Transcriber’s Note: This text makes use of an uncommon system for transcription of Arabic. Italics, sometimes on a _s_ingle le_t_ter, are semantically meaningful; and you’ll need a font that can display macrons (āēīōū) and the characters for the transliterations of Arabic letters ain (ʿ) and hamza (ʾ). THE ARAB CONQUESTS IN CENTRAL ASIA JAMES G. FORLONG FUND VOL. II. THE ARAB CONQUESTS IN CENTRAL ASIA H. A. R. GIBB, M.A. (EDIN. AND LOND.) Lecturer in Arabic, School of Oriental Studies, London. THE ROYAL ASIATIC SOCIETY 74 GROSVENOR STREET, LONDON, W.1. 1923 CONTENTS PAGE PREFACE vii I. THE OXUS BASIN Early History—Political Divisions—The Arabic Sources 1 II. THE EARLY RAIDS 15 III. THE CONQUESTS OF QUTAYBA 29 IV. THE TURKISH COUNTERSTROKE 59 V. THE RECONQUEST OF TRANSOXANIA 88 BIBLIOGRAPHY OF CHIEF WORKS CITED 100 PREFACE The first draft of this work was presented to the University of London in December 1921, under the title of “The Arab Conquest of Transoxania”, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Arts, and was approved by the Senate in January 1922, for publication as such. During the year my attention was taken up in other directions and, except for the publication of two studies on the subject in the Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, nothing further was done until by the generosity of the Trustees of the Forlong Bequest Fund an opportunity of publication was offered. In its present form the work has been largely rewritten and revised. It makes no claim to present a complete historical account of the Arabs in Central Asia, but is intended solely as a critical study of the authorities in greater detail than has hitherto been made. Much is therefore omitted because it has already been dealt with in the standard histories. In order to keep down the cost of publication, the extensive references which originally accompanied the text have been cut down to a few notes at the end of each chapter. No references are given when, as in the great majority of cases, the authority for the statements made can easily be found in the appropriate place either in _T_abarī or Balādhurī.