An Introduction to History

4 (91 ratings)

20 mins

Brief summary

The Muqaddimah by Ibn Khaldūn is a historical masterpiece that explores the rise and fall of civilizations, tracing their roots to social cohesion or disintegration. It investigates the cyclical nature of societies and provides a new lens for examining history.

Topics

The Middle East Islam Anthropology

Table of Contents

The Muqaddimah
Summary of 9 key ideas

Audio & text in the Blinkist app

Key idea 1 of 9

What’s in it for me? Learn about history from the point of view of fourteenth-century Islam.

How many history books have you read? Or maybe you prefer watching historical documentaries on TV? Most of us are at least somewhat familiar with some history. But the vast majority of westerners only know about one particular type of history – the Eurocentric type.

But history is a vast subject, and the history of the West is, at most, only half the story. These blinks offer a brief summary of Ibn Khaldūn’s ideas and opinions. Although some of his thinking may seem outdated or even shocking, Ibn Khaldūn was one of the most prominent Islamic scholars and historians of the Middle Ages, and his opinions were at the intellectual forefront of the age.

In these blinks, you’ll discover

why leading a settled life makes us lazy;
why a powerful civilization was never established at the North Pole; and
why a community's success depends on its feeling of togetherness, rather than its power.

Social organization separates humans from animals and leads to human civilization.

Have you ever wondered how a relatively defenseless and weak species like Homo sapiens came to dominate the Earth, when far more dangerous animals, like lions with their claws and crocodiles with their jaws, could easily devour us?

Well, our strength and power come from our ability to think, not to fight, and this enables us to work together and organize socially.

Because humans are more physically vulnerable than other animals, we rely on the help of others for defense. Through social organization and cooperation, we’ve been able to meet the needs of many and defend against fearsome predators.

For example, a human is nowhere near as strong as a lion. Placed in the unfortunate position of having to fight such a ferocious opponent, we would surely lose.

But there’s strength in numbers. When we work together, we ensure security, and a better chance of survival, for all.

The author contends that God gave us something even better than claws and fangs: thought. Our ability to think allowed us to realize that forming communities would assist the survival of humankind.

The ability to think not only helps us to survive; it also confirms our superiority over animals. By granting humans the ability to think, God demonstrated His desire for us to settle the world and act as His representatives on earth.

Our ability to think, coupled with our dexterous hands, has resulted in the many crafts that characterize human civilization. Rather than using our claws like lions, we use our hands to create tools, such as lances and swords, with which to defend ourselves.

Though it is our ability to think that distinguishes us from animals, we nonetheless share the same penchant for aggression and injustice. For this reason, we must be led by a strong authority to restrain our primal aggression and keep the peace. As you’ll learn in later blinks this royal authority is crucial to human success.

Different climates have different effects on individuals and societies.

We now know that humans have successfully inhabited nearly every corner of the globe – from the Incas in Peru to the Vikings in Norway. From the author’s historical perspective, however, human civilization seemed to be limited to a small section of the world.

He posited that temperate climates produced greater civilizations. Though there was undoubtedly civilization in harsher climates, like the Arctic Circle, these communities were less fixed and less expansive, boasting nothing like the Colosseum in Rome or the Taj Mahal in India.

The scarcity or abundance of food influences our body and character.

Intuitively, one would think that temperate climates produce fertile zones abounding in food. But this is not the case, and as you’ll soon discover, this lack of abundance was once considered a blessing.

The author believed that consuming too many high-moisture foods, such as butter and seasonings, is bad for the body and mind. This seemed especially obvious with regards to the body, as such foods result in an ugly complexion and figure. But such foods were also thought to dull the mind, ultimately causing stupidity.

Certain people have been chosen by God to act as His prophets, the greatest of these being Muhammad.

Christians believe that Jesus was the chosen one. Buddhists believe the same of the Buddha; Muslims, the same of Muhammad. This is no coincidence.

God has chosen certain people, such as the prophet Muhammad, to lead others. These chosen people have certain defining characteristics. For example, they are innocent and seek to propagate religion and divine worship through prayer, alms and charity.

“Group feeling” is the force that defines a civilization’s success in battle.

Why were the Americans defeated by the Viet Cong in the mid-twentieth century? After all, the Americans had superior weapons and greater numbers. Perhaps it all boiled down to a lack of group feeling among the various sides.

Group feeling is vital for support and aid within the group, as well as for scaring off attackers. In essence, group feeling refers to solidarity with the group to which you belong; it’s similar to modern-day nationalism.

Royal authority is necessary to maintain order and restrain the evil in us.

When God created human beings, He didn’t make them morally neutral. Rather, He imbued them with the power to commit acts of great kindness as well as acts of pure evil.

But good and evil do not share the same origin. Evil is something we share with animals, and stems from a failure to let religion guide our lives and customs. But how can we curb this innate evil? The answer is through royal authority.

Urbanization is a feature of sedentary civilizations and is ultimately self-destructive.

Early human communities were nomadic, moving around in search of food. Eventually, however, there came a time to settle down into a sedentary life.

Urbanization – that is, the concentration of a population in one area – is one feature of sedentary life. But why settle in the first place? Settling gives civilizations the ability to more easily defend themselves and more easily acquire resources through strategic placement of cities. Building near a forest, for example, gives a settled population better access to building materials.

Everyone is out to make a profit.

