Arabic poetry
Encyclopedia
Arabic poetry is the earliest form of Arabic literature
. Present knowledge of poetry in Arabic dates from the 6th century, but oral poetry
is believed to predate that. Arabic poetry is categorized into two main types, rhymed, or measured, and prose, with the former greatly preceding the latter. The rhymed poetry falls within fifteen different meters
collected and explained by Al-Farahidi in what is known as “علم العروض” (The Science of Arood
). Al-Akhfash, a student of Al-Farahidi, later added one more meter to make them sixteen. The meters of the rhythmical poetry are known in Arabic as “بحور” or Seas. The measuring unit of the “seas” is known as “تفعيلة” (taf’ila) with every sea containing a certain number of taf’ilas that the poet has to observe in every verse (bayt) of the poem. The measuring procedure of a poem is very rigorous. Sometimes adding or removing a consonant or a vowel can shift the bayt from one meter to another. Also, in rhymed poetry, every bayt has to end with the same rhyme (qafiya
) throughout the poem.
With the expansion of Islam into Persia
, the Arabic language was greatly enriched by grammar
ians and writers of Persian descent. The new converts also made major contributions to Arabic poetry. In the 20th century, there has been a resurgence of Arabic literature and poetry, particularly in Algeria
, Egypt
,Northern Sudan
, Iraq
, Syria
, Jordan
, Lebanon
and Palestine
.
poetry, literally "the ignorant poetry". The first major poet in the pre-Islamic era is Imru' al-Qais
, the last king of the kingdom of Kindah
. Although most of the poetry of that era was not preserved, what remains is well regarded as the finest of Arabic poetry to date. In addition to the eloquence and artistic value, pre-Islamic poetry constitutes as a major source for classical Arabic language both in grammar and vocabulary, and as a reliable historical record of the political and cultural life of the time .
Poetry held an important position in pre-Islamic society with the poet or sha'ir filling the role of historian
, soothsayer
and propagandist
. Words in praise of the tribe (qit'ah) and lampoons denigrating other tribes (hija) seem to have been some of the most popular forms of early poetry. The sha'ir represented an individual tribe's prestige and importance in the Arabian peninsula
, and mock battles in poetry or zajal
would stand in lieu of real wars. 'Ukaz, a market town not far from Mecca
, would play host to a regular poetry festival where the craft of the sha'irs would be exhibited.
Alongside the sha'ir, and often as his poetic apprentice, was the rawi or reciter. The job of the rawi was to learn the poems by heart and to recite them with explanations and probably often with embellishments. This tradition allowed the transmission of these poetic works and the practice was later adopted by the huffaz for their memorisation of the Qur'an
. At some periods there have been unbroken chains of illustrious poets, each one training a rawi as a bard to promote his verse, and then to take over from them and continue the poetic tradition. For example, Tufayl trained 'Awas ibn Hajar, 'Awas trained Zuhayr ibn Abî Sûlmâ
, Zuhayr trained his son Ka'b bin Zuhayr
, Ka'b trained al-Hutay'ah, al-Hutay'ah trained Jamil Buthaynah and Jamil trained Kuthayyir 'Azzah
.
Among the most famous poets of the pre-Islamic era are Imru' al-Qais
, Samaw'al ibn 'Adiya
, al-Nabighah al-Dhubyani
, Tarafah ibn al 'Abd
, and Zuhayr ibn Abî Sûlmâ
. Other poets, such as Ta'abbata Sharran, al-Shanfara, 'Urwah ibn al-Ward, were known as su'luk or vagabond poets, much of whose works consisted of attacks on the rigidity of tribal life and praise of solitude. Some of these attacks on the values of the clan and of the tribe were meant to be ironic, teasing the listeners only in order finally to endorse all that the members of the audience held most dear about their communal values and way of life. While such poets were identified closely with their own tribes, others, such as al-A'sha
, were known for their wanderings in search of work from whoever needed poetry.
The very best of these early poems were collected in the 8th century as the Mu'allaqat
meaning "the hung poems" (because they were hung on or in the Kaaba
) and the Mufaddaliyat
meaning al-Mufaddal
's examination or anthology. The Mu'allaqat also aimed to be the definitive source of the era's output with only a single example of the work of each of the so-called "seven renowned ones", although different versions differ in which "renowned ones" they chose. The Mufaddaliyat on the other hand contains rather a random collection.
There are several characteristics that distinguish pre-Islamic poetry from the poetry of later times. One of these characteristics is that in pre-Islamic poetry more attention was given to the eloquence and the wording of the verse (البيت) than to the poem as whole. This resulted in poems characterized by strong vocabulary and short ideas but with loosely connected verses. A second characteristic is the romantic or nostalgic prelude with which pre-Islamic poems would often start. In these preludes, a thematic unit called nasib, the poet would remember his beloved and her deserted home and its ruins. This concept in Arabic poetry is referred to as “الوقوف على الأطلال” ("standing at the ruins") because the poet would often start his poem by saying that he stood at the ruins of his beloved, a kind of ubi sunt
.
These early poems were to some extent considered a threat to the newly emerging faith of Islam
and if not actually suppressed, fell into disuse for some years. The sha'ir and their pronouncements were too closely associated with the religion practiced before Islam, and the role of the poet was singled out for criticism in the Qur'an. They also praised subjects of dubious merit such as wine, sex and gambling, which clashed with the new ideology. Satirical poems attacking an idea or leader were less censured. While some poets were early converts, poetry about or in praise of Islam took some time to develop.
It was the early poems' importance to Islamic scholarship, though, which would lead to their preservation. Not only did the poems illuminate life in the early years of Islam and its antecedents but they would also prove the basis for the study of linguistics
of which the Qur'an was regarded as the pinnacle.
Many of the pre-Islamic forms of verse were retained and improved upon. Naqa'id or flyting
s, where two poets exchange creative insults, were popular with al-Farazdaq
and Jarir swapping a great deal of invective. The tradition continued in a slightly modified form as zajal, in which two groups 'joust' in verse, and remains a common style in Lebanon
.
poets. His works had continued the themes and style of the pre-Islamic poets particularly eulogising the harsh but simple desert life, traditionally recited round a campfire. Although such themes continued and were returned to by many modern, urban poets, this poetic life was giving way to court poets. The more settled, comfortable and luxurious life in Ummayyad courts led to a greater emphasis on the ghazal
or love poem. Chief amongst this new breed of poet was Abu Nuwas
. Not only did Abu Nuwas spoof the traditional poetic form of the qasida
and write many poems in praise of wine, his main occupation was the writing of ever more ribald ghazal many of them openly homosexual
.
While Nuwas produced risqué but beautiful poems, many of which pushed to the limit what was acceptable under Islam, others produced more religiously themed poetry. It is said that Nuwas struck a bargain with his contemporary Abu al-Alahijah
: Abu Nuwas would concentrate on wine and love poems whilst al-Alahijah would write homilies
. These homilies expressed views on religion, sin and the afterlife, but occasionally strayed into unorthodox territory. While the work of al-Alahijah was acceptable, others such as the poet Salih ibn 'Abd al-Quddus were executed for heresy
. Waddah al-Yaman
, now the national poet of Yemen
, was also executed for his verse, but this was probably due to his over-familiarity with the wife of the caliph Al-Walid I.
Court poets were joined with court singers who simply performed works included Ibrahim al-Mawsili
, his son Ishaq al-Mawsili and Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi son of caliph al-Mahdi
. Many stories about these early singers were retold in the Kitab al-Aghani
or Book of Songs by Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani.
