Arabic literature
Arabic literature is the writing, both as prose and poetry, produced by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is Adab, which comes from a meaning of etiquette, and which implies politeness, culture and enrichment.
Arabic literature, primarily transmitted orally, began to be documented in written form in the 7th century, with only fragments of written Arabic appearing before then.
The Qur'an would have the greatest lasting effect on Arab culture and its literature. Arabic literature flourished during the Islamic Golden Age, but has remained vibrant to the present day, with poets and prose-writers across the Arab world, as well as in the Arab diaspora, achieving increasing success.
History
Pre-Islamic poetry
Pre-Islamic Arabic poetry is referred to in traditional Arabic literature as al-shiʿr al-Jāhilī, "poetry from the Jahiliyyah". In pre-Islamic Arabia, markets such as Souq Okaz, in addition to and, were destinations for caravans from throughout the peninsula. At these markets poetry was recited, and the dialect of the Quraysh, the tribe in control of Souq Okaz of Mecca, became predominant.Days of the Arabs, tales in both meter and prose, contains the oldest extant Arabic narratives, focusing on battles and raids.
Poets
Notable poets of the pre-Islamic period were Abu Layla al-Muhalhel and Al-Shanfara. There were also the poets of the Mu'allaqat, or "the suspended ones", a group of poems said to have been on display in Mecca. These poets are Imru' al-Qais, Tarafah ibn al-‘Abd, 'Abid ibn al-Abras, Harith ibn Hilliza, Amr ibn Kulthum, Zuhayr ibn Abi Sulma, Al-Nabigha al-Dhubiyānī, Antara Ibn Shaddad, al-A'sha al-Akbar, and Labīd ibn Rabī'ah.Al-Khansa stood out in her poetry of rithā' or elegy. al-Hutay'ah was prominent for his madīh, or "panegyric", as well as his, or "invective".
Prose
As literature was transmitted orally and not written, prose represents little of what has been passed down. The main forms were parables, speeches, and stories.Quss Ibn Sa'ida al-Iyadi was a notable Arab ruler, writer, and orator. Aktham ibn Sayfi was also one of the most famous rulers of the Arabs, as well as one of their most renowned speech-givers.
The Qur'an
The Qur'an, the main holy book of Islam, is believed by Muslims to be divine revelation from God to Muhammad, and later, canonized by Uthman. The Quran had a significant influence on the Arabic language, and marked the beginning of Islamic literature. Muslims believe it was transcribed in the Arabic dialect of the Quraysh, the tribe of Muhammad. As Islam spread, the Quran was used to help unify and standardize Arabic.The Quran is the earliest surviving Arabic literature, with 114 surahs containing 6,236 ayat. It is presented in the divine voice, and covers genres including injunction, narrative, parable, law, and more. Surahs are classified as Meccan or Medinan depending on if they were produced in Mecca or Medina, before or after the Hijra. The genre of the Quran is a matter of debate, considered by some to be homily. It has also been compared to, and sometimes considered, a form of pre-Islamic rhymed prose called Saj. According to the Islamic doctrine of i'jaz, inspired by verses in the Quran itself the style of the Quran is not replicable, which has led to the challenge of producing imitations of the Quran. Some Muslims believe that trying to imitate the Quran is forbidden according to Quran 26:224-227.
Rashidi
Under the Rashidun, or the "rightly guided caliphs," literary centers developed in the Hijaz, in cities such as Mecca and Medina; in the Levant, in Damascus; and in Iraq, in Kufa and Basra. Literary production—and poetry in particular—in this period served the spread of Islam. There was also poetry to praise brave warriors, to inspire soldiers in jihad, and rithāThere was also poetry for entertainment often in the form of ghazal. Notables of this movement were Jamil ibn Ma'mar, Layla al-Akhyaliyya, and Umar Ibn Abi Rabi'ah.
Umayyad
The First Fitna, which created the Shia–Sunni split over the rightful caliph, had a great impact on Arabic literature. Whereas Arabic literature—along with Arab society—was greatly centralized in the time of Muhammad and the Rashidun, it became fractured at the beginning of the period of the Umayyad Caliphate, as power struggles led to tribalism. Arabic literature at this time reverted to its state in al-Jahiliyyah, with markets such as Kinasa near Kufa and near Basra, where poetry in praise and admonishment of political parties and tribes was recited. Poets and scholars found support and patronage under the Umayyads, but the literature of this period was limited in that it served the interests of parties and individuals, and as such was not a free art form.Notable writers of this political poetry include Al-Akhtal al-Taghlibi, Jarir ibn Atiyah, Al-Farazdaq, Al-Kumayt ibn Zayd al-Asadi,, and.
There were also poetic forms of rajaz—mastered by and —and ar-Rā'uwīyyāt, or "pastoral poetry"—mastered by and Dhu ar-Rumma.
