Neither Byzantine nor Islamic? The duke of the Thebaid and the formation of the Umayyad state: The duke of the Thebaid and the formation of the Umayyad state

This article investigates how the early Islamic state developed out of pre‐Islamic administrative structures. Taking the example of the Byzantine provincial structure in Egypt, the governor (duke) of the Thebaid clearly appears in papyri written in Greek, Coptic and Arabic as an agent of the Medinan and early Umayyad administration. The progressive redistribution of his responsibilities to new offices developed within the Islamic state shows how the Byzantine system contributed to the formation of Islamic administration, casting light on a pre‐Islamic heritage which is often neglected in the narrative.