The Sufi
tradition also produced poetry closely linked to religion. Sufism is a mystical
interpretation of Islam and it emphasised the allegorical
nature of language and writing. Many of the works of Sufi poets appear to be simple ghazal or khamriyyah. Under the guise of the love or wine poem they would contemplate the mortal flesh and attempt to achieve transcendence
. Rabia al-Adawiyya
, Abd Yazid al-Bistami and Mansur al-Hallaj
are some of the most significant Sufi poets, but their poetry and doctrine were considered dangerous, and al-Hallaj was eventually crucified
for heresy.
The caliph himself could take on the role of court poet with Al-Walid II
a notable example, but he was widely disliked for his immorality and was deposed after only a year.
An important doctrine of Arabic poetry from the start was its complexity, but during the period of court poetry this became an art form in itself known as badi' (Arabic بديع). There were features such as metaphor
, pun
, juxtaposing opposites and tricky theological allusions. Bashar ibn Burd
was instrumental in developing these complexities which later poets felt they had to surpass. Although not all writers enjoyed the baroque style, with argumentative letters on the matter being sent by Ibn Burd and Ibn Miskawayh
, the poetic brinkmanship of badi led to a certain formality in poetic art, with only the greatest poets' words shining through the complex structures and wordplay. This can make Arabic poetry even more difficult to translate than poetry from other languages, with much of a poet's skill often lost in translation.
Arabic poetry declined after the 13th century along with much of the literature due to the rise of Persian
and Turkish literature
. It flowered for a little longer in Al-Andalus
(Islamic Spain) but ended with the expulsion of the Arabs in 1492. The corpus suffered large-scale destruction by fire in 1499 when Cardinal Jimenez de Cisneros made a public auto-da-fé
in Granada
, burning 1,025,000 Arabic volumes.
, dating back to the Umayyad era in the 7th century. It is a tragic
story of undying love much like the later Romeo and Juliet
, which was itself said to have been inspired by a Latin
version of Layla and Majnun to an extent.
Another medieval Arabic love story was Hadith Bayad wa Riyad
(The Story of Bayad and Riyad), a 13th-century Arabic love story written in Al-Andalus
. The main characters of the tale are Bayad, a merchant's son and a foreigner from Damascus
, and Riyad, a well educated girl in the court of an unnamed Hajib
of Al-Andalus
(vizier or minister), whose equally unnamed daughter, whose retinue includes Riyad, is referred to as the Lady. The Hadith Bayad wa Riyad manuscript is believed to be the only illustrated manuscript known to have survived from more than eight centuries of Muslim and Arab presence in Spain.
There were several elements of courtly love
which were developed in Arabic poetry, namely the notions of "love for love's sake" and "exaltation of the beloved lady" which have been traced back to Arabic literature of the 9th and 10th centuries. The notion of the "ennobling power" of love was developed in the early 11th century by the Persian psychologist and philosopher
, Ibn Sina
(known as "Avicenna" in English), in his Arabic treatise Risala fi'l-Ishq (Treatise on Love). The final element of courtly love, the concept of "love as desire never to be fulfilled", was also at times implicit in Arabic poetry.
The 10th century Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity
features a fictional anecdote of a "prince who strays from his palace during his wedding feast and, drunk, spends the night in a cemetery, confusing a corpse with his bride. The story is used as a gnostic parable of the soul's pre-existence
and return from its terrestrial sojourn".
Many of the tales in the One Thousand and One Nights are also love stories or involve romantic love as a central theme, including the frame story
of Scheherazade
, and many of the stories she narrates
, such as "Aladdin
", "Ali Baba
", "The Ebony Horse" and "The Three Apples".From From A Ninth Century Fragment Of The Thousand Nights Arif Al-Majdhub The Travels Of Hakim Kohl’in Al-Deen Al-Salik:
poetry was known as hija. Satire was introduced into Arabic prose literature
by the Afro-Arab
author Al-Jahiz
in the 9th century. While dealing with serious topics in what are now known as anthropology
, sociology and psychology, he introduced a satirical approach, "based on the premise that, however serious the subject under review, it could be made more interesting and thus achieve greater effect, if only one leavened the lump of solemnity by the insertion of a few amusing anecdotes or by the throwing out of some witty or paradoxical observations. He was well aware that, in treating of new themes in his prose works, he would have to employ a vocabulary of a nature more familiar in hija, satirical poetry." For example, in one of his zoological
works, he satirized the preference for longer human penis size
, writing: "If the length of the penis were a sign of honor, then the mule
would belong to the (honorable tribe of) Quraysh". Another satirical story based on this preference was an Arabian Nights tale called "Ali with the Large Member".
In the 10th century, the writer Tha'alibi
recorded satirical poetry written by the poets As-Salami and Abu Dulaf, with As-Salami praising Abu Dulaf's wide breadth of knowledge
and then mocking his ability in all these subjects, and with Abu Dulaf responding back and satirizing As-Salami in return. An example of Arabic political satire
included another 10th century poet Jarir satirizing Farazdaq as "a transgressor of the Sharia
" and later Arabic poets in turn using the term "Farazdaq-like" as a form of political satire.
in Arabic literature often focused on religious texts, and the several long religious traditions of hermeneutics and textual exegesis
have had a profound influence on the study of secular texts. This was particularly the case for the literary traditions of Islamic literature
.
Literary criticism was also employed in other forms of medieval Arabic literature and poetry from the 9th century, notably by Al-Jahiz
in his al-Bayan wa-'l-tabyin and al-Hayawan, and by Abdullah ibn al-Mu'tazz
in his Kitab al-Badi.
style. It consciously used the themes and forms of some of the earliest poets, Hafiz Ibrahim being one of the greatest exponents. Later poets rejected the Arabic neo-classical style, many instead seeking inspiration from romanticism
, particularly that of English poetry
. Poets such as Sa'id 'Aql from Lebanon
, with its closer ties to France
, were more influenced by the symbolist
movement.
A common theme in much of the new poetry was the use of the ghazal
or love poem in praise of the poet's homeland. This was manifested either as a nationalism
for the newly emerging nation states of the region or in a wider sense as an Arab nationalism
emphasising the unity of all Arab people. The poems of praise (madih), and the lampoon (hija) also returned. Ahmed Shawqi
produced several works praising the reforming Turkish leader Kemal Atatürk
, but when Atatürk abolished the caliphate
Shawqi was not slow in attacking him in verse. Political views in poetry were often more unwelcome in the 20th century than they had been in the 7th, and several poets faced censorship or, in the case of Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayyati
, exile.
After World War II
there was a largely unsuccessful movement by several poets to write poems in shi'r hurr or free verse
. Most of these experiments were abandoned in favour of prose poetry
, of which one of the most influential proponents was Nazik Al-Malaika
; another contemporary exponent is Iman Mersal. The growth of modernist poetry
also influenced poetry in Arabic.
or collection of poems. These can be arranged by poet, tribe, topic or the name of the compiler such as the Asma'iyyat of al-Asma'i
. Most poems did not have titles and they were usually named from their first lines. Sometimes they were arranged alphabetically by their rhymes. The role of the poet in Arabic developed in a similar way to poets elsewhere. The safe and easy patronage in royal courts was no longer available but a successful poet such as Nizar Qabbani
was able to set up his own publishing house.
A large proportion of all Arabic poetry is written using the monorhyme
, Qasidah. This is simply the same rhyme used on every line of a poem. While this may seem a poor rhyme scheme
for people used to English literature
it makes sense in a language like Arabic which has only three vowel
s which can be either long or short.
