Medieval Islamic society had the highest voluntary travel mobility of any premodern society

Evidence

Medieval Islamic society enjoyed a far greater degree of voluntary, personal mobility than did any other known premodern society. Men, and sometimes women, traveled; they planned, organized, and con­ ducted long journeys. — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1895 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Attention has been called to the peculiar fact that many families of high noble status in European countries have foreign origins. In England, the Fitzgeralds and the Dukes of Leicester come from Florence, the Dukes of Portland from Holland. In France, the Broglies come from Piedmont, the Dukes des Cars from Perugia, the Luynes from Arezzo. In Austria, the Clarys come from Florence. In Prussia, the Lynars come from Faenza. In Poland, the Poniatowskis come from Bologna. In Italy, the Roccas come from Croatia, the Ruspolis from Scotland, the Torlonias from France, and so on. One would expect members of the nobility to be little disposed to such transplantation by virtue of their attachment to landed property and their traditional nationalism, which is usually tied to a conservative Weltanschauung. All the more potent, then, must be the assimilating forces that are involved in such a changing about within what has been called the republic of nobility. — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 500 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Medieval Islamic society had unmatched voluntary personal mobility — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans: Interpreting…, 1895; The Muslim pilgrimage was the earliest major driver of long-distance personal travel — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans: Interpreting…, 724; Europe’s high nobility was highly mobile across national borders — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 500 (+3 more)

Broader Connections

• Medieval Islamic society had unmatched voluntary personal mobility #corroborates (1.00) — Bernard Lewis, From Babel to Dragomans, 1895
• Europe’s high nobility was highly mobile across national borders #complicates (0.75) — Georg Simmel, on individuality and social forms_…, 500