Mahound

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mahound or Mahoun is a variant form of the name Muhammad, often found in Medieval and later European literature. This version of the name, or variants of it, came to be strongly associated with anti-Muslim attitudes in Western Christendom.[1] It was especially connected to the belief that Muhammad was a god worshipped by Muslims, or that he was a demon who inspired a false religion.[2][3]

Not all usages of this variant are pejorative; this version of the name still exists as a spelling among some Muslims.

Contents

[edit] Pejorative Connotations

The belief that Muslims worshipped Muhammad was common in Medieval Europe. According to Bernard Lewis, the "development of the concept of Mahound started with considering Muhammad as a kind of demon or false god worshipped with Apollyon and Termangant in an unholy trinity [in the song of Roland]. Finally after reformation, Muhammad was conceived as a cunning and self-seeking imposter." [4]

A variant of this belief was the claim that the Knights Templar worshipped a god called Baphomet, also widely interpreted as a variant of the name "Mahommet".[5]

The name acquired the connotation of "devil" or "spirit of darkness" in colloquial usage.

[edit] In literature

The name appears in various medieval mystery plays, in which Mahound is sometimes portrayed as a generic "pagan" god worshipped by villains such as Herod and the Pharaoh of the Exodus. One play depicts both Herod the Great and his son Herod Antipas as worshipping Mahound[6], while in another play Pharaoh encourages the Egyptians to pursue the Israelites into the Red Sea with the words: Heave up you hearts ay to Mahound.[7]

In Scottish popular culture the variant form "Mahoun" was also used as the name of the devil, who was called Old Mahoun.[8] Robert Burns wrote

"The Deil cam fiddlin thro' the town,
And danc'd awa wi' th'Exciseman;
And ilka wife cries auld Mahoun,
I wish you luck o' the prize, man."[9]

G.K. Chesterton also refers to this idea in his poem the Battle of Lepanto[10]. More recently, Salman Rushdie, in his novel The Satanic Verses, chose the name Mahound to refer to Muhammad. However, he is not identified as Satan in that work.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ John Esposito (1999), p.250[clarify]
  2. ^ Annemarie Schimmel, Islam: An Introduction, 1992.
  3. ^ William Montgomery Watt,Muhammad: Prophet and Statesman, Oxford University Press, 1961, p. 229
  4. ^ Bernard Lewis (2002), p.45.
  5. ^ Barber, Malcolm, The New Knighthood: A History of the Order of the Temple, Cambridge University Press, 1994, p.321
  6. ^ N-Town Cycle: The Death of Judas, and the Trials of Christ Before Pilate and Herod, line 165
  7. ^ The York Cycle: The Israelites in Egypt, the Ten Plagues, and Passage of the Red Sea, line 404
  8. ^ The Nuttall Encyclopedia: Mahoun
  9. ^ Robert Burns, The Deil's Awa Wi' Th' Exciseman
  10. ^ G.K. Chesterton, Lepanto

[edit] External links