Arabic literature
Arabic literature is the writing produced, both prose and poetry, by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is adab which is derived from a meaning of etiquette, and implies politeness, culture and enrichment....
. Present knowledge of poetry in Arabic dates from the 6th century, but oral poetry
Oral poetry
Oral poetry can be defined in various ways. A strict definition would include only poetry that is composed and transmitted without any aid of writing. However, the complex relationships between written and spoken literature in some societies can make this definition hard to maintain, and oral...
is believed to predate that. Arabic poetry is categorized into two main types, rhymed, or measured, and prose, with the former greatly preceding the latter. The rhymed poetry falls within fifteen different meters
Meter (poetry)
In poetry, metre is the basic rhythmic structure of a verse or lines in verse. Many traditional verse forms prescribe a specific verse metre, or a certain set of metres alternating in a particular order. The study of metres and forms of versification is known as prosody...
collected and explained by Al-Farahidi in what is known as “علم العروض” (The Science of Arood
Arood
ʿArūḍ or Arud is what Arabic people call the Science of Poetry . Its laws were put by old poet Al-Farahidi who did so in response to many younger poets' requests...
). Al-Akhfash, a student of Al-Farahidi, later added one more meter to make them sixteen. The meters of the rhythmical poetry are known in Arabic as “بحور” or Seas. The measuring unit of the “seas” is known as “تفعيلة” (taf’ila) with every sea containing a certain number of taf’ilas that the poet has to observe in every verse (bayt) of the poem. The measuring procedure of a poem is very rigorous. Sometimes adding or removing a consonant or a vowel can shift the bayt from one meter to another. Also, in rhymed poetry, every bayt has to end with the same rhyme (qafiya
Qaafiyaa
Qaafiyaa is a device employed in a form of Urdu poetry known as Ghazal . The Qaafiyaa is the rhyming pattern of words that must directly proceed the Ghazal's Radif...
) throughout the poem.
With the expansion of Islam into Persia
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, the Arabic language was greatly enriched by grammar
Grammar
In linguistics, grammar is the set of structural rules that govern the composition of clauses, phrases, and words in any given natural language. The term refers also to the study of such rules, and this field includes morphology, syntax, and phonology, often complemented by phonetics, semantics,...
ians and writers of Persian descent. The new converts also made major contributions to Arabic poetry. In the 20th century, there has been a resurgence of Arabic literature and poetry, particularly in Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
,Northern Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
and Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
.
Pre-Islamic poetry
The pre-Islamic poetry is commonly referred to in Arabic as "الشعر الجاهلي" or JahiliJahiliyyah
Jahiliyyah is an Islamic concept of "ignorance of divine guidance" or "the state of ignorance of the guidance from God" or "Days of Ignorance" referring to the condition in which Arabs found themselves in pre-Islamic Arabia, i.e. prior to the revelation of the Qur'an to Muhammad...
poetry, literally "the ignorant poetry". The first major poet in the pre-Islamic era is Imru' al-Qais
Imru' al-Qais
Imru` al-Qais bin Hujr al-Kindi was an Arabian poet in the 6th century AD, and also the son of one of the last Kindite kings. His qaseeda, or long poem, "Let us stop and weep" is one of the seven Mu'allaqat, poems prized as the best examples of pre-Islamic Arabian verse...
, the last king of the kingdom of Kindah
Kindah
The kingdom of Kindah was a vassal kingdom which ruled from Qaryah dhat Kahl in Nejd, Central Arabia . The kingdom controlled much of the northern Arabian peninsula in the 4th and 5th centuries AD.-Origin:...
. Although most of the poetry of that era was not preserved, what remains is well regarded as the finest of Arabic poetry to date. In addition to the eloquence and artistic value, pre-Islamic poetry constitutes as a major source for classical Arabic language both in grammar and vocabulary, and as a reliable historical record of the political and cultural life of the time .
Poetry held an important position in pre-Islamic society with the poet or sha'ir filling the role of historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, soothsayer
Fortune-telling
Fortune-telling is the practice of predicting information about a person's life. The scope of fortune-telling is in principle identical with the practice of divination...
and propagandist
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
. Words in praise of the tribe (qit'ah) and lampoons denigrating other tribes (hija) seem to have been some of the most popular forms of early poetry. The sha'ir represented an individual tribe's prestige and importance in the Arabian peninsula
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
, and mock battles in poetry or zajal
Zajal
Zajal is a traditional form of oral strophic poetry declaimed in a colloquial dialect with ancient roots in a number of Mediterranean cultures. The form is similar to Muwashshah. The origin of zajal is Al-Andalus...
would stand in lieu of real wars. 'Ukaz, a market town not far from Mecca
Mecca
Mecca is a city in the Hijaz and the capital of Makkah province in Saudi Arabia. The city is located inland from Jeddah in a narrow valley at a height of above sea level...
, would play host to a regular poetry festival where the craft of the sha'irs would be exhibited.
Alongside the sha'ir, and often as his poetic apprentice, was the rawi or reciter. The job of the rawi was to learn the poems by heart and to recite them with explanations and probably often with embellishments. This tradition allowed the transmission of these poetic works and the practice was later adopted by the huffaz for their memorisation of the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
. At some periods there have been unbroken chains of illustrious poets, each one training a rawi as a bard to promote his verse, and then to take over from them and continue the poetic tradition. For example, Tufayl trained 'Awas ibn Hajar, 'Awas trained Zuhayr ibn Abî Sûlmâ
Zuhayr
Zuhayr , was a pre-Islamic Arabian poet who lived in the 6th century AD. He is considered one of the greatest writer of Arabic poetry in pre-Islamic times. Zuhayr belonged to the Muzaynah tribe. His father was a poet...
, Zuhayr trained his son Ka'b bin Zuhayr
Ka'b bin Zuhayr
Kaʿb ibn Zuhayr was a pagan in the time of Muḥammad, the eldest son of Zuhayr ibn Abî Sûlmâ, and one of six men who refused the prophet's attempts to convert them....
, Ka'b trained al-Hutay'ah, al-Hutay'ah trained Jamil Buthaynah and Jamil trained Kuthayyir 'Azzah
Kuthayyir
Kuthayyir ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Mulahi , commonly known as Kuthayyir 'Azza was an Arab 'Udhri poet of the Umayyad period from the tribe of Azd. He was born in Medina and resided in Hijaz and Egypt. In his poems he was occupied with his unfullfilled love to a married woman named 'Azza. Favorite...
.
Among the most famous poets of the pre-Islamic era are Imru' al-Qais
Imru' al-Qais
Imru` al-Qais bin Hujr al-Kindi was an Arabian poet in the 6th century AD, and also the son of one of the last Kindite kings. His qaseeda, or long poem, "Let us stop and weep" is one of the seven Mu'allaqat, poems prized as the best examples of pre-Islamic Arabian verse...
, Samaw'al ibn 'Adiya
Samaw'al ibn 'Adiya
as-Samaw’al bin ‘Ādiyā’ .AlSamuel ibn 'Adiya was an Arabian poet and warrior, in the first half of the 6th century. His clan converted to Judaism when they were in Yemen...
, al-Nabighah al-Dhubyani
Al-Nabigha
Al-Nabigha , was one of the last Arabian poets of pre-Islamic times. "Al-Nabigha" means "genius" in Arabic....
