author
De Lacy O'Leary
1872–1957
A British Orientalist and church historian, he wrote accessibly about the early history of Islam, the Arabs, and the Copts. His books reflect a scholar who tried to make complex religious and historical traditions readable for a wider audience.
2 Audiobooks
Arabic Thought and Its Place in History
by De Lacy O'Leary
A Short History of the Fatimid Khalifate
by De Lacy O'Leary
About the author
Born in 1872, De Lacy Evans O'Leary was a British scholar, clergyman, and historian whose work focused on the early Middle East and eastern Christianity. Reliable biographical sources describe him as an Orientalist who lectured at the University of Bristol, where he taught subjects including Aramaic and Syriac.
He is especially remembered for writing on the early history of the Arabs and the Copts, as well as for books on Islam and the churches of the East. His work often aimed to introduce specialized historical and religious subjects to general readers without losing sight of the original sources.
O'Leary died in 1957. Though not a widely known public figure today, he remains of interest to readers exploring older English-language scholarship on Islam, Christianity in the Near East, and late antique and medieval religious history.