Oriens is dedicated to extending our knowledge of intellectual history and developments in the rationalist disciplines in Islamic civilization, with a special emphasis on philosophy, theology, and science. These disciplines had a profoundly rich and lasting life in Islamic civilization and often interacted in complex ways--from the period of their introduction to Islamic civilization in the translation movement that began in the eighth century, through the early and classical periods of development, to the post-classical age, when they shaped even such disciplines as legal theory and poetics. The journal's range extends from the early and classical to the early modern periods (ca. 700-1900 CE) and it engages all regions and languages of Islamic civilization. In the tradition of Hellmut Ritter, who founded Oriens in 1948, the central focus of interest of the journal is on the medieval and early modern periods of the Near and Middle East. Within this framework, the opening up of the sources and the pursuit of philological and historical research based on original source material is the main concern of its editors and contributors. In addition to individual articles, Oriens welcomes proposals for thematic volumes within the series.