, Tarafah ibn al 'Abd
Tarafa
Tarafa , was a 6th century Arabian poet of the tribe of the Bakr.After a wild and dissipated youth spent in Bahrain, left his native land after peace had been established between the tribes of Bakr and Taghlib and went with his uncle Al-Mutalammis to the court of the king of Hira, 'Amr ibn-Hind ,...
, and Zuhayr ibn Abî Sûlmâ
Zuhayr
Zuhayr , was a pre-Islamic Arabian poet who lived in the 6th century AD. He is considered one of the greatest writer of Arabic poetry in pre-Islamic times. Zuhayr belonged to the Muzaynah tribe. His father was a poet...
. Other poets, such as Ta'abbata Sharran, al-Shanfara, 'Urwah ibn al-Ward, were known as su'luk or vagabond poets, much of whose works consisted of attacks on the rigidity of tribal life and praise of solitude. Some of these attacks on the values of the clan and of the tribe were meant to be ironic, teasing the listeners only in order finally to endorse all that the members of the audience held most dear about their communal values and way of life. While such poets were identified closely with their own tribes, others, such as al-A'sha
Al-A'sha
Al-A'sha or Maymun Ibn Qays Al-a'sha was an Arabic Jahiliyyah poet from Manfuha, Arabia.He was widely traveled and was nicknamed Al-A'sha which means "night-blind" after he lost his sight. One of his qasidah or odes is sometimes included in the Mu'allaqat, an early Arabic poetry collection....
, were known for their wanderings in search of work from whoever needed poetry.
The very best of these early poems were collected in the 8th century as the Mu'allaqat
Mu'allaqat
The Mu‘allaqāt is the title of a group of seven long Arabic poems or qasida that have come down from the time before Islam. Each is considered the best work of these pre-Islamic poets...
meaning "the hung poems" (because they were hung on or in the Kaaba
Kaaba
The Kaaba is a cuboid-shaped building in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and is the most sacred site in Islam. The Qur'an states that the Kaaba was constructed by Abraham, or Ibraheem, in Arabic, and his son Ishmael, or Ismaeel, as said in Arabic, after he had settled in Arabia. The building has a mosque...
) and the Mufaddaliyat
Mufaddaliyat
The Mufaddaliyat or Mofaddaliyat , meaning "The Examination of al-Mufaddal", is an anthology of ancient Arabic poems, which derives its name from al-Mufaddal, son of Muhammad, son of Yal, a member of the tribe of Banu Dhabba, who compiled it some time between 762 and 784 CE in the latter of which...
meaning al-Mufaddal
Al-Mufaddal
Al-Mufaddal, also Moufazzal ibn Abi l-Fazil, was a 14th century Egyptian historian. He was a Coptic Christian.Al-Mufaddal wrote a book about the history of the Bahriyya Mamluks, entitled al-Nahdj al-sadîd wa-l-durr al-farîd fimâ ba'd Ta'rîkh Ibn al'Amîd, covering the period from 1260 to 1340. He...
's examination or anthology. The Mu'allaqat also aimed to be the definitive source of the era's output with only a single example of the work of each of the so-called "seven renowned ones", although different versions differ in which "renowned ones" they chose. The Mufaddaliyat on the other hand contains rather a random collection.
There are several characteristics that distinguish pre-Islamic poetry from the poetry of later times. One of these characteristics is that in pre-Islamic poetry more attention was given to the eloquence and the wording of the verse (البيت) than to the poem as whole. This resulted in poems characterized by strong vocabulary and short ideas but with loosely connected verses. A second characteristic is the romantic or nostalgic prelude with which pre-Islamic poems would often start. In these preludes, a thematic unit called nasib, the poet would remember his beloved and her deserted home and its ruins. This concept in Arabic poetry is referred to as “الوقوف على الأطلال” ("standing at the ruins") because the poet would often start his poem by saying that he stood at the ruins of his beloved, a kind of ubi sunt
Ubi sunt
Ubi sunt is a phrase taken from the Latin Ubi sunt qui ante nos fuerunt?, meaning "Where are those who were before us?"...
.
Poetry under Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
and if not actually suppressed, fell into disuse for some years. The sha'ir and their pronouncements were too closely associated with the religion practiced before Islam, and the role of the poet was singled out for criticism in the Qur'an. They also praised subjects of dubious merit such as wine, sex and gambling, which clashed with the new ideology. Satirical poems attacking an idea or leader were less censured. While some poets were early converts, poetry about or in praise of Islam took some time to develop.
It was the early poems' importance to Islamic scholarship, though, which would lead to their preservation. Not only did the poems illuminate life in the early years of Islam and its antecedents but they would also prove the basis for the study of linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
of which the Qur'an was regarded as the pinnacle.
Many of the pre-Islamic forms of verse were retained and improved upon. Naqa'id or flyting
Flyting
Flyting or fliting is a contest consisting of the exchange of insults, often conducted in verse, between two parties.-Description:Flyting is a ritual, poetic exchange of insults practiced mainly between the 5th and 16th centuries. The root is the Old English word flītan meaning quarrel...
s, where two poets exchange creative insults, were popular with al-Farazdaq
Al-Farazdaq
Hammam ibn Ghalib Abu Firas, commonly known as al-Farazdaq was an Arab poet....
and Jarir swapping a great deal of invective. The tradition continued in a slightly modified form as zajal, in which two groups 'joust' in verse, and remains a common style in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
.
Court poets
Ghaylan ibn 'Uqbah (c. 696 – c. 735), nicknamed Dhu al-Rummah, is usually regarded as the last of the BedouinBedouin
The Bedouin are a part of a predominantly desert-dwelling Arab ethnic group traditionally divided into tribes or clans, known in Arabic as ..-Etymology:...
poets. His works had continued the themes and style of the pre-Islamic poets particularly eulogising the harsh but simple desert life, traditionally recited round a campfire. Although such themes continued and were returned to by many modern, urban poets, this poetic life was giving way to court poets. The more settled, comfortable and luxurious life in Ummayyad courts led to a greater emphasis on the ghazal
Ghazal
The ghazal is a poetic form consisting of rhyming couplets and a refrain, with each line sharing the same meter. A ghazal may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss or separation and the beauty of love in spite of that pain. The form is ancient, originating in 6th century...
or love poem. Chief amongst this new breed of poet was Abu Nuwas
Abu Nuwas
Abu-Nuwas al-Hasan ben Hani Al-Hakami ,a known as Abū-Nuwās , was one of the greatest of classical Arabic poets, who also composed in Persian on occasion. Born in the city of Ahvaz in Persia, of an Arab father and a Persian mother, he became a master of all the contemporary genres of Arabic poetry...
. Not only did Abu Nuwas spoof the traditional poetic form of the qasida
Qasida
The qaṣīdaᵗ , in Arabic: قصيدة, plural qasā'id, قــصــائـد; in Persian: قصیده , is a form of lyric poetry that originated in preIslamic Arabia...
and write many poems in praise of wine, his main occupation was the writing of ever more ribald ghazal many of them openly homosexual
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
.
While Nuwas produced risqué but beautiful poems, many of which pushed to the limit what was acceptable under Islam, others produced more religiously themed poetry. It is said that Nuwas struck a bargain with his contemporary Abu al-Alahijah
Abu al-Alahijah
Abu al-Atahiyah was a contemporary to Abu Nuwas. He was an Islamic poet famous for writing homilies. Critics have argued whether Abu al-Alahijah was indeed Muhammad al-Jamil al-Filastini, the late 8th and early 9th century poet most famous for writing The Change...
