Grand entretien 900 ans ! Averroès parmi nous — L’entretien posthume

900 years ago, the great Andalusian philosopher Ibn Rushd was born in Córdoba; Europe knows him as Averroes. On the occasion of this exceptional anniversary, the 2026 in-depth discussion pays tribute to this guiding figure in intellectual exchanges between the two shores of the Mediterranean. Before lending his name to the gatherings that bring us together every year in Marseille, Averroes established himself in the 12th century as one of the major figures of Islamic thought. A great commentator on the works of the Greek philosopher Aristotle, his writings were very quickly translated from Arabic into Latin. For centuries, the boldness of his thinking has continued to unsettle European philosophy.

As this in-depth discussion cannot take place in the presence of the master, three specialists of his era and work will dissect his thought and intellectual legacy for us: Jean-Baptiste Brenet, philosopher, renowned expert on and translator of Averroes’s philosophical works; Emmanuelle Tixier du Mesnil, historian specializing in the history of al-Andalus; and Ziad Bou Akl, philosopher and specialist in Averroes’s thought.

From Almohad Córdoba to the Sorbonne, where his propositions caused a scandal, from medieval philosophy to the questions of our time, Averroes’s thought has continued to engage both shores of the Mediterranean. Let us give him the floor on the occasion of this posthumous in-depth discussion.

With Ziad Bou Akl (philosopher), Jean-Baptiste Brenet (philosopher), and Emmanuelle Tixier du Mesnil (historian).

Latest publications

Ziad Bou Akl, Averroès : le philosophe et la Loi. Édition, traduction et commentaire de l’Abrégé du Mustasfa, Berlin, de Gruyter (coll. « Scientia Graeco-Arabica »), 2015. Ziad Bou Akl (direction du numéro), « Philosophies d’Islam », Revue de Métaphysique et de Morale, 2025/3, n° 125. Averroès (Ibn Rushd), Grand commentaire du traité De l’âme d’Aristote, traduction intégrale, introduction, notes et bibliographie par Jean-Baptiste Brenet, Verdier, octobre 2026. Jean-Baptiste Brenet, Le dehors dedans. Averroès en peinture, Macula, 2025. Emmanuelle Tixier du Mesnil, Savoir et pouvoir en al-Andalus au XIe siècle. Seuil, 2022.