native americans and islam

Introduction

There are numerous accounts of Muslims who were intergrated within Native Indian tribes pre Columbus, of Turkic, Moorish and African Muslims leaving colonies to live amongst the Native Indians. There are also historical letters and colonial advertisments describing the threat to the colonies of African Muslim Slaves fleeing and intergrating with the Native American Indians. There is also the case of Mahomet Weyonomonof the Mohegan tribe, who arrived in Britain in 1736 CE (1148 AH) ^[1]century to discuss the land grabs by the British.

• in the 12th century Al-Idrisi reported in Nuzhat Al-Mushtaq Fi Ikhtiraq Al-Afaq (Excursion of the Longing One in Crossing Horizons), that a group of eight Muslim sailors from North Africa sailed west of Lisbon. After sailing west for more than 31 days, they landed on what must have been an island in the Caribbean. The intrepid explorers were initially imprisoned by Indians but were later released when a translator appeared who spoke Arabic ^[2]

• 1310 CE (709 AH) Sultan Abu Bakari of the Mandinka kingdom of Mali sent two different fleets of ships, totalling 2,400 ships, sailing west from Africa. The fleets never returned to Africa.

There are also numerous reports of 'black skinned' Indians. For example in Honduras Columbus reported seeing Black skinned Indians. Giles Cauvet's 'Les Berberes de l'Amerique' reported that a pre-Columbian tribe in Honduras was know as the Almamys a corruption of the Mandinka word for the Arabic Imam.

American Treaties and laws with American Muslims

• Treaty of Peace and Commerce Delaware signed in Delaware River in 1787 CE (1201 AH) which bears the signature of Abdel-Khak and Muhammad Ibn Abdullah

Several colonial advertisments made direct reference to the intergration of African Americans into the Native American communities. For example ..ran off with his Indian wife... had kin among the Indians .. part Indian and speaks their language good. ^[3]

In South Carolina, colonists became so concerned about the possible threat posed by the mixed African and Indian population that was arising as runaway Africans escapted to the Indians that they passed a new law in 1725 CE (1137 AH). This law stipulated a fine of 200 pounds on anyone who even brought a slave to the frontier regions of the colony. In 1751 CE (1164 AH) the colony of South Carolina found it necessary to issue another law, warning that having Africans in proximity to Indians was deemed detrimental to the security of the colony.

In 1726 CE (1138 AH) the British governor of colonial New York exacted a promise from the Iroquois Indians to return all runaway slaves who had joined up with them. This same promise was extracted from the Huron Indians in 1764 CE (1177 AH) and from the Delaware Indians in 1765 CE (1178 AH). Despite their promises, no esacaped slaves were ever returned by these tribes, who continued to provide a safe and secure home for escaped slaves.

And finally a census was undertaken of the Cherokee in 1835 CE (1250 AH) where fully 10% were of African descent ^[4]