Acknowledgments
This work has benefited immensely from the support, generosity, and critical insight of many individuals, to whom I owe a profound debt of gratitude. I am especially thankful to Shaykh FraḥÄt al-JaÊ¿bÄ«rÄ« (Tunisia), Sulayman Babziz (Algeria), Dawud Babziz (Algeria), Hadj Saïd Mohamed (Algeria), Sassi Ben Yahyaten (Belgium), Slimane Tounsi (France), Soufien Mestaoui (France), Martin Custers (Maastricht), Carol Rowe (UK), and James Budd (UK), all of whom contributed in various waysâthrough manuscript access, proofreading, discussion, or simply offering their time and perspectives. Their engagement enriched this project both intellectually and personally. I am also deeply grateful to Mandana Limbert (CUNY, New York), Noah Solomon (University of Virginia), Ersilia Francesca (University of Naples), and especially Jeremy Farrell (Leiden), whose thoughtful readings, critiques, and encouragement were instrumental at key stages of this work.
I would like to express special thanks to Mona Saif, whose support and encouragement from the very beginning sustained this project, and to Teddi Dols for their continued assistance throughout. I also extend my sincere thanks to Ms. Sanne Hadfy-Kovács for her assistance in promoting and finalizing the layout of this work. My sincere appreciation also goes to the editors of IHC, Sebastian Günther and Hinrich Biesterfeldt, for their trust and editorial care.