Ibn Durayd

Ibn Durayd (223–321 AH / 838–933 CE) was a prominent Arab philologist, lexicographer, genealogist, and poet from Basra, best known for his comprehensive Arabic dictionary Jamharat al-Lugha and his celebrated ode al-Maqsura Majallat Jamiat Umm al-Qu…+1.

Lineage and Early Life

His full name was Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn al-Hasan ibn Durayd ibn ʿAtahiyya al-Azdi al-Basri Majallat Jamiat Umm al-Qu…+1. He traced his lineage through the Qahtanite tribe of Azd Mujam al-Shuara al-Arab+1. He was born in Basra in 223 AH (with another report giving 213 AH) into a wealthy and prominent family, where he began his early education in language and the transmission of pre-Islamic poetry Majallat Jamiat Umm al-Qu…+1. Following the outbreak of the Zanj Rebellion in Basra in Shawwal 257 AH, he departed with his uncle al-Husayn ibn Durayd to Oman, where he resided for twelve years al-Mawsua al-Tarikhiyya+1.

Travels and Career

Ibn Durayd later returned to Basra and traveled across the maritime islands between Iraq and Fars in pursuit of Arabic philological lore and poetry Majallat Jamiat Umm al-Qu…+1. He subsequently entered the service of the governors of Fars, the Banu Mikal—namely ʿAbd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Mikal and his son Abu al-ʿAbbas Ismaʿil—serving as the tutor of Abu al-ʿAbbas and head of the administrative chancery (dīwān) of Fars, where official edicts were not issued without his authorization al-Mawsua al-Tarikhiyya+1. During his tenure under the Banu Mikal, he dedicated his lexicon Jamharat al-Lugha to them and composed his panegyric poem al-Maqsura in their honor, earning substantial wealth that he was known to disburse generously Mujam al-Matbuat al-Arabi…+1. Following the removal of the Banu Mikal from office, he relocated in his old age to Baghdad, where the Abbasid caliph al-Muqtadir allocated him a monthly pension of fifty dinars, and he remained there teaching until his death Mujam al-Shuara al-Arab+1.

Education, Teachers, and Students

Ibn Durayd studied Arabic grammar, lexicography, and poetry under several of the foremost authorities of the Basran school, including Abu Hatim al-Sijistani, al-Riyashi, Abd al-Rahman (the nephew of al-Asma'i), Abu Uthman al-Ushnandani, and Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Sufyan al-Ziyadi Majallat Jamiat Umm al-Qu…+1.

A large number of scholars transmitted from him and attended his dictation sessions, among them Abu Sa'id al-Sirafi, Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani, Abu Ubayd Allah al-Marzubani, Abu Bakr ibn Shadhan, Ibn Khalawayh, and his patron Abu al-Abbas Ismail ibn Mikal Siyar Aalam al-Nubala+1.

Scholarly Standing and Reception

Ibn Durayd was widely recognized as the supreme authority in Basran philology of his era, with contemporaries stating that the linguistic knowledge of the Basrans culminated in him Majallat Jamiat Umm al-Qu…+1. He was celebrated for combining mastery of linguistic scholarship with exceptional poetic eloquence, giving rise to the popular appraisal: "Ibn Durayd was the most knowledgeable of poets and the most poetical of scholars" Majallat Jamiat Umm al-Qu…+1. Al-Mas'udi observed that in Baghdad, Ibn Durayd occupied the standing that al-Khalil ibn Ahmad had held in lexicography and recorded linguistic material not preserved in the writings of earlier authorities Wafayat al-Ayan. In onomastics, he composed al-Ishtiqaq, explaining the semantic and genealogical derivations of Arab tribal names Mujam al-Shuara al-Arab+1. His contemporaries also praised his prodigious memory; Ahmad ibn Yusuf al-Azraq remarked that whenever a poetic collection was recited in his presence, Ibn Durayd would recite ahead of the reader from memory Siyar Aalam al-Nubala.

Notwithstanding his scholarly acclaim, some contemporaries and traditionists voiced reservations concerning his personal conduct and drinking habits al-Bidaya wa al-Nihaya+1. Abu Mansur al-Azhari recounted visiting him, finding him intoxicated, and consequently declining to return to him, while Ibn Shahin noted seeing musical instruments and wine vessels in his home in his advanced old age al-Bidaya wa al-Nihaya+1. When asked about his reliability, al-Daraqutni stated that scholars had spoken critically regarding him al-Bidaya wa al-Nihaya+1.

Death

Ibn Durayd died in Baghdad on a Wednesday with twelve nights remaining in Shaʿban 321 AH (933 CE), at the age of ninety-eight (with other reports placing his death in Ramadan or Rajab of that year, or giving his age as 108) al-Bidaya wa al-Nihaya+1. His death coincided with that of the Mu'tazila theologian Abu Hashim al-Jubba'i; both funeral prayers were performed together on a rainy day, and they were buried in the Khayzuran cemetery in Baghdad, prompting observers to say: "Today died the scholar of language and the scholar of theology" al-Bidaya wa al-Nihaya. The poet Jahzah al-Barmaki composed an elegy mourning his loss Siyar Aalam al-Nubala.