Preface

Writing a multi volume book about the cultural history of صلى الله عليه وسلمlgeria is not an easy task, maybe it is an adventure. Since the 7 th century صلى الله عليه وسلمlgeria has been a part of the صلى الله عليه وسلمrabic and Islamic world. So, one might argue that صلى الله عليه وسلمlgeria has no particular culture of her own. Yet, the book deals with such a particular culture since the early 16 th century when صلى الله عليه وسلمlgeria became a part of the Ottoman صلى الله عليه وسلمmpire and gradually developed a geographical and political identity. In 1830, the French occupation put an end to this identity. The French, trying to integrate صلى الله عليه وسلمlgeria into their Metropole, cut off صلى الله عليه وسلمlgeria from the صلى الله عليه وسلمrabic and Islamic world and suppressed many expressions of صلى الله عليه وسلمlgerian culture.

The sources of this study are numerous. They include manuscripts, private papers, correspondences, theses, archival reports and published works in صلى الله عليه وسلمrabic, French and صلى الله عليه وسلمnglish . In addition to the صلى الله عليه وسلمlgerian libraries , I had to do research in North صلى الله عليه وسلمfrica, Middle صلى الله عليه وسلمastern and صلى الله عليه وسلمuropean and صلى الله عليه وسلمmerican libraries, including those of Morocco, Tunisia, صلى الله عليه وسلمgypt, Syria, Turkey, France, رضي الله عنهritain and the USصلى الله عليه وسلم. Some of these libraries I visited several times. While in صلى الله عليه وسلمmerica, I worked at the University of Michigan (صلى الله عليه وسلمnn صلى الله عليه وسلمrbor) and University of Minnesota in their own rich collections, rear books, and interlibrary loan systems, where I found an important deposit of information about my subject.

I first became interested in studying صلى الله عليه وسلمlgerian culture when I was a student at Cairo University during the fifties. Since then some findings of my research appeared in the form of articles which I published years ago. I also edited some manuscripts and wrote biographical studies of a number of leading representatives of صلى الله عليه وسلمlgerian culture. In 1981 I was able to publish the first two volumes of this book. They covered the Ot-

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