"أراضي الخلافة الشرقية في بلاد الرافدين، بلاد فارس، وآسيا الوسطى من الفتح الإسلامي إلى عصر تيمورلنك" [‎١‎٢‎٧] (٥٨٦/١٦٢)

CHAPTER IX
RUM OR ASIA MINOR.
Bilad-ar-Rum or the Greek country. The line of fortresses from Malatiyah
to Tarsus. The two chief passes across the Taurus. The Constantinople
high road by the Cilician Gates. Trebizond. Three sieges of Constantinople.
Moslem raids into Asia Minor. The sack of Amorion by Mu'tasim.
Invasion of Asia Minor by the Saljuks. The kingdom of Little Armenia.
The Crusaders. The chief towns of the Saljuk Sultanate of Rum.
The provinces of the Byzantine empire were known collectively
to the Moslems as BilM-ar-Riim^^the_Lands of the Greeks ? ;
the term £ Rum' standing lor^the Romaioi or Romans,, being in
early Moslem times the equivalent for c Christian,' whether Greek
or Latin. The Mediterranean too, was generally known as the
Bahr-ar-Rtim, 'the Roman Sea.' Then Bilad-ar-Rtim, abbreviated
to Riim, in course of time came more especially to be the name of
the Christian provinces nearest to the Moslem frontier, and hence
became the usual Arab name for Asia Minor, which great province
at the close of the 5th (nth) century finally passed under the rule
of Islam when it was overrun by the Saljuks.
^JnTortunately, for lack of contemporary authorities, we are
extremely ilLinformed concerning the details of the history and
historical geography of Asia Minor during the middle-ages—
whether under Christian or Moslem rule 1 . The earlier Arab
1 The Historical Geography of Asia Minor by Professor W. M. Ramsay
(referred to as H. G. A. M.) contains an admirable summary of all that is at
present known on the subject, and is indispensable to any one who wishes to
gain a clear understanding of this knotty problem. The present chapter owes
far more to this work than appears from the citations in the notes, and reference