Rabi'ah Quzdari
Encyclopedia
Rābi'a bint Ka'b al-Quzdārī (in Persian
: رابعه قزداری), popularly known as Rābi'a Balkhī (رابعه بلخی) and Zayn al-'Arab (زين العرب), is a semi-legendary figure of Persian literature
and was possibly the first poetess in the history of New Persian poetry. References to her can be found in the poetry of Rūdakī
and 'Attār
. Her biography has been primarily recorded by Zāhir ud-Dīn 'Awfī
and renarrated by Nūr ad-Dīn Djāmī
. The exact dates of her birth and death are unknown, but it is reported that she was a native of Balkh
in Khorāsān
(now in Afghanistan
). Some evidences indicate that she lived during the same period as Rūdakī, the court poet to the Samanid Emir
Naṣr II
(914-943).
, 'Attār's maṭnawīyat, and Djāmī's nafahātu 'l-uns. She is said to have been descended from a royal family, her father Ka'b al-Quzdārī, a chieftain at the Samanid court, reportedly descended from Arab immigrants who had settled in eastern Persia during the time of Abu Muslim
.
She was one of the first poets who wrote in modern Persian, and she is, along with Mahsatī Dabīra Ganja'ī, among a very few female writers of medieval Persia to be recorded in history by name. When her father died, his son Hāres, brother of Rābi'a, inherited his position. According to legend, Hāres had a Turkic slave named Baktāsh, with whom his sister was secretly in love. At a court party, Hāres heard Rābi'a's secret. He imprisoned Baktāsh in a well, cut the jugular vein of Rābi'a and imprisoned her in a bathroom. She wrote her final poems with her blood on the wall of the bathroom until she died. Baktāsh escaped the well, and as soon as got the news about Rābi'a, he went to the governor’s office and assassinated Hāres. He then committed suicide.
Her love affair with the slave Baktāsh inspired Qājār poet Rezā Qulī-Khān Ḥedāyat
to compose his Baktāshnāma.
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
: رابعه قزداری), popularly known as Rābi'a Balkhī (رابعه بلخی) and Zayn al-'Arab (زين العرب), is a semi-legendary figure of Persian literature
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 was possibly the first poetess in the history of New Persian poetry. References to her can be found in the poetry of Rūdakī
Rudaki
Abu Abdollah Jafar ibn Mohammad Rudaki , also written as Rudagi , was a Persian poet, and is regarded as the first great literary genius of the Modern Persian, who composed poems in the "New Persian" alphabet. Rudaki is considered as a founder of Persian classical literature.He was born in 858 in...
and 'Attār
Attar
Abū Hamīd bin Abū Bakr Ibrāhīm , better known by his pen-names Farīd ud-Dīn and ‘Attār , was a Persian Muslim poet, theoretician of Sufism, and hagiographer from Nīshāpūr who had an abiding influence on Persian poetry and Sufism.-Biography:Information about Attar's life is rare...
. Her biography has been primarily recorded by Zāhir ud-Dīn 'Awfī
Zahiriddin Nasr Muhammad Aufi
Sadiduddin Muhammad Aufi was a Persian historian, scientist, and author.-Biography:Born in Bukhara, Aufi grew up during the apex of the Islamic Golden Age, and spent many years traveling, exploring, and lecturing to the common folk and the royalty alike in Delhi, Khorasan, Khwarizm, Samarkand,...
and renarrated by Nūr ad-Dīn Djāmī
Jami
Nur ad-Dīn Abd ar-Rahmān Jāmī also known as DJāmī, Mawlanā Nūr al-Dīn 'Abd al-Rahmān or Abd-Al-Rahmān Nur-Al-Din Muhammad Dashti who is commonly known as Jami , is known for his achievements as a scholar, mystic, writer, composer of numerous lyrics and idylls, historian, and one of the greatest...
. The exact dates of her birth and death are unknown, but it is reported that she was a native of Balkh
Balkh
Balkh , was an ancient city and centre of Zoroastrianism in what is now northern Afghanistan. Today it is a small town in the province of Balkh, about 20 kilometers northwest of the provincial capital, Mazar-e Sharif, and some south of the Amu Darya. It was one of the major cities of Khorasan...
in Khorāsān
Greater Khorasan
Greater Khorasan or Ancient Khorasan is a historical region of Greater Iran mentioned in sources from Sassanid and Islamic eras which "frequently" had a denotation wider than current three provinces of Khorasan in Iran...
(now in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
). Some evidences indicate that she lived during the same period as Rūdakī, the court poet to the Samanid Emir
Emir
Emir , meaning "commander", "general", or "prince"; also transliterated as Amir, Aamir or Ameer) is a title of high office, used throughout the Muslim world...
Naṣr II
Nasr II of Samanid
Nasr II was amir of the Samanids . His reign saw the high point of Samanid rule. He was the son of Ahmad ibn Isma’il....
(914-943).
Life
Her name and biography appear in 'Awfī's lubābu 'l-albābLubab ul-Albab
Lubab ul-Albab is a famous anthology written by Zahiriddin Nasr Muhammad Aufi in the early 13th century in eastern Persia.It is considered as the oldest extant biographical work in Persian literature and the most important collection of biographies of Persian poets.As an example of the diversity...
, 'Attār's maṭnawīyat, and Djāmī's nafahātu 'l-uns. She is said to have been descended from a royal family, her father Ka'b al-Quzdārī, a chieftain at the Samanid court, reportedly descended from Arab immigrants who had settled in eastern Persia during the time of Abu Muslim
Abu Muslim
- External links :* *...
.
She was one of the first poets who wrote in modern Persian, and she is, along with Mahsatī Dabīra Ganja'ī, among a very few female writers of medieval Persia to be recorded in history by name. When her father died, his son Hāres, brother of Rābi'a, inherited his position. According to legend, Hāres had a Turkic slave named Baktāsh, with whom his sister was secretly in love. At a court party, Hāres heard Rābi'a's secret. He imprisoned Baktāsh in a well, cut the jugular vein of Rābi'a and imprisoned her in a bathroom. She wrote her final poems with her blood on the wall of the bathroom until she died. Baktāsh escaped the well, and as soon as got the news about Rābi'a, he went to the governor’s office and assassinated Hāres. He then committed suicide.
Her love affair with the slave Baktāsh inspired Qājār poet Rezā Qulī-Khān Ḥedāyat
Reza Qolikhan Hedayat
Rezā Qoli Khān Hedāyat was a Persian Writer and Poet, and tutor of Mozaffar al-Din Shah Qajar.-Biography:...
to compose his Baktāshnāma.
Literature
- E.G. BrowneEdward Granville BrowneEdward Granville Browne , born in Stouts Hill, Uley, Gloucestershire, England, was a British orientalist who published numerous articles and books of academic value, mainly in the areas of history and literature...
: Literary History of Persia. (Four volumes, 2,256 pages, and twenty-five years in the writing). 1998. ISBN 0-7007-0406-X - Jan Rypka: History of Iranian Literature. Reidel Publishing Company. 1968 . ISBN 90-277-0143-1
- M. Saadat NourySaadat NourySaadat Noury , also spelled as Saadat Nouri, is an Iranian author, a poet, and a journalist. His full name is منوچهر سعا دت نوری Manouchehr Saadat Noury .-Early life and family:...
: A Research Note on First Iranian Poetess http://web.archive.org/web/20060421223415/http://www.persianmirror.com/community/2005/opinion/opinionMSN.cfm