| Ahmad ibn Abu Ya'qub ibn Ja'far al-Ya'qubi | |
|---|---|
| Title | Ya'qubi |
| Died | AH 284 (AD 897-898) |
| Era | Islamic golden age |
| Religion | Islam |
| Main interest(s) | History and geography |
| Notable work(s) | Ta'rikh ibn Wadih and Kitab al-Buldan |
Ahmad ibn Abu Ya'qub ibn Ja'far ibn Wahb Ibn Wadih al-Ya'qubi (died 897/8), known as Ahmad al-Ya'qubi, or Ya'qubi, was a Muslim geographer and perhaps the first historian of world culture in the Abbasid Caliphate.
He was a great-grandson of Wadih, the freedman of the caliph Mansur. Until 873 he lived in Armenia and Khorasan, working under the patronage of the Iranian dynasty of the Tahirids; then he traveled to India, Egypt and the Maghreb, and died in Egypt. He died in AH 284 (897/8).
His Shia sympathies are found throughout his works.
In 872, he lists the kingdoms of Bilad el-Sudan, including Ghana, Gao, and Kanem.