: Abu Nuwas would concentrate on wine and love poems whilst al-Alahijah would write homilies
Homily
A homily is a commentary that follows a reading of scripture. In Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and Eastern Orthodox Churches, a homily is usually given during Mass at the end of the Liturgy of the Word...
. These homilies expressed views on religion, sin and the afterlife, but occasionally strayed into unorthodox territory. While the work of al-Alahijah was acceptable, others such as the poet Salih ibn 'Abd al-Quddus were executed for heresy
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
. Waddah al-Yaman
Waddah al-Yaman
Waddah al-Yaman , born Abdul Rahman bin Isma’il al-Khawlani , was an Arab poet.-Biography:...
, now the national poet of Yemen
Yemen
The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
, was also executed for his verse, but this was probably due to his over-familiarity with the wife of the caliph Al-Walid I.
Court poets were joined with court singers who simply performed works included Ibrahim al-Mawsili
Ibrahim Al-Mausili
Ibrahim Al-Mausili , a singer, was born of Persian parents settled in Kufa. In his early years his parents died and he was trained by an uncle...
, his son Ishaq al-Mawsili and Ibrahim ibn al-Mahdi son of caliph al-Mahdi
Al-Mahdi
Muhammad ibn Mansur al-Mahdi , was the third Abbasid Caliph who reigned from 158 AH to 169 AH . He succeeded his father, al-Mansur....
. Many stories about these early singers were retold in the Kitab al-Aghani
Kitab al-Aghani
Kitab al-aghani , is an encyclopedic collection of poems and songs that runs to over 20 volumes in modern editions by the 8th/9th-century litterateur Abu l-Faraj al-Isfahani . Abu l-Faraj claimed to have taken 50 years in writing the work, which ran to over 10 000 pages...
or Book of Songs by Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani.
The Sufi
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
tradition also produced poetry closely linked to religion. Sufism is a mystical
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
interpretation of Islam and it emphasised the allegorical
Allegory
Allegory is a demonstrative form of representation explaining meaning other than the words that are spoken. Allegory communicates its message by means of symbolic figures, actions or symbolic representation...
nature of language and writing. Many of the works of Sufi poets appear to be simple ghazal or khamriyyah. Under the guise of the love or wine poem they would contemplate the mortal flesh and attempt to achieve transcendence
Transcendence (philosophy)
In philosophy, the adjective transcendental and the noun transcendence convey the basic ground concept from the word's literal meaning , of climbing or going beyond, albeit with varying connotations in its different historical and cultural stages...
. Rabia al-Adawiyya
Rabia al-Adawiyya
Rābiʻa al-ʻAdawiyya al-Qaysiyya or simply Rābiʿah al-Baṣrī was a female Muslim saint and Sufi mystic.-Life:She was born between 95 and 99 Hijri in Basra, Iraq. Much of her early life is narrated by Farid al-Din Attar, a later Sufi Saint and poet, who used earlier sources...
, Abd Yazid al-Bistami and Mansur al-Hallaj
Mansur Al-Hallaj
Mansur al-Hallaj was a Persian mystic, revolutionary writer and pious teacher of Sufism most famous for his poetry, accusation of heresy and for his execution at the orders of the Abbasid Caliph Al-Muqtadir after a long, drawn-out investigation.-Early life:Al-Hallaj was born around 858 in Fars...
are some of the most significant Sufi poets, but their poetry and doctrine were considered dangerous, and al-Hallaj was eventually crucified
Crucifixion
Crucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...
for heresy.
The caliph himself could take on the role of court poet with Al-Walid II
Al-Walid II
Walid ibn Yazid or Walid II was an Umayyad caliph who ruled from 743 until 744. He succeeded his uncle, Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik....
a notable example, but he was widely disliked for his immorality and was deposed after only a year.
An important doctrine of Arabic poetry from the start was its complexity, but during the period of court poetry this became an art form in itself known as badi' (Arabic بديع). There were features such as metaphor
Metaphor
A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...
, pun
Pun
The pun, also called paronomasia, is a form of word play which suggests two or more meanings, by exploiting multiple meanings of words, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from the intentional use and abuse of homophonic,...
, juxtaposing opposites and tricky theological allusions. Bashar ibn Burd
Bashar ibn Burd
Bashār ibn Burd nicknamed "al-Mura'ath" meaning the wattled, was a poet in the late Umayyad and the early Abbasid periods. Bashar was of Persian origin; his grandfather was taken as a captive to Iraq, his father was a freedman of the Uqayl tribe. Some Arab scholars considered Bashar the first...
was instrumental in developing these complexities which later poets felt they had to surpass. Although not all writers enjoyed the baroque style, with argumentative letters on the matter being sent by Ibn Burd and Ibn Miskawayh
Ibn Miskawayh
Abu 'Ali Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Ya'qub Ibn Miskawayh, also known as Ibn Miskawayh or Ebn Meskavayh was a Persian chancery official of the Buwayhid era, and philosopher and historian from Rey, Iran...
, the poetic brinkmanship of badi led to a certain formality in poetic art, with only the greatest poets' words shining through the complex structures and wordplay. This can make Arabic poetry even more difficult to translate than poetry from other languages, with much of a poet's skill often lost in translation.
Arabic poetry declined after the 13th century along with much of the literature due to the rise of Persian
Persian literature
Persian literature spans two-and-a-half millennia, though much of the pre-Islamic material has been lost. Its sources have been within historical Persia including present-day Iran as well as regions of Central Asia where the Persian language has historically been the national language...
and Turkish literature
Turkish literature
Turkish literature comprises both oral compositions and written texts in the Turkish language, either in its Ottoman form or in less exclusively literary forms, such as that spoken in the Republic of Turkey today...
. It flowered for a little longer in Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
(Islamic Spain) but ended with the expulsion of the Arabs in 1492. The corpus suffered large-scale destruction by fire in 1499 when Cardinal Jimenez de Cisneros made a public auto-da-fé
Auto-da-fé
An auto-da-fé was the ritual of public penance of condemned heretics and apostates that took place when the Spanish Inquisition or the Portuguese Inquisition had decided their punishment, followed by the execution by the civil authorities of the sentences imposed...
in Granada
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
, burning 1,025,000 Arabic volumes.
Romantic poetry
A famous example of Arabic poetry on romance is Layla and MajnunLayla and Majnun
Layla and Majnun, also known as The Madman and Layla – in Arabic مجنون ليلى or قيس وليلى , in , Leyli və Məcnun in Azeri, Leyla ile Mecnun in Turkish, in Urdu and Hindi – is a classical Arab story, popularized by Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi's...
, dating back to the Umayyad era in the 7th century. It is a tragic
Tragedy
Tragedy is a form of art based on human suffering that offers its audience pleasure. While most cultures have developed forms that provoke this paradoxical response, tragedy refers to a specific tradition of drama that has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of...
story of undying love much like the later Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the career of playwright William Shakespeare about two young star-crossed lovers whose deaths ultimately unite their feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular archetypal stories of young, teenage lovers.Romeo and Juliet belongs to a...
, which was itself said to have been inspired by a Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
version of Layla and Majnun to an extent.
Another medieval Arabic love story was Hadith Bayad wa Riyad
Hadith Bayad wa Riyad
Hadith Bayāḍ wa Riyāḍ or Qissat Bayad wa Riyad is a 13th-century Arabic love story...
