The roots of Arab Islam as a state identity; A numismatic approach to the emergence of Arab Islam as a public identity in the Near East during the rule of ‘Abd al-Malik (685-705 C.E.)

Abstract: The ideas and interests of how to move forward with the new religion and its new caliphate during the first century of Islam, were often varied and were in conflict. In the year 77 A.H (696-697 C.E.), the first Islamic Dinar was minted as a part of a wider state reform. Its abstract art and focus on language and religion symbolized the start of a new state identity that influenced a later systematization of a proto-Sunni Islam. The new Islamic design however, stood at odds with the anthropomorphic and politically charged art in previous coins and in the private houses of the elite. This thesis aims to better understand why the Umayyad Islamic and Arab identities started to become so intertwined in the presence of other alternatives during the emergence of Islam. To answer that, this thesis studies the development of Islamic art on four representative coins to illustrate the changes in state identity building between 685 C.E. and 705 C.E. The material is then used to study the Umayyad identity from three perspective. (1) Islam is looked at as an offshoot of Messianic Judaism, (2) the private and public buildings of the Umayyads are compared against the coins to discern the boundaries of a state identity projected to the masses and a personal identity of the Umayyad elite coloured by Judeo-Christian culture, then (3) a new emergence of Islam as an organized religion is studied from the perspective of the policies of ‘Abd al-Malik. The thesis finds a link between the development of a unifying state identity and ‘Abd al-Malik’s aim for legitimacy. To avoid a future threat to the Umayyad claim to the caliphal throne, ‘Abd al–Malik’s way out was several trials that reshaped the identity of the state, society, and religion.