The eleventh-century Muslim world was a great civilization while Europe lay slumbering in the Dark Ages. Slowly, inevitably, Europe and Islam came together, through trade and war, crusade and diplomacy. The ebb and flow between these two worlds for seven hundred years, illuminated here by a brilliant historian, is one of the great sagas of world history.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contact and impact -- The Muslim view of the world -- On language and translation -- Media and intermediaries -- Muslim scholarship about the West -- Religion -- The economy : perceptions and contacts -- Government and justice -- Science and technology -- Cultural life -- Social and personal -- Conclusions.