Most people consider Adam Smith to be the “father of capitalism.” But if you look further back in history, similarities between fourteenth-century Islamic thinking and modern-day capitalism become apparent.

Indeed, all people strive to accumulate things and make a profit, that is, income acquired by labor, not by mere chance. And when people pool their labor, it results in greater profits.

Humans are superior to all other living beings because of their ability to think and accumulate knowledge.

Humans share many qualities with the rest of the animal kingdom. However, unlike animals, we possess some angelic qualities as well.

At the root of this distinction is the human ability to think. Human behavior is well organized and orderly because our actions are the result of thought. Through thought we are able to perceive the order that already exists, either due to nature or arbitrary arrangement.

Want to see all full key ideas from The Muqaddimah?

Key ideas in The Muqaddimah

More knowledge in less time

Read or listen

Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.

Find your next read

Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.

Shortcasts ^New

We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.

What is The Muqaddimah about?

The Muqaddimah (fourteenth century, first English edition 1958), a classic text on the Islamic history of the world, focuses on the rise and fall of civilizations. It offers a unique glimpse into the world of the fourteenth-century Arab Muslim, and is regarded as a foundational text in several academic disciplines.

Best quote from The Muqaddimah

Human social organization is something necessary.

—Ibn Khaldūn

Who should read The Muqaddimah?

History enthusiasts
People interested in social organization
Participants in Mark Zuckerberg’s A Year of Books

About the Author

Ibn Khaldūn, a fourteenth-century Arab Muslim scholar, is one of the “founding fathers” of modern sociology, historiography, demographics and economics.

Categories with The Muqaddimah

History

Book summaries like The Muqaddimah

The First Muslim

Lesley Hazleton

The Story of Muhammad

18 min

4.2

The Hundred Years' War on Palestine

Rashid Khalidi

A History of Settler Colonialism and Resistance, 1917–2017

A History of the World Through Islamic Eyes

A 3,000 Year History of Peoples, Tribes and Empires

Western Conceptions of the Orient

Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now

Can America and China Escape Thucydides's Trap?

Toussaint L’Ouverture and the San Domingo Revolution

The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy

A Four Thousand Year History

A Brief History of Humankind

What We Should Know about the People We Don’t Know

The 4000-Year Quest of Judaism, Christianity and Islam

The Israelis and the Holocaust

A Guide To Spiritual Enlightenment

19 min

4.5

Jerusalem

Simon Sebag Montefiore

War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East

The Science of Success and How to Use It

19 min

3.8

Brief Answers to the Big Questions

Stephen Hawking

Hawking's final thoughts on the biggest questions facing humankind

A Historical Novel on the Irrationality of Human Behavior in War

Wendy Maltz & Larry Maltz

The Essential Guide to Overcoming Problems Caused by Pornography

A New History of the World

28 min

4.6

Superforecasting

Philip E. Tetlock & Dan Gardner

The Art and Science of Prediction

18 min

3.8

7 Strategies for Wealth & Happiness

Jim Rohn

Power Ideas from America's Foremost Business Philosopher

20 min

4.4

When the Body Says No

Gabor Maté

The Cost of Hidden Stress

A History of the Islamic Republic

27 min

4.0

The Origins of Totalitarianism

Hannah Arendt

Hannah Arendt's landmark work about Europe's anti-Semitic and imperialist roots

Its People, Past, Religion, Fault Lines – and Future

18 min

3.8

Surrounded by Narcissists

Thomas Erikson

How to Effectively Recognize, Avoid, and Defend Yourself Against Toxic People (and Not Lose Your Mind)

21 min

4.4

Build the Life You Want

Arthur C. Brooks & Oprah Winfrey

The Art and Science of Getting Happier

The Hidden Gifts of People Who Think in Pictures, Patterns, and Abstractions

20 min

3.9

Antifragile

Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Things That Gain from Disorder

The Psychology of Persuasion

33 min

4.5

Elite Sales Strategies

Anthony Iannarino

A Guide to Being One-Up, Creating Value, and Becoming Truly Consultative

18 min

3.5

Getting Past Your Past

Francine Shapiro

Take Control of Your Life with Self-Help Techniques from EMDR Therapy

22 min

4.4

The Interpretation of Dreams

Sigmund Freud

Sigmund Freud’s influential cornerstone work

From Fathers to Sons—Life Lessons from Navy SEAL Training

18 min

4.3

21 Lessons for the 21st Century

Yuval Noah Harari

Future proof yourself against the 21st Century

20 min

4.4

Manufacturing Consent

Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky

The Political Economy of the Mass Media

An Epic Science Fiction Novel on the Politics of Humanity

21 min

4.3

Do Breathe

Michael Townsend Williams

Calm Your Mind. Find Focus. Get Stuff Done.

The Special and the General Theory

Fix Your Craving Mindset and Rewire Your Habits to Thrive with Enough

15 min

4.1

Democracy in America

Alexis de Tocqueville

Explore This Brilliant Analysis of American Democracy

18 min

4.2

The Psychology of Money

Morgan Housel

Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness

The Biohacker's Guide to Getting the Body and Mind You Want

20 min

3.8

Own Your Past Change Your Future

John Delony

A Not-So-Complicated Approach to Relationships, Mental Health & Wellness

Technology, Power, and the Twenty-first Century's Greatest Dilemma

The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst

22 min

4.5

People ❤️ Blinkist

Sven O.

It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.

Thi Viet Quynh N.

Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.

Jonathan A.

Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.

Renee D.

Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.