Abstract

Ibn Khaldun was an historian who developed the theory of ‘asabiyyah and the concept of ‘Al-Umran to explain the rise and decline of nations and empires. Khaldun believed that the theory of ‘asabiyyah played an enormous role in the development of human civilization. The theory of ‘asabiyyah is a representation of social cohesion among members of a group. According to Ibn Khaldun, the theory of ‘asabiyyah mobilizes new groups to seize power in a society and thus promotes the cyclical nature of history. Ibn Khaldun interpreted history in terms of group changes. In this interpretation, ‘asabiyyah becomes vital to the concept of ‘Al-Umran, the development of a society beginning from a nomadic state to an organized state of sedentary nations. Khaldun espouses that as the theory of ‘asabiyyah weakens within a society, the sedentary nation becomes prone to conquest by another nation possessing a stronger sense of ‘asabiyyah. Ibn Khaldun utilizes the occurrences of past social structures and social patterns in an effort to explain how and why nations and empires come into power only to collapse into a state of nonexistence.