The Development of Modern Arab Historiography: Professionalization and Paradigm Shifts

Professional historiography in the Arabian Peninsula developed later than in other Arab regions, only becoming an integral part of the cultural landscape from the 1970s onward. While Saudi Arabia is the region's dominant state, Kuwait initially took the lead due to the influential presence of educated Palestinian refugees after 1948. The Palestinian historian Darwish al-Miqdadi, as head of the Kuwaiti Department of Education in the 1950s, overhauled the national education system and authored the first scholarly history of the emirate. Following him, the Syrian scholar Shakir Mustafa, a specialist in Classical Islam, consolidated Kuwaiti historical studies. Today, the University of Kuwait maintains a robust Department of History under scholars like Abd al-Malik al-Tamimi.

In Saudi Arabia, a state-led campaign to institutionalize history began in 1972, aimed at legitimizing Saudi dynasty rule. Prior to this, histories were written by non-Saudis like Amin Rihani and Khayr al-Din al-Zirkili. A new generation of Saudi historians emerged in the 1980s-90s, trained abroad. Key figures include Abd al-Rahman al-Ansari (University of Riyadh), Abdullah al-Uthaymin—who significantly controls the national history curriculum—and Abdullah al-Zaydan, a founder of the Saudi Historical Society. These professionals shifted focus toward urban Islamic history and demography, employing more critical academic methodologies.

A notable figure is Sultan Ibn Muhammad al-Qasimi, ruler of Sharjah and a historian who earned a PhD from Exeter University. His 1986 thesis challenged British colonial justifications, arguing that accusations of piracy were used to justify control over Gulf trade routes. His work, based on British East India Company archives, spurred other Gulf states to establish national archives, such as Abu Dhabi's National Centre for Documentation and Research (NCDR), now a leading cultural institution.

In Jordan, professional history-writing coalesced in the 1970s. Prominent historians include Sulayman Musa, who studied the Arab Revolt of 1916; Adnan Bakhit, a London-trained Ottoman historian; and Ali Mahafza, who analyzed modern Jordan and Arab thought. Their work helped construct a national narrative while engaging with broader regional and Ottoman history.

Egypt experienced a significant transformation post-1952. The Free Officers' revolution and Gamal Abdel Nasser's shift toward Arab nationalism and socialism prompted a new historiographical paradigm emphasizing Egypt's Arab identity and socio-economic reforms. Pioneering this was Subhi Wahida, whose 1950 work, Fi usul al-mas'ala al-misriyya, shifted focus from diplomatic history to internal social dynamics, critiquing earlier neglect of economic and intellectual factors.

This social-history approach was institutionalized by Muhammad Anis at Cairo University, who founded a school stressing social and economic history. His disciples, like Ra'uf Abbas and Abd al-Azim Ramadan, dominated late-20th-century Egyptian historiography. Further refinement came from scholars like Nelly Hanna, whose work on Ottoman Egypt revealed a dynamic society with a robust middle class, challenging notions of stagnation. Simultaneously, Marxist intellectuals like Ahmad Sadiq Sa'd analyzed class struggle through the Asiatic mode of production, while others documented socialist and nationalist movements.

The 1990s saw the resurgence of Islamist-leaning historians like Ahmad Shalabi, alongside debates on globalization and identity. The post-Cold War era introduced a tension between narratives of global integration and discourses of cultural authenticity and Islamic identity. This period underscored the ongoing negotiation within Arab historiography between adopting transnational analytical frameworks and asserting national or religious particularism.

Throughout the Arab world, historiography has thus evolved from state-building narratives toward complex engagements with social history, economic structures, and cultural identity. The field continues to balance empirical professionalism with the ideological demands of post-colonial nation-states, reflecting broader struggles over memory, authority, and identity in the modern Middle East. This intellectual journey highlights the Arab historian's role not merely as a chronicler, but as an active participant in shaping contemporary cultural and political discourse.