Kitāb ʿuyūn al-akhbār
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The Kitāb ʿuyūn al-akhbār (Book of Choice Narratives) is a significant work by the 9th-century Arab writer Ibn Qutaybah. This collection of adab studies is valued for its rich examples from history, poetry, and proverbs. The book explores various themes, including the authority of rulers, the conduct of war, nobility, character, eloquence, and friendship. Ibn Qutaybah was known for his simple and accessible Arabic prose style. His work contributed to the development of adab, a broad category of literature encompassing educational prose and belles-lettres.12
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Arabic literatureVarieties of adab: compilations, anthologies, and manuals…achievement is the multivolume work Kitāb ʿuyūn al-akhbār (“Book of Springs of Information,” or “Book of Choice Narratives”), which, as its title implies, intended to make available to its readers information and anecdote on a wide variety of topics (eloquence, for example, as well as friendship, asceticism, and a final…
Read More…achievement is the multivolume work Kitāb ʿuyūn al-akhbār (“Book of Springs of Information,” or “Book of Choice Narratives”), which, as its title implies, intended to make available to its readers information and anecdote on a wide variety of topics (eloquence, for example, as well as friendship, asceticism, and a final…
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Islamic artsDevelopment of literary proseHis Kitab ʿuyūn al-akhbār (“Book of Choice Narratives”), in 10 books, each dealing with a given subject, provided a model to which numberless essayists in the Muslim world conformed. In his book on poetry and poets, Ibn Qutaybah dared, for the first time, to doubt openly…
Read MoreHis Kitab ʿuyūn al-akhbār (“Book of Choice Narratives”), in 10 books, each dealing with a given subject, provided a model to which numberless essayists in the Muslim world conformed. In his book on poetry and poets, Ibn Qutaybah dared, for the first time, to doubt openly…
Read More