Peter Baker (Canadian politician)

Peter Baker (April 1887 – November 13, 1973),[1] born Bedouin Ferran, also known as Ahmad Ali Ferran[2] and Faron Ahmed upon death, was a Lebanese-born Canadian trader, politician, and author.[3] As the first Muslim elected to public office in Canada, he played a fundamental role in the history of Islam in the Arctic and Subarctic regions.

Early life

Baker was born in 1887 as Bedouin Ferran or as Ahmad Ali Ferran[2] on the territory of Levant, which is now Lebanon.[3]

At the turn of the century, he emigrated to Canada from the Turkish (Ottoman) conscription for young Arabs whom Turkey made to fight against the Yemenis.[2]

Ferran worked at a Holy Cross College as a labourer, and in 1909, was given his anglicised name by the college's Catholic priest. Thereonafter, he moved to the province of Alberta.[3]

Canada

In the 1910s, Baker began work as a trapper[4] and trader of northern fur and essentials with First Nations, establishing with his Indigenous trading partners novel and adaptive ways of both trade and credit.[5]

After his trade ended, Baker entered politics, and was elected a member of the NWT Council at the time, now called the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories for the period of 1964–1967.[6] He was one of the earliest Muslim politicians in Canada.[7]

Baker's funeral took place on 13 November 1973 in Al-Rashid Mosque in Edmonton, Alberta. Notably, Baker was identified in the 17 November 1973 press of Edmonton Journal's Deaths and Notices section as "Faron Ahmed, 62".[3]

Baker authored a book, Memoirs of an Arctic Arab, published posthumously in 1976.

References
  1. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/194101034/peter-baker
  2. Waugh, Earle (March–June 2010). Re-Imagining Purposive Journeys: Rihla in Canadian–Middle Eastern Immigrant Writing (PDF download). p. 74 (PDF:5). Retrieved 2017-02-12. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  3. Kassam, Karim-Aly S. Muslim Presence in Alberta: Contribution and Challenges (PDF). pp. 187 (book) / p. 5 (PDF), 195 (b) / 13 (PDF). Retrieved 2017-02-12.
  4. Okpik, Abraham (2005). Louis McComber (ed.). We Call It Survival: The Life Story of Abraham Okpik (PDF). p. 97. Retrieved 2017-02-12. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
  5. Colpitts, George (2013). "Itinerant Jewish and Arabic Trading in the Dene's North, 1916-1930". Journal of the Canadian Historical Association. 24 (1): 163–213. doi:10.7202/1025000ar. Retrieved 2017-02-12.
  6. Morrow, John Andrew (2016). Restoring the Balance: Using the Qur'an and the Sunnah to Guide a Return to the Prophet's Islam. Cambridge Scholars. p. 59. ISBN 9781443892964. Retrieved 2017-02-12.
  7. Liepert, David (2010-12-01). "The Imaginary Divide". Vol. 13, no. 10. Canada: Albertaviews. Retrieved 2017-02-12. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
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