موقف بيزنطة الرسمي من الإسلام كما تخيله أبو سفيان : تأثير المخيال في النظر إلى الذات و إلى الآخر

Abstract EN

This study explores the official attitude towards Islam as imagined by Abu Sufyan leader of the Quraysh tribe of Mecca.

Abu Sufyan reportedly took advantage of being the envoy sent by Muhammad, Messenger of God, to Heraclius, leader of the Romans, to spread an account that he met this Byzantine Emperor and that they spoke about Islam and the Muslim prophet.

Contrary to prevalent belief, this study asserts it is likely Abu Sufyan did not actually meet with Heraclius.

Rather, he fabricated the story within a specific historical context, seeking to enhance his own image within the Muslim community rather than promote the religion of Islam.

His account, however, contributed, whether he intended it to do so or otherwise, to the formation of early Arab-Islamic conceptions of the Byzantine world which could serve both to justify coexistence with the Byzantines as well as to enhance the self-image of the rising Arab-Islamic civilization