Question: The Orientalist scholar Silvestre de Sacy —

Explanation: In the readings, Silvestre de Sacy played a crucial role in creating and popularizing the supposed link between hashish consumption and the medieval Ismaili Assassins. His work relied on Orientalist interpretations and speculative philology rather than solid historical evidence. Despite being incorrect, his claims were repeatedly cited by European scholars and officials, turning a myth into accepted “knowledge” that later influenced cultural stereotypes and even modern drug prohibition discourse. (Reading: Guba, Antoine Isaac Silvestre de Sacy and the Myth of the Hachichins). Quote: “Sacy based his studies of the Islamic assassins on Orientalized fantasies rather than facts.” (Guba, Antoine Isaac Silvestre de Sacy and the Myth of the Hachichins).