Quick Facts
- Persian:
- “quatrain”
- Plural:
- robāʿiyyāt
- Also spelled:
- rubaiyat
- Arabic:
- rubāʿī
- Plural:
- rubāʿiyyat
Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies.
Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
robāʿī
Islamic literature
Also known as: robāīyāt, rubāʿī, rubāʿīyat, rubaii
robāʿī, in Persian literature, genre of poetry consisting of a quatrain with the rhyme scheme aaba. Together with the mas̄navī (rhymed couplet), it is a purely Persian poetic genre and not a borrowing from the Arabic, as were the formal ode (qaṣīdah) and the love lyric (ghazal). It was adopted and used in other countries under Persian influence.
The examples of the robāʿī best known in the West are the robāʿiyyāt of Omar Khayyam, in the very free adaptation, selection, and translation by Edward FitzGerald, The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Zeidan.
Discover how ordinary objects work, and expand your understanding of the familiar.
" height="20" alt="HEW Logo">
By clicking "Sign Up", you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.