(The Story of Bayad and Riyad), a 13th-century Arabic love story written in Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
. The main characters of the tale are Bayad, a merchant's son and a foreigner from Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, and Riyad, a well educated girl in the court of an unnamed Hajib
Hajib
The term "hajib" is not to be confused with the word "hijab", which is a headscarf for Muslim women.A hajib was a government official in Al-Andalus and Egypt. They began as treasurers or Chamberlains but by 756, the position had evolved to be equivalent to a vizier or higher....
of Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
(vizier or minister), whose equally unnamed daughter, whose retinue includes Riyad, is referred to as the Lady. The Hadith Bayad wa Riyad manuscript is believed to be the only illustrated manuscript known to have survived from more than eight centuries of Muslim and Arab presence in Spain.
There were several elements of courtly love
Courtly love
Courtly love was a medieval European conception of nobly and chivalrously expressing love and admiration. Generally, courtly love was secret and between members of the nobility. It was also generally not practiced between husband and wife....
which were developed in Arabic poetry, namely the notions of "love for love's sake" and "exaltation of the beloved lady" which have been traced back to Arabic literature of the 9th and 10th centuries. The notion of the "ennobling power" of love was developed in the early 11th century by the Persian psychologist and philosopher
Early Islamic philosophy
Early Islamic philosophy or classical Islamic philosophy is a period of intense philosophical development beginning in the 2nd century AH of the Islamic calendar and lasting until the 6th century AH...
, Ibn Sina
Avicenna
Abū ʿAlī al-Ḥusayn ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn Sīnā , commonly known as Ibn Sīnā or by his Latinized name Avicenna, was a Persian polymath, who wrote almost 450 treatises on a wide range of subjects, of which around 240 have survived...
(known as "Avicenna" in English), in his Arabic treatise Risala fi'l-Ishq (Treatise on Love). The final element of courtly love, the concept of "love as desire never to be fulfilled", was also at times implicit in Arabic poetry.
The 10th century Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity
Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity
The Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity was a large encyclopedia in 52 treatises written by the mysterious Brethren of Purity of Basra, Iraq sometime in the second half of the 10th century CE...
features a fictional anecdote of a "prince who strays from his palace during his wedding feast and, drunk, spends the night in a cemetery, confusing a corpse with his bride. The story is used as a gnostic parable of the soul's pre-existence
Pre-existence
Pre-existence , beforelife, or pre-mortal existence refers to the belief that each individual human soul existed before conception, and at conception one of these pre-existent souls enters, or is placed by God, in the body...
and return from its terrestrial sojourn".
Many of the tales in the One Thousand and One Nights are also love stories or involve romantic love as a central theme, including the frame story
Frame story
A frame story is a literary technique that sometimes serves as a companion piece to a story within a story, whereby an introductory or main narrative is presented, at least in part, for the purpose of setting the stage either for a more emphasized second narrative or for a set of shorter stories...
of Scheherazade
Scheherazade
Scheherazade , sometimes Scheherazadea, Persian transliteration Shahrazad or Shahrzād is a legendary Persian queen and the storyteller of One Thousand and One Nights.-Narration :...
, and many of the stories she narrates
Story within a story
A story within a story, also rendered story-within-a-story, is a literary device in which one narrative is presented during the action of another narrative. Mise en abyme is the French term for a similar literary device...
, such as "Aladdin
Aladdin
Aladdin is a Middle Eastern folk tale. It is one of the tales in The Book of One Thousand and One Nights , and one of the most famous, although it was actually added to the collection by Antoine Galland ....
", "Ali Baba
Ali Baba
Ali Baba is a fictional character from medieval Arabic literature. He is described in the adventure tale of Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves...
", "The Ebony Horse" and "The Three Apples".From From A Ninth Century Fragment Of The Thousand Nights Arif Al-Majdhub The Travels Of Hakim Kohl’in Al-Deen Al-Salik:
Satirical poetry
The genre of Arabic satiricalSatire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
poetry was known as hija. Satire was introduced into Arabic prose literature
Arabic literature
Arabic literature is the writing produced, both prose and poetry, by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is adab which is derived from a meaning of etiquette, and implies politeness, culture and enrichment....
by the Afro-Arab
Afro-Arab
Afro-Arab refers to people of mixed Black African and genealogical Arab ancestral heritage and/or linguistically and culturally Arabized Black Africans...
author Al-Jahiz
Al-Jahiz
Al-Jāḥiẓ was an Arabic prose writer and author of works of literature, Mu'tazili theology, and politico-religious polemics.In biology, Al-Jahiz introduced the concept of food chains and also proposed a scheme of animal evolution that entailed...
in the 9th century. While dealing with serious topics in what are now known as anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
, sociology and psychology, he introduced a satirical approach, "based on the premise that, however serious the subject under review, it could be made more interesting and thus achieve greater effect, if only one leavened the lump of solemnity by the insertion of a few amusing anecdotes or by the throwing out of some witty or paradoxical observations. He was well aware that, in treating of new themes in his prose works, he would have to employ a vocabulary of a nature more familiar in hija, satirical poetry." For example, in one of his zoological
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
works, he satirized the preference for longer human penis size
Human penis size
Human penis size is the measured length and width of the human penis. The most accurate measurement of the human penis comes from several measurements at different times, as there is natural variability in size due to arousal level, time of day, room temperature, frequency of sexual activity, and...
, writing: "If the length of the penis were a sign of honor, then the mule
Mule
A mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse. Horses and donkeys are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes. Of the two F1 hybrids between these two species, a mule is easier to obtain than a hinny...
would belong to the (honorable tribe of) Quraysh". Another satirical story based on this preference was an Arabian Nights tale called "Ali with the Large Member".
In the 10th century, the writer Tha'alibi
Tha'alibi
Tha'ālibī [Abu Manşūr 'Abd ul-Malik ibn Mahommed ibn Isma'īl] , Muslim philologist, was born in Nishapur, Iran, and is said to have been at one time a furrier. Although he wrote prose and verse of his own, he was most famous for his anthologies and collections of epigrams...
recorded satirical poetry written by the poets As-Salami and Abu Dulaf, with As-Salami praising Abu Dulaf's wide breadth of knowledge
Polymath
A polymath is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable...
and then mocking his ability in all these subjects, and with Abu Dulaf responding back and satirizing As-Salami in return. An example of Arabic political satire
Political satire
Political satire is a significant part of satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics; it has also been used with subversive intent where political speech and dissent are forbidden by a regime, as a method of advancing political arguments where such arguments are expressly...
included another 10th century poet Jarir satirizing Farazdaq as "a transgressor of the Sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
" and later Arabic poets in turn using the term "Farazdaq-like" as a form of political satire.
Literary theory and criticism
Literary criticismLiterary criticism
Literary criticism is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often informed by literary theory, which is the philosophical discussion of its methods and goals...
in Arabic literature often focused on religious texts, and the several long religious traditions of hermeneutics and textual exegesis
Exegesis
Exegesis is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially a religious text. Traditionally the term was used primarily for exegesis of the Bible; however, in contemporary usage it has broadened to mean a critical explanation of any text, and the term "Biblical exegesis" is used...
have had a profound influence on the study of secular texts. This was particularly the case for the literary traditions of Islamic literature
Islamic literature
Islamic literature is literature written with an Islamic perspective, in any language.The most well known fiction from the Islamic world was The Book of One Thousand and One Nights , which was a compilation of many earlier folk tales told by the Persian Queen Scheherazade...
.
