Muhammad ibn Abd al-Karim al-Maghili (), commonly known as Muhammad al-Maghili (14401505) was a Berber 'alim from Tlemcen, the capital of the Kingdom of Tlemcen, now in modern-day Algeria. Al-Maghili was responsible for converting the ruling classes to Islam among Hausa, Fulani, and Tuareg peoples in West Africa.
Al-Maghili toured North and West Africa, observing the state of sharia and challenging the status of dhimmis within the region. His radical views on such subjects would set him against many notable Maghrebian scholars and authorities of the time. In the confines of his theological views, Maghili advanced his political thought in the form of legal advice at the courts of West African rulers and still practiced his crafts in the art of Islamic sciences. Though not ushering in drastic change, Maghili played a great role in the Islamization of West Africa, his writing has been copied, studied, and implemented in West Africa ever since its conception, making him one of the most influential figures in the development of Islam in the region.
Maghili's views would result in the persecution of the Jewish community in Tuat and the destruction of the main synagogue at Tamentit. This would occur at the backdrop of anti-dhimmi rhetoric by Maghili and the volatile position of dhimmis within the region.
Most information on Al-Maghili's life can be collected from two sources, Ibn Askar's, Dawhat al-Nashir li-Mahasin man kana min al-Maghrib min Ahl al-Karn al-ashir, and Ahmad Baba al-Tinbukti's, Nayl al-Ibtihaj bi-tatriz al-Dibaz. Original manuscripts of his work are available from the United Nations World Digital Library.
Early life
Muhammad al-Maghili was born in Tlemcen c. 1440 into a Berber family of the Maghila tribe. In Tlemcen, he devoted himself to the Islamic sciences, studying under Al-Imam Abd al-Rahman al-Tha'alibi (d. 1470/1), a distinguished scholar in the region, and Abu Zakariya Yahya ibn Yadir ibn 'Atiq al-Tadalsi (d. 1472/3), who would become the Qadi of Tuat. Along with the guidance and correspondence with lesser known scholars throughout his life, Al-Maghili became a master of tafsir, hadith, and fiqh, while committing the fundamentals of the Quran to memory. After traveling the Maghreb, observing the state of sharia and the status of dhimmis in the region, Al-Maghili arrived at the court of Fez to debate his views and gain favor with the Wattasid sultan, Abu Zakariya al-Wattasi. Al-Maghili's inflammatory views were not tolerated at Fez, whose jurists turned the sultan against Al-Maghili, prompting him to leave Morocco.
Time in Tuat
After his dismissal at the court of Fez and a lack of success in gaining support for his work, Al-Maghili settled in the town of Tamentit (1477-8), in the region of Tuat. Tamentit, a major stop on the trans-Saharan trade, was considered one of the gateways to the Sudan region from North Africa. The Jewish community in the region had amassed a great deal of wealth credited to this positioning and the ability to pursue professions that were prohibited for the Muslims, due to their faith. This elevated status and level of influence in the region made it easy for Al-Maghili to stir the anger of the impoverished population against the Jewish community. With the support of his son, Abd Al-Jabbar, Al-Maghili incited a mob to destroy the synagogue at Tamentit, the following disorder would see the mob turn on the Jewish population, resulting in their elimination and expulsion. It is known that Al-Maghili even put a price of seven mithqals of gold on the head of every Jew. Al-Maghili had to flee the region of Tuat after causing such civil and religious strife.
Views on Dhimmis
Before the rebuttal at the court of Fez and his settlement in Tuat, Al-Maghili had comprised many works and preached his views on the status of dhimmis in the Maghreb region. Al-Maghili was an adherent to the Maliki school of thought and he derived a radical perspective of the school and its views on politics, religion, and society. Al-Maghili's work also reflected the extremist views of society towards the political and social upheaval occurring in the region. This upheaval was caused by external and internal events, such as the Spanish Inquisition and Reconquista, which was causing an influx of refugees, the transgression of Christian powers on Muslim lands, and the ever growing wealth disparity in certain areas.