In this Book
- Classical Arabic Literature: A Library of Arabic Literature Anthology
- Book
- 2012
- Published by: NYU Press
A major translation achievement, this anthology presents a rich assortment of classical Arabic poems and literary prose, from pre-Islamic times until the eighteenth century, with short introductions to guide non-specialist students and informative endnotes and bibliography for advanced scholars. Both entertaining and informative, Classical Arabic Literature ranges from the early Bedouin poems with their evocation of desert life to refined urban lyrical verse, from tender love poetry to sonorous eulogy and vicious lampoon, and from the heights of mystical rapture to the frivolity of comic verse. Prose selections include anecdotes, entertaining or edifying tales and parables, a fairy-tale, a bawdy story, samples of literary criticism, and much more.
With this anthology, distinguished Arabist Geert Jan van Gelder brings together well-known texts as well as less familiar pieces new even to scholars. Classical Arabic Literature reveals the rich variety of pre-modern Arabic social and cultural life, where secular texts flourished alongside religious ones. This masterful anthology introduces this vibrant literary heritage—including pieces translated into English for the first time—to a wide spectrum of new readers.
An English-only edition.
Table of Contents
- Title Page, Copyright, Letter
- pp. i-vi
- Table of Contents
- pp. vii-x
- Acknowledgements
- pp. xi-12
- Abbreviations
- pp. xii-13
- Introduction
- pp. xiii-xxv
- Notes to the Introduction
- pp. xxvi-xxviii
- An Elegy (Marthiyah) by al-Khansāʾ
- pp. 12-14
- A Love Poem by Umm Khālid
- pp. 33-62
- Two Wine Poems by Abū Nuwās
- pp. 40-42
- Ibn al-Rūmī: On His Poetry
- pp. 51-52
- A Panegyric Qaṣīdah by al-Buḥturī
- pp. 58-60
- An Anonymous Muwashshaḥah from Spain
- pp. 69-72
- A Mystical Zajal by al-Shushtarī
- pp. 83-84
- Early Rajaz
- pp. 94-123
- Examples of Early Rhymed Prose (Saj')
- pp. 110-113
- How the Queen of Sheba Became Queen
- pp. 117-118
- Two Stories from Meadows of Gold
- pp. 119-122
- Al-Jahiz on Flies and Other Things
- pp. 176-194
- Prose Narrative: Four Stories
- pp. 225-244
- The Debate of Pen and Sword
- pp. 248-254
- A Fairytale: The Tale of the Forty Girls
- pp. 318-332
- Two Burlesque Stories from Brains Confounded
- pp. 339-344
- Chronology
- pp. 426-428
- Glossary of Names and Terms
- pp. 429-431
- Bibliography
- pp. 432-451
- Further Reading
- pp. 452-456
- About the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute
- pp. 466-496
- About the Typefaces
- pp. 467-497
- About the Translator
- pp. 468-498