Leo Africanus: Africa's Renaissance Geographer

In this episode of The Story of Morocco, we delve into the remarkable life of Hasan al-Wazzan, better known as Leo Africanus. Born in Granada just after the Reconquista, his family fled to Fez where he studied at the famed Qarawiyyin University. A diplomat and traveler, al-Wazzan was captured by Barbary corsairs off the coast of Djerba in 1518 and presented as a gift to Pope Leo X. In Rome, he converted to Christianity, taught Arabic, and wrote 'Description of Africa'—a groundbreaking geography that became the definitive European source on the continent for centuries. We explore his unique perspective as a Muslim scholar in Renaissance Europe, his travels across the Sahel and Mediterranean, and the puzzle of his eventual fate. This episode weaves together the worlds of Fez, the Saadian court, trans-Saharan trade, and the fraught encounter between Christianity and Islam in the 16th century. #LeoAfricanus #HasanAlWazzan #Morocco #Fez #Qarawiyyin #Renaissance #Geography #Trans-SaharanTrade #MediterraneanHistory #16thCentury #Saadian #PopeLeoX #History #FexingoHistory #Exploration #IslamicScholarship #Slavery #Corsairs Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo