From the History of Ruling Dynasties to the History of the Present

This article deals with the development of history writing in Morocco from the history of ruling dynasties to the history of the present. This development is divided into three stages: the pre-colonial period, the colonial period, and the post-independence period. The first period witnessed the spread of traditional forms of writing connected to Sharia scholarship with a focus on biographies and deaths, annals, the history of the succession of states, and the deeds of rulers. The second period brought new concepts and methods imported with the new social sciences, including history from the perspective of European positivism. Here the sciences, however, were imbued with an arrogant colonialist perspective, which Moroccan historians would confront on the eve of independence. The work of those historians was part of the third period, where history writing ranged from taking a nationalist slant to social history, to being open to different avenues such as the history of mentalities, relational history, and the history of the present. In the conclusion, the question of the future of Moroccan history writing is posed: will it make further progress or will it regress?

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This article deals with the development of history writing in Morocco from the history of ruling dynasties to the history of the present. This development is divided into three stages: the pre-colonial period, the colonial period, and the post-independence period. The first period witnessed the spread of traditional forms of writing connected to Sharia scholarship with a focus on biographies and deaths, annals, the history of the succession of states, and the deeds of rulers. The second period brought new concepts and methods imported with the new social sciences, including history from the perspective of European positivism. Here the sciences, however, were imbued with an arrogant colonialist perspective, which Moroccan historians would confront on the eve of independence. The work of those historians was part of the third period, where history writing ranged from taking a nationalist slant to social history, to being open to different avenues such as the history of mentalities, relational history, and the history of the present. In the conclusion, the question of the future of Moroccan history writing is posed: will it make further progress or will it regress?

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