History and Memory in the Abbasid Caliphate: Writing the Past in Medieval Arabic Literature PDF
Preview History and Memory in the Abbasid Caliphate: Writing the Past in Medieval Arabic Literature
History and Memory in the Abbasid Caliphate i Th e Early and Medieval Islamic World Published in collaboration with the Society for the Medieval Mediterranean As recent scholarship resoundingly attests, the medieval Mediterranean and Middle East bore witness to a prolonged period of fl ourishing intellectual and cultural diversity. Seeking to contribute to this ever-more nuanced and contextual picture, Th e Early and Medieval Islamic World book series promotes innovative research on the period 500–1500 ad with the Islamic world, as it ebbed and fl owed from Marrakesh to Palermo and Cairo to Kabul, as the central pivot. Th ematic focus within this remit is broad, from the cultural and social to the political and economic, with preference given to studies of societies and cultures from a socio-historical perspective. It will foster a community of unique voices on the medieval Islamic world, shining light into its lesser-studied corners. Series editor Professor Roy Mottahedeh, Harvard University Advisors Professor Amira Bennison, University of Cambridge Professor Farhad Daft ary, Institute of Ismaili Studies Professor Simon Doubleday, Hofstra University Professor Frank Griff el, Yale University Professor Remke Kruk, Leiden University Professor Beatrice Manz, Tuft s University Dr Bernard O’Kane, American University in Cairo Professor Andrew Peacock, University of St Andrews Dr Yossef Rapoport, Queen Mary University of London ii New and forthcoming titles Cross Veneration in the Medieval Islamic World: Christian Identity and Practice under Muslim Rule, Charles Tieszen (Fuller Th eological Seminary/ Simpson University) Power and Knowledge in Medieval Islam: Shiʾ i and Sunni Encounters in Baghdad , Tariq al-Jamil (Swathmore College) Th e Eastern Frontier: Limits of Empire in Late Antique and Early Medieval Central Asia, Robert Haug (University of Cincinnati) Writing History in the Medieval Islamic World: Th e Value of Chronicles as Archives , Fozia Bora (University of Leeds) Narrating Muslim Sicily: War and Peace in the Medieval Mediterranean World, William Granara (Harvard University) Gender and Succession in Medieval Islam: Bilateral Descent and the Legacy of Fatima , Alyssa Gabbay (Th e University of North Carolina at Greensboro) Music and Musicians in the Medieval Islamicate World: A Social History, Lisa Nielson (Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, USA) Roma in the Medieval Islamic World: Th e History of a People, Kristina Richardson (City University, New York) History and Memory in the Abbasid Caliphate: Writing the Past in Medieval Arabic Literature , Letizia Osti (University of Milan) iii History and Memory in the Abbasid Caliphate Writing the Past in Medieval Arabic Literature Letizia Osti v I.B. TAURIS Bloomsbury Publishing Plc 50 Bedford Square, London, WC1B 3DP, UK 1385 Broadway, New York, NY 10018, USA 29 Earlsfort Terrace, Dublin 2, Ireland BLOOMSBURY, I.B. TAURIS and the I.B. Tauris logo are trademarks of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc First published in Great Britain 2022 Copyright © Letizia Osti, 2022 Letizia Osti has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identifi ed as Author of this work. For legal purposes the Acknowledgements on p. x constitute an extension of this copyright page. Series design by www.paulsmithdesign.com Cover image: Kitab fi al-shatranj wa-mansubatihi wa-mulahih [15v] (39/276), British Library: Oriental Manuscripts, Add MS 7515, Qatar Digital Library All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc does not have any control over, or responsibility for, any third-party websites referred to or in this book. All internet addresses given in this book were correct at the time of going to press. The author and publisher regret any inconvenience caused if addresses have changed or sites have ceased to exist, but can accept no responsibility for any such changes. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. ISBN: HB: 978-1-7883-1923-2 ePDF: 978-1-8386-0057-0 eBook: 978-1-8386-0056-3 Series: Early and Medieval Islamic World Typeset by Refi neCatch Limited, Bungay, Suffolk To fi nd out more about our authors and books visit www.bloomsbury.com and sign up for our newsletters . vi a Dina e Piero vii Contents Acknowledgements xi Transliteration and Translation xii Introduction 1 1 Life and Aft erlife 9 ‘Biography’ 9 Using biography 12 Where: the pervasiveness of al- S ụ̄ l ī 15 What’s in a profi le? 19 Th e power of stories 25 Person or persona? 37 2 In his own Words 39 Terminological traps 39 Motivations, intended readers and time 42 Al- S ụ̄ l ī ’s voice 45 ‘Der blosse Lebenslauf’ and beyond 50 Rights and wrongs 51 Person, persona and an arc 53 3 In his own Time 55 Th e classroom 58 Th e court years 65 Th e legacy of notebooks 74 Networks and texts 80 4 In his own Books 83 Career path 86 Th e well-organized mind 90 Th e well-organized life 94 A well-organized time 95 ix
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