The Muslim call to prayer first triggered medieval Christian curiosity about Muhammad
Evidence
It is the contact with Islam that piques his curiosity. More precisely, it seems to be the call of the muezzin, the voice invoking Muhammad and “adoring him as a god,” that makes him seek to learn more about Islam. His “Greculus” teaches him to call Muslims “Agareni” rather than “Saraceni” (since they descend from Hagar rather than Sarah) and tells him of the life and deeds of Machomet. — John V. Tolan, Saracens, 745
Categorization
- XREF: Grounds the auditory/oral-stereotype genealogy connecting to soundscape/native-informant tropes in One Square Inch and Milgrom readings.
- QUESTION: Does any equivalent Christian account describe the muezzin purely as noise/abomination rather than a curiosity prompt?