Literary criticism was also employed in other forms of medieval Arabic literature and poetry from the 9th century, notably by Al-Jahiz
Al-Jahiz
Al-Jāḥiẓ was an Arabic prose writer and author of works of literature, Mu'tazili theology, and politico-religious polemics.In biology, Al-Jahiz introduced the concept of food chains and also proposed a scheme of animal evolution that entailed...
in his al-Bayan wa-'l-tabyin and al-Hayawan, and by Abdullah ibn al-Mu'tazz
Abdullah ibn al-Mu'tazz
Abdullah ibn al-Mu'tazz was persuaded to assume the role of caliph of the Abbasid dynasty following the premature death of al-Muktafi. He succeeded in ruling for a single day and a single night, before he was forced into hiding, found, and then strangled in a palace intrigue that brought...
in his Kitab al-Badi.
Modern poetry
The revival of Arabic poetry in the late 19th and early 20th century first displayed a neo-classicalNeoclassicism
Neoclassicism is the name given to Western movements in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that draw inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome...
style. It consciously used the themes and forms of some of the earliest poets, Hafiz Ibrahim being one of the greatest exponents. Later poets rejected the Arabic neo-classical style, many instead seeking inspiration from romanticism
Romanticism
Romanticism was an artistic, literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Europe, and gained strength in reaction to the Industrial Revolution...
, particularly that of English poetry
English poetry
The history of English poetry stretches from the middle of the 7th century to the present day. Over this period, English poets have written some of the most enduring poems in Western culture, and the language and its poetry have spread around the globe. Consequently, the term English poetry is...
. Poets such as Sa'id 'Aql from Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
, with its closer ties to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, were more influenced by the symbolist
Symbolism (arts)
Symbolism was a late nineteenth-century art movement of French, Russian and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts. In literature, the style had its beginnings with the publication Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire...
movement.
A common theme in much of the new poetry was the use of the ghazal
Ghazal
The ghazal is a poetic form consisting of rhyming couplets and a refrain, with each line sharing the same meter. A ghazal may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss or separation and the beauty of love in spite of that pain. The form is ancient, originating in 6th century...
or love poem in praise of the poet's homeland. This was manifested either as a nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
for the newly emerging nation states of the region or in a wider sense as an Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism
Arab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
emphasising the unity of all Arab people. The poems of praise (madih), and the lampoon (hija) also returned. Ahmed Shawqi
Ahmed Shawqi
Ahmed Shawqi was the great Arabic Poet-Laureate, an Egyptian poet and dramatist who pioneered the modern Egyptian literary movement, most notably introducing the genre of poetic epics to the Arabic literary tradition...
produced several works praising the reforming Turkish leader Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was an Ottoman and Turkish army officer, revolutionary statesman, writer, and the first President of Turkey. He is credited with being the founder of the Republic of Turkey....
, but when Atatürk abolished the caliphate
Caliphate
The term caliphate, "dominion of a caliph " , refers to the first system of government established in Islam and represented the political unity of the Muslim Ummah...
Shawqi was not slow in attacking him in verse. Political views in poetry were often more unwelcome in the 20th century than they had been in the 7th, and several poets faced censorship or, in the case of Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayyati
Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayyati
Abd al-Wahhab Al-Bayati was an Iraqi poet. He was a pioneer in his field and defied conventional form of poetry that had been common for centuries.-Biography:...
, exile.
After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
there was a largely unsuccessful movement by several poets to write poems in shi'r hurr or free verse
Free verse
Free verse is a form of poetry that refrains from consistent meter patterns, rhyme, or any other musical pattern.Poets have explained that free verse, despite its freedom, is not free. Free Verse displays some elements of form...
. Most of these experiments were abandoned in favour of prose poetry
Prose poetry
Prose poetry is poetry written in prose instead of using verse but preserving poetic qualities such as heightened imagery and emotional effects.-Characteristics:Prose poetry can be considered either primarily poetry or prose, or a separate genre altogether...
, of which one of the most influential proponents was Nazik Al-Malaika
Nazik Al-Malaika
Nazik Al-Malaika , Al-Malaika in English: Angels , she was an Iraqi female poet and is considered by many to be one of most influential contemporary Iraqi female poets....
; another contemporary exponent is Iman Mersal. The growth of modernist poetry
Modernist poetry
Modernist poetry refers to poetry written between 1890 and 1950 in the tradition of modernist literature in the English language, but the dates of the term depend upon a number of factors, including the nation of origin, the particular school in question, and the biases of the critic setting the...
also influenced poetry in Arabic.
Poetic forms
Poetry in Arabic is traditionally grouped in a diwanDiwan (poetry)
-Etymology:The English usage of the phrase Diwan Poetry comes from the Arabic word diwan , which is loaned from Persian means designated a list or register. The Persian word derived from the Persian dibir meaning writer or scribe...
or collection of poems. These can be arranged by poet, tribe, topic or the name of the compiler such as the Asma'iyyat of al-Asma'i
Al-Asma'i
Al-Asma'i or Asma`i, Abd al-Malik ibn Quraib al-Asma`i was an Arab scholar of the Basra school of Arabic grammar.He was also a pioneer of Natural Science and Zoology...
. Most poems did not have titles and they were usually named from their first lines. Sometimes they were arranged alphabetically by their rhymes. The role of the poet in Arabic developed in a similar way to poets elsewhere. The safe and easy patronage in royal courts was no longer available but a successful poet such as Nizar Qabbani
Nizar Qabbani
Nizar Tawfiq Qabbani was a Syrian diplomat, poet and publisher. His poetic style combines simplicity and elegance in exploring themes of love, eroticism, feminism, religion, and Arab nationalism...
was able to set up his own publishing house.
A large proportion of all Arabic poetry is written using the monorhyme
Monorhyme
Monorhyme is a rhyme scheme in which each line has an identical rhyme. This is common in Arabic, Latin, and Welsh works, such as The Book of One Thousand and One Nights, e.g. Qasida and its derivative Kafi. Monorhyme is also used in the third verse of American rapper Jay-Z's song Already Home....
, Qasidah. This is simply the same rhyme used on every line of a poem. While this may seem a poor rhyme scheme
Rhyme scheme
A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhyme between lines of a poem or song. It is usually referred to by using letters to indicate which lines rhyme. In other words, it is the pattern of end rhymes or lines...
for people used to English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
it makes sense in a language like Arabic which has only three vowel
Vowel
In phonetics, a vowel is a sound in spoken language, such as English ah! or oh! , pronounced with an open vocal tract so that there is no build-up of air pressure at any point above the glottis. This contrasts with consonants, such as English sh! , where there is a constriction or closure at some...
s which can be either long or short.
Mu'rabbah: literary Arabic
- Qarid
- Qit'ah, an elegy or short poem about an event
- Qasidah, an odeOdeOde is a type of lyrical verse. A classic ode is structured in three major parts: the strophe, the antistrophe, and the epode. Different forms such as the homostrophic ode and the irregular ode also exist...
, designed to convey a message. A longer version of qit'ah
- MuwashshahMuwashshahMuwashshah or muwaššaḥ can mean:...
, meaning "girdled", courtly love poetry - Ruba'i or dubayt, a quatrainQuatrainA quatrain is a stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four lines of verse. Existing in various forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, and China; and, continues into the 21st century, where it is...
- RajazRajazRajaz is the 13th studio album by Camel, released in 1999. The album's songs have been composed on the camel's walking metre. Praised by fans & critics alike, the album is a return to form.-Track listings:#"Three Wishes" – 6:58...
, a discourse in rhyme, used to push the limits of lexicography
Malhunah: vernacular poetry
- Kan ya ma kan, meaning "once upon a time"
- Quma,
- ZajalZajalZajal is a traditional form of oral strophic poetry declaimed in a colloquial dialect with ancient roots in a number of Mediterranean cultures. The form is similar to Muwashshah. The origin of zajal is Al-Andalus...
