First english encyclopedia of contemporary Moroccan thought launched by Afkara Institute

The Afkara Institute, headquartered in Beirut and New York, has unveiled the first English-language Encyclopedia of Contemporary Moroccan Thought in Philosophy, Religion, Society, and Culture, marking a landmark achievement in making Moroccan intellectual traditions accessible to global audiences.

The project was overseen by Mohammed Hashas a professor at Roma Tre University in Italy, and brings together a wide array of contributions from scholars around the world, including Moroccan academics.

The encyclopedia features critical entries on influential thinkers such as Mohamed Aziz Lahbabi, Abdellah Laroui, Mohamed Abed Al-Jabri, Ali Oumlil, Taha Abderrahmane, Abdelkebir Khatibi, Abdessalam Benabdellah, Allal Al-Fassi, Fatema Mernissi, Asma Lamrabet, Mehdi Ben Barka, and many others.

In the encyclopedia’s introduction, Hachach described the project as “an old dream that has become a reality,” aiming to fill a significant gap in the English-language documentation of Arab and Islamic thought from the Maghreb. “Had it been written by a single author, it would have taken centuries,” he noted, praising the collective efforts behind what he called a “book of critical intellectual knowledge.”

Hashas said his interest in promoting Moroccan thought in English dates back to his undergraduate studies in English literature at the University of Oujda, where the curriculum focused almost entirely on foreign thinkers. Moroccan intellectual works were largely absent from academic discourse, a gap he noticed again during his postgraduate work in Italy, where scholarship emphasized Eastern Arab (Mashriqi) thinkers.

“This is not simply local Moroccan thought,” Hashas emphasized. “It is a body of ideas deeply engaged with regional and global concerns.”

The encyclopedia traces the roots of modern Moroccan thought to Abdallah Guennoun’s seminal book Moroccan Genius in Arabic Literature, which challenged the Mashriqi world’s neglect of intellectual contributions from the Maghreb and the western Islamic world.

While the encyclopedia does not claim to be exhaustive, it offers a comprehensive introduction to Moroccan thinkers whose work spans religious reform, philosophy, literature, feminism, political theory, and cultural critique. Figures featured include both historical icons such as Allal Al-Fassi and Mohamed Hassan Al-Wazzani, as well as contemporary scholars like Mohamed Noureddine Afaya and Abdelilah Belkeziz.

The publication also addresses broader themes such as the intellectual legacy of Ibn Rushd (Averroes), Ibn Khaldun, and Ibn Arabi, whose work continues to influence debates around modernity, legitimacy, and heritage in North Africa.

Notable chapters explore diverse topics including gender issues in contemporary Morocco, the Qadiriyya Boutchichiyya Sufi order’s political vision, the role of Moroccan Jewish leftists in democratic movements, the cultural production of the “Years of Lead,” and efforts to reformulate modernity in Moroccan philosophical discourse.

In his preface, Hashas describes the encyclopedia as a “multidisciplinary survey tracking the rich debate in Moroccan philosophy, religious thought, social science, and cultural studies” since the 1950s. He also calls for more comparative scholarship that situates Moroccan thought within both its national context and a broader transnational intellectual conversation.

The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Moroccan Thought is now available in English and stands as a valuable resource for scholars, students, and general readers interested in the intellectual and cultural currents shaping modern Morocco.