Professor Khaled El-Rouayheb Publishes New Book on North African Ash'ari Theologian, al-Sanūsī

Professor Khaled El-Rouayheb has recently published a new book as part of the Great Medieval Thinkers series of Oxford University Press. Al-Sanūsī (2026) examines the life, works, and intellectual world of Muhammad b. Yusuf al-Sanūsī (1436–1490), a major North African theologian and logician from Tlemcen in modern-day Algeria whose writings shaped Islamic thought across centuries. Al-Sanūsī’s theological texts, translated or adapted into languages such as Berber, Fulani, Turkish, Malay, and Javanese, inspired a vast tradition of commentaries and versifications yet remain understudied today. Professor El-Rouayheb analyzes al-Sanūsī’s critiques of blind imitation in matters of faith and his demand that every sane believer grasp both core doctrines and their rational proofs. Focusing on works like the Epitome of Logic, the book also traces his enduring global reception.

Congratulations, Professor El-Rouayheb!