, meaning "shout" - MawwalMawwalIn Arabic music, the mawwāl is a traditional genre of vocal music that is usually presented before the actual song begins. It is characterized by spelling vowel syllables longer than usual...
or Mawaliya, folk poetry in four rhyming lines - Nabati, the vernacular poetry of the tribes of the Arabian PeninsulaArabian PeninsulaThe Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
and the Syrian DesertSyrian DesertThe Syrian Desert , also known as the Syro-Arabian desert is a combination of steppe and true desert that is located in the northern Arabian Peninsula covering 200,000 square miles . also the desert is very rocky and flat...
. - Humayni, the vernacular poetry of YemenYemenThe Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....
.
Poetic themes
- Madih, a eulogy or panegyric
- Hija, a lampoon
- Ritha', an elegy
- WasfWaṣfWaṣf is an ancient style of Arabic poetry. In waṣf love poems, each part of a lover's body is described and praised in turn, often using exotic, extravagant, or even far-fetched metaphors. The Song of Solomon is a prominent example of such a poem, and other examples can be found in Thousand and One...
, a descriptive poem - GhazalGhazalThe ghazal is a poetic form consisting of rhyming couplets and a refrain, with each line sharing the same meter. A ghazal may be understood as a poetic expression of both the pain of loss or separation and the beauty of love in spite of that pain. The form is ancient, originating in 6th century...
, a love poem, sometimes expressing love of home - Khamriyyah, wine poetry
- Tardiyyah, hunt poetry
- Zuhdiyyah, homiletic poetry
- Fakhr, boasting
- Hamasa, war poetry
Selected poets and anthologists
- See also List of Arabic language poets
- Muhammad Ibn Abbad Al MutamidMuhammad Ibn Abbad Al MutamidMuhammad Ibn Abbad Al Mutamid was the third and last ruler of the taifa of Seville in Al-Andalus. He was a member of the Abbadid dynasty....
- LabīdLabidLabid can either refer to*Labīd, the Arabian poet*Labid, a brand name for theophylline...
- Abu Al Qasim Al Shabi (1909–1931)
- ZuhayrZuhayrZuhayr , was a pre-Islamic Arabian poet who lived in the 6th century AD. He is considered one of the greatest writer of Arabic poetry in pre-Islamic times. Zuhayr belonged to the Muzaynah tribe. His father was a poet...
- TarafaTarafaTarafa , was a 6th century Arabian poet of the tribe of the Bakr.After a wild and dissipated youth spent in Bahrain, left his native land after peace had been established between the tribes of Bakr and Taghlib and went with his uncle Al-Mutalammis to the court of the king of Hira, 'Amr ibn-Hind ,...
- Antara Ibn Shaddad
- BuhturiBuhturiBuhturi , Arabic, أبو الوليد بن عبيدالله البحتري التنوخي was an Arab poet born at Hierapolis Bambyce in Syria, between Aleppo and the Euphrates...
- Abu TammamAbu TammamAbu Tammam was an Abbasid era Arab poet and Muslim convert born to Christian parents.- Biography :...
(9th century) - Abu NuwasAbu NuwasAbu-Nuwas al-Hasan ben Hani Al-Hakami ,a known as Abū-Nuwās , was one of the greatest of classical Arabic poets, who also composed in Persian on occasion. Born in the city of Ahvaz in Persia, of an Arab father and a Persian mother, he became a master of all the contemporary genres of Arabic poetry...
(9th century) - al-Mutanabbi (10th century)
- al-Ma'arriAl-Ma'arriAbul ʿAla Al-Maʿarri was a blind Arab philosopher, poet and writer....
- al-Sharif al-Radi
- Ghazi Abdul Rahman Algosaibi
- Ahmad al-TifashiAhmad al-TifashiAhmad al-Tifashi , born in Tiffech, a village near Souk Ahras in Algeria was an Arabic poet, writer, and anthologist.-Biography:...
- Bashar ibn BurdBashar ibn BurdBashār ibn Burd nicknamed "al-Mura'ath" meaning the wattled, was a poet in the late Umayyad and the early Abbasid periods. Bashar was of Persian origin; his grandfather was taken as a captive to Iraq, his father was a freedman of the Uqayl tribe. Some Arab scholars considered Bashar the first...
- Muti’ ibn Iyas
- Ibn HazmIbn HazmAbū Muḥammad ʿAlī ibn Aḥmad ibn Saʿīd ibn Ḥazm ) was an Andalusian philosopher, litterateur, psychologist, historian, jurist and theologian born in Córdoba, present-day Spain...
- Ibn TufailIbn TufailIbn Tufail was an Andalusian Muslim polymath: an Arabic writer, novelist, Islamic philosopher, Islamic theologian, physician, vizier,...
- Ibn QuzmanIbn QuzmanMuhammad ibn Abd al-Malik ibn Quzman was the single most famous poet in the history of al-Andalus and he is also considered to be one of its most original. He was born and died in Cordoba and has earned his fame by his zajals...
- Jamil Sidqi al-ZahawiJamil Sidqi al-ZahawiJamil Sidqi al-Zahawi was a prominent Iraqi poet and philosopher. He is regarded as one of the greatest contemporary poets of the Arab world and was known for his defense of women's rights.-Biography:...
- Nizar QabbaniNizar QabbaniNizar Tawfiq Qabbani was a Syrian diplomat, poet and publisher. His poetic style combines simplicity and elegance in exploring themes of love, eroticism, feminism, religion, and Arab nationalism...
, (1923–1998) - Muhammad Tahir ul-Qadri
- Mahmood Abu Shahbaaz Londoni
- Moufdi ZakariaMoufdi ZakariaMoufdi Zakaria; , was an Algerian poet and writer. He wrote "Kassaman", the Algerian National anthem whilst in prison in 1955.-Biography:...
(1908–1977) - Arif Al-Majdhub The Travels Of Hakim Kohl’in Al-Deen Al-Salik:
- Muhammad Ibn Abbad Al Mutamid
Further reading
- E.G. Browne. Literary History of Persia. (Four volumes, 2,256 pages, and twenty-five years in the writing)
- Philip F. Kennedy. The Wine Song in Classical Arabic Poetry: Abu NuwasAbu NuwasAbu-Nuwas al-Hasan ben Hani Al-Hakami ,a known as Abū-Nuwās , was one of the greatest of classical Arabic poets, who also composed in Persian on occasion. Born in the city of Ahvaz in Persia, of an Arab father and a Persian mother, he became a master of all the contemporary genres of Arabic poetry...
and the Literary Tradition.. Open UniversityOpen UniversityThe Open University is a distance learning and research university founded by Royal Charter in the United Kingdom...
Press, 1997. - Khaled El-Rouayheb. The Love of Boys in Arabic Poetry of the Early Ottoman Period, 1500 – 1800. Middle Eastern Literatures, January 2005, vol.8, no.1.
- Stetkevych, Suzanne Pinckney. "The Mute Immortals Speak: Pre-Islamic Poetry and the Poetics of Ritual" Cornell University Press, 1993.
External links
- The canonical meters of Arabic poetry
- Princeton Online Arabic Poetry (read and listen) Vocalised Arabic with Audio.
- Arabic poetry in arabic by era
- http://www.al-bab.com/arab/literature/poetry.htm Arabic poetry
- Arabic Poets at Poet Seers
- Islamic Poetry