This work focuses on the intellectual and educational history of Baghdad in the early 'Abbasid and Bayid periods (8th-10th centuries). It covers a wide range of disciplines taught in the metropolis before the institutionalization of the madrasa system. Among these fields of knowledge are Arabic poetry and literature, the transmission of prophetic reports, Arabic historiography and astronomical-astrological teaching. Christian learning in the city is highlighted by two contributions, while two more papers focus on Jewish practices of knowledge production. The volume seeks to promote a better understanding of Baghdad's multi-cultural circles of learning, the transmission of knowledge, and common patterns of patronage during this period. With Contributions by E. Abate, A. Borrut, Y. Dehghani Farsani, D. Janos, E. Martin Contreras, L. Ossenbach, C. Ott, H.-P. Pokel, J. Scheiner, N. K. Schmid, N. Schmidt, K. Szilagyi, J. Thomann, I. Toral-Niehoff, J. Watt, C. Wilde, M. Zakeri