Introduction

Leopold von Ranke charged historians with the task of discovering and presenting the past wie es eigentlich gewesen (“as it actually occurred”). This modern source-based historical approach is the primary focus of scholars of Islamic origins and early Islam. That is to say, scholars of early Islam focus very much on determining what historical facts can be extracted or gleaned from the extant sources such as the Qurʾān, Sunna, sīra, and other materials in hopes of determining how Islam emerged. Not only are there competing presentations of early Islam, but there is also considerable disagreement about what these sources can tell us about Muḥammad, the origin, canonization, and interpretation of the Qurʾān, and the formation of the identities, communities, polities, and so forth that are traditionally described as “Islamic” or “Muslim.” A few scholars are so skeptical so as to doubt the historical value of all these sources (at least when it comes to the “wie es eigentlich gewesen”-goal).