Abbasid
The Abbasid period is generally recognized as the beginning of the Islamic Golden Age, and was a time of significant literary production. The House of Wisdom in Baghdad hosted numerous scholars and writers such as Al-Jahiz and Omar Khayyam. A number of stories in the One Thousand and One Nights feature the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid. Al-Hariri of Basra was a notable literary figure of this period.Some of the important poets in were: Bashshar ibn Burd, Abu Nuwas, Abu-l-'Atahiya, Muslim ibn al-Walid, Abbas Ibn al-Ahnaf, and.
Andalusi
was produced in Al-Andalus, or Islamic Iberia, from its Muslim conquest in 711 to either the Catholic conquest of Granada in 1492 or the Expulsion of the Moors ending in 1614. Ibn Abd Rabbih's Al-ʿIqd al-Farīd and Ibn Tufail's Hayy ibn Yaqdhan were influential works of literature from this tradition. Notable literary figures of this period include Ibn Hazm, Ziryab, Ibn Zaydun, Wallada bint al-Mustakfi, Al-Mu'tamid ibn Abbad, Ibn Bajja, Al-Bakri, Ibn Rushd, Hafsa bint al-Hajj al-Rukuniyya, Ibn Tufail, Ibn Arabi, Ibn Quzman, Abu al-Baqa ar-Rundi, and Ibn al-Khatib. The muwashshah and zajal were important literary forms in al-Andalus.The rise of Arabic literature in al-Andalus occurred in dialogue with the golden age of Jewish culture in Iberia. Most Jewish writers in al-Andalus—while incorporating elements such as rhyme, meter, and themes of classical Arabic poetry—created poetry in Hebrew, but Samuel ibn Naghrillah, Joseph ibn Naghrela, and Ibn Sahl al-Isra'ili wrote poetry in Arabic. Maimonides wrote his landmark Dalãlat al-Hā'irīn in Arabic using the Hebrew alphabet.
Maghrebi
founded al-Qarawiyiin University in Fes in 859, recognised as the first university in the world. Particularly from the beginning of the 12th century, with sponsorship from the Almoravid dynasty, the university played an important role in the development of literature in the region, welcoming scholars and writers from throughout the Maghreb, al-Andalus, and the Mediterranean Basin. Among the scholars who studied and taught there were Ibn Khaldoun, al-Bitruji, Ibn Hirzihim, Ibn al-Khatib, and Al-Wazzan as well as the Jewish theologian Maimonides. Sufi literature played an important role in literary and intellectual life in the region from this early period, such as Muhammad al-Jazuli's book of prayers Dala'il al-Khayrat.The Zaydani Library, the library of the Saadi Sultan Zidan Abu Maali, was stolen by Spanish privateers in the 16th century and kept at the El Escorial Monastery.
Mamluk
During the Mamluk Sultanate, Ibn Abd al-Zahir and Ibn Kathir were notable writers of history.Ottoman
Significant poets of Arabic literature in the time of the Ottoman Empire included, Al-Busiri author of "Al-Burda", Ibn al-Wardi, Safi al-Din al-Hilli, and Ibn Nubata.Abd al-Ghani al-Nabulsi wrote on various topics including theology and travel.
Nahda
During the 19th century, a revival took place in Arabic literature, along with much of Arabic culture, and is referred to in Arabic as "al-Nahda", which means "the renaissance". There was a strand of neoclassicism in the Nahda, particularly among writers such as Tahtawi, Shidyaq, Yaziji, and Muwaylihi, who believed in the iḥyāʾ "reanimation" of Arabic literary heritage and tradition.The translation of foreign literature was a major element of the Nahda period. An important translator of the 19th century was Rifa'a al-Tahtawi, who founded the School of Languages in 1835 in Cairo. In the 20th century, Jabra Ibrahim Jabra, a Palestinian-Iraqi intellectual living mostly in Bagdad, translated works by William Shakespeare, Oscar Wilde, Samuel Beckett or William Faulkner, among many others.
This resurgence of new writing in Arabic was confined mainly to cities in Syria, Egypt and Lebanon until the 20th century, when it spread to other countries in the region. This cultural renaissance was not only felt within the Arab world, but also beyond, with a growing interest in translating of Arabic works into European languages. Although the use of the Arabic language was revived, particularly in poetry, many of the tropes of the previous literature, which served to make it so ornate and complicated, were dropped.
Just as in the 8th century, when a movement to translate ancient Greek and other literature had helped vitalise Arabic literature, another translation movement during this period would offer new ideas and material for Arabic literature. An early popular success was The Count of Monte Cristo, which spurred a host of historical novels on similar Arabic subjects. Jurji Zaydan and Niqula Haddad were important writers of this genre.