al-Mukhtar min Shi'r Shu'ara' al-Andalus
- Author died
- 542 AH
- Editions
- Dar al-Bashir
al-Mukhtar min Shi'r Shu'ara' al-Andalus (Selections from the Poetry of the Poets of al-Andalus) is an Arabic poetic anthology compiled by the Egyptian Fatimid chancery head and historian Ibn al-Sayrafi (463–542 AH / 1071–1147 CE) .
Background and Purpose
In the opening of the work, Ibn al-Sayrafi divides the study of eloquence into poetry and prose, noting historical disagreements over their relative superiority . He argues from a stance of fairness that literary virtues and fine talents are neither limited to specific geographic regions nor restricted to earlier epochs . Although the fourth clime is conventionally regarded as the most favored, he contends that this does not deprive other lands and ages of their own distinct creative merits . Having examined Andalusian poetry across two eras and finding its excellence undeniable, he assembled the anthology to record the verses that were accessible to him .
Contents
The anthology preserves selections of Andalusian verse alongside contextual historical and literary accounts . Among its contents are poetic descriptions and historical narratives surrounding the Abbadid dynasty of Seville, including verse by al-Mu'tamid ibn 'Abbad and poems recited during his captivity in Aghmat . The text also transmits accounts and poems from Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Isa al-Dani, known as Ibn al-Labbana, drawing upon his historical and homiletic work Nazm al-Suluk fi Mawa'iz al-Muluk fi Akhbar al-Dawla al-'Abbadiyya .
Manuscript Transmission and Publication
A manuscript fragment of the anthology—bearing the title al-Mukhtar min Shi'r Shu'ara' al-Andalus al-Mu'asirin—survived in the collection of Hasan Husni Abd al-Wahhab in Tunis, copied in the hand of al-Dannushari . The text was edited by Abd al-Razzaq Husayn and published in one volume by Dar al-Bashir in Amman in 1406 AH / 1985 CE .
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