Introduction: is there an Islamic context for the Thousand and one nights?
The Islamic factor in global times
The unifying Islamic factor
The age of Muslim empire and the burgeoning of a text
The changing order: the role of the public in the Thousand and one nights
Nonreligious displacements in popular tradition
The public role in Islamic narrative theorizations
Scheherazade's nonverbal narratives in religious contexts
Conclusions.