The History of Islamic Public Finance through the Eyes of Globetrotter: The Travels of Ibn Jubair

Abstract

This study examines the travel book written by Ibn Jubair in terms of Islamic public finance history. There is an intense interest in Islamic economics today. However, this interest unfortunately only focuses on certain areas such as Islamic finance by neglecting the history of Islamic public finance. Therefore, there is a gap in the literature in terms of Islamic public finance history. To contribute to the filling of this gap, the present study deals with Ibn Jubair's travel book from the perspective of Islamic public finance history. In his book, Ibn Jubair argued the elements that make up public finance, from public revenues to public expenditures and the administration of public finances. Heavy taxes and unfair practices against taxpayers were the subjects that Ibn Jubair strongly criticized. Ibn Jubair, for instance, used definitions of heinous, damned, and iniquitous about customs duties on pilgrims. On the other hand, Ibn Jubair, who also elaborated on the types of public spending, attached great importance to the spending made by foundations and wealthy people in the society for financing public spending. As a result, it is regarded that these resources used in the financing of public spending can also contribute significantly to today’s economy.