In Chapters 1 and 2, it was argued that the origins of the Arabic administration of Norman Sicily are to be sought in the pre-conquest administration of the island, and in the adaptation of its practices and records to post-conquest needs. Chapter 3 showed that, after an initial burst of activity, Arabic all but disappeared as an administrative language from 1111 until after Roger's coronation. And yet, within a few years of 1130, as may be seen in Chapter 4, Roger was issuing Arabic and bilingual documents which had been produced by a professional and sophisticated Arabic dīwān. During the 1140s, and especially during the renewals of 1145, which were discussed in Chapter 5, the Arab scribes of the royal dīwān demonstrated themselves to be masters of the secretary's art as practised in contemporary Islamic chanceries. This dramatic renaissance of the Arabic administration was confined to the reign of King Roger. Thereafter, until the fall of the dynasty, the royal dīwān continued to develop along the lines then laid down, but did not undergo further revolutionary reconstruction comparable to that of the 1130s and '40s.

This chapter seeks to answer a series of questions which have, until now, remained obvious but unasked. What were the sources of the renaissance of the Arabic administration? Are they to be found in Sicily, or must they be sought in the wider Islamic world? And, if so, where precisely? And through what channels did they reach the island? Partial answers to some of these questions have already been given in order to support specific stages of the argument.