Who is Omar ibn Said? Come to find out :)

alf2

alf2

Islam is a way of life
Link: http://news.ncdcr.gov/2010/10/25/exhibit-chronicles-life-of-a-muslim-slave-in-north-carolina/

Omar ibn Said was a slave brought to the American south from West Africa in 1870.There is a Musseum with an exhibit for him in the Cape Fear Historical Complex. The exhibit will feature the original manuscript of Said’s 1831 autobiography, written in Arabic. Omar is perhaps best known for this autobiography, the only known example written by an enslaved person in a native language.



ARTICLE:

Omar ibn Said, a West African Muslim, was captured, brought to America, and sold into slavery in Charleston, South Carolina in 1807. Omar escaped from harsh working conditions and made his way to Fayetteville, North Carolina in 1810 where he was jailed and advertised as a fugitive slave. Omar astonished his jailors and local citizens by writing in Arabic on the walls of his cell. James Owen, brother of future governor John Owen (1828-1830), purchased Omar and brought him to his Bladen County plantation.

Omar actively practiced the Islamic faith. The Owen family presented Omar with an English copy of the Koran to assist him in learning the language. They hoped Omar might convert to Christianity and to that end, James Owen, with the help of North Carolina Chief Justice John Louis Taylor and Francis Scott Key, presented Omar with a Bible in Arabic in 1819.

Omar joined the Owens’ Fayetteville church, First Presbyterian, in 1820 and attended services with them regularly. He became the subject of newspaper and magazine stories, particularly after the Owen family moved to Wilmington in 1835. People were fascinated with Omar and his Arabic writing, and he was often asked to translate texts such as the Lords Prayer or the Twenty-Third Psalm.

Omar’s early life remains a mystery, and his refusal to return to Africa as a Christian missionary and the inclusion of references to the Koran in his writings have led to debate regarding his religious beliefs. The life of Omar ibn Said continues to intrigue those who learn of him, as scholars acknowledge that he was likely the most educated slave in North Carolina and one of the best documented practicing Muslim slaves in America.

Museum staff members are excited about displaying the original manuscript of Omar’s autobiography. This work was found in a trunk in Virginia in the 1990s and was sold at auction to a private buyer. It has since been on display at a variety of institutions. Derrick Beard, owner of the manuscript, sees it as the first plea for religious co-existence written by a Muslim in America. Also included in the exhibit are two early translations of the manuscript, also on loan from Mr. Beard.
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One thing I'd like everyone to know: In slave days, If the Africans did not convert to Christianity or at least follow Christian traditions, they were beat on the back with a whip until their backs bled. Omar is lucky, his owners seemed to be supportive of his religion although they wanted him to convert.

Even though he did translate Christian writings for people, it is said as fact he died as a MUSLIM alhamdulilah. May he be granted Jannah.

For more reading: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omar_Ibn_Said
 
alf2

alf2

Islam is a way of life
Aapa said:
Assalaam walaikum,

Here is a link for a serious read on the need to investigate Muslim slaves. I found it fascinating.
http://www.westga.edu/~history/Facu...l 2010 PDF Files/muslims in early america.pdf

Muslims in early America.
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Thanks Aapa :)

Latley I've been seriously into the stories of the lives of Muslim slaves brought to America ever since a friend told me about Ayats written in a cave/jail cell type thing in the Carolina's where they kept fresh African-Muslim slaves off the boat.
 
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