Abd al-Rahman al-Kawakibi

Abd al-Rahman ibn Ahmad al-Kawakibi (1849–1902 CE), called al-Sayyid al-Furati, was a traveller, sociologist and one of the men of Islamic reform. ¹

He was born and educated in Aleppo, where he founded the newspaper "al-Shahba'", which the government closed. He was given many posts; then his opponents of reform slandered him, and he was imprisoned and lost his property. He went to Egypt, made two journeys to the lands of the Arabs and to East Africa and some lands of India, and settled in Egypt until he died. ¹

His works include "Umm al-Qura" and "Taba'i' al-Istibdad", which had a wide echo when they appeared. Al-Zirikli says that he was great in his intellect, his resolve and his learning, one of the great men of the modern renaissance. ¹

The year of his death is converted from around 1320 AH, and the conversion is not certain. ¹