al-Shanfarā
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Al-Shanfarā was an outlaw warrior and poet from pre-Islamic Arabia, known for his lāmiyyah (a poem rhyming in the letter 'l'). His verses vividly depict the harsh realities of desert life, emphasizing ideals of bravery, revenge, and hospitality. Some scholars suggest his lāmiyyah might be a forgery by a later grammarian, raising questions about the authenticity of much pre-Islamic poetry. He is categorized among the shuʿlūk ("brigand") poets who adopted an anticommunal persona, living in solitude in the desert.12
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Arabic literaturePoetry…Evil in His Armpit”) and al-Shanfarā are among the best known of the ṣuʿlūk poets.
Read More…Evil in His Armpit”) and al-Shanfarā are among the best known of the ṣuʿlūk poets.
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…ode of the brigand poet al-Shanfarā was known as Lāmiyyat al-ʿArab (literally, “The L-Poem of the Arabs”). Even when, beginning about the 9th century, the works of poets were habitually collected under different categories, it was still common to refer to famous odes by their rhyming syllable; thus the Nūniyyah…
Read More…ode of the brigand poet al-Shanfarā was known as Lāmiyyat al-ʿArab (literally, “The L-Poem of the Arabs”). Even when, beginning about the 9th century, the works of poets were habitually collected under different categories, it was still common to refer to famous odes by their rhyming syllable; thus the Nūniyyah…
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Islamic artsPoetry…poems by Taʾabbaṭa Sharran and al-Shanfarā, both outlaw warriors. Their verses reveal the wildness of Bedouin life, with its ideals of bravery, revenge, and hospitality. Taʾabbaṭa Sharran is the author of a widely translated “Song of Revenge” (for his uncle), composed in a short, sharp metre. Shanfarā’s lāmiyyah (literally “poem…
Read More…poems by Taʾabbaṭa Sharran and al-Shanfarā, both outlaw warriors. Their verses reveal the wildness of Bedouin life, with its ideals of bravery, revenge, and hospitality. Taʾabbaṭa Sharran is the author of a widely translated “Song of Revenge” (for his uncle), composed in a short, sharp metre. Shanfarā’s lāmiyyah (literally “poem…
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