al-Qawafi lil-Tanukhi
- Author died
- 450 AH
- Editions
- Maktabat al-Khānjī
al-Qawafi (The Rhymes) is a classical Arabic treatise on the science of poetic meter and rhyme (ilm al-qawafi) by Abu Ya'la al-Tanukhi (d. c. 450 AH / 1058 CE; also reported as dying close to 488 AH / 1095 CE) .
Subject and Structure
The book presents a systematic examination of the technical rules, phonetic components, and structural variations of Arabic poetic rhyme:
- Definition and Etymology: The author introduces the linguistic derivation of qafiyah, explaining that it denotes following behind something (qafawtu al-athar), as in the nape or back of the head (qafiyat al-ra's), citing the Prophetic tradition: يعقد الشيطان على قافية رأس أحدكم... ثلاث عقد ("Satan ties three knots at the back of the head of any one of you...") . He notes that the term was transferred from general usage to designate specific metrical terminations in versified speech .
- Rhyme Placements and Couplet Dynamics: The work identifies two positions for rhyme within a poetic line: an obligatory position (luzum) at the close of the second hemistich (darb) and a recommended position (istihbab) at the close of the opening hemistich (arud) . It details conventions including taqfiyah (matching the meter and rhyme of the first hemistich to the second without altering its form), tasri', iq'ad, takhmigh, and waqf .
- Constituent Letters (Lawazim al-Qafiyah): The text classifies the essential rhyme letters into five categories: al-ta'sis, al-ridf, al-rawiyy, al-wasl, and al-khuruj . The author observes that ancient pre-Islamic poets initially recognized only the primary rhyme consonant (al-rawiyy), citing verses by al-Nabighah al-Dhubyani, and details the linguistic derivation of rawiyy from al-riwa' (a binding rope) or from the transmission of verse (riwayah) .
- Structural Classification of Rhymes: Rhymes are divided into restricted (muqayyad, ending in a vowelless consonant) and absolute (mutlaq, ending in a vowelled consonant) forms . The restricted class is subdivided into three types (mu'assas, murdif, and mujarrad), while the absolute class comprises six distinct configurations based on combinations with al-wasl and al-khuruj .
Critical Positions and Methodology
Throughout the work, Abu Ya'la al-Tanukhi substantiates his arguments with citations from classical Arabic poetry and engages critically with earlier grammarians and prosodists . In discussing the rules governing the ridf letter, he records that Sibawayh prohibited placing a short fathah before an underlying waw or ya', but he disputes Sibawayh's strictness by presenting poetic attestations where poets applied that vocalization, citing the prosodist Abu Bakr al-Khazzaz al-'Arudi in support .
Modern Editions
al-Qawafi has been published in multiple critical editions:
- An edition edited by 'Umar al-As'ad and Muhyi al-Din Ramadan, published by Dar al-Irshad in Beirut (1970) under the attribution Ibn Abi Ya'la al-Tanukhi .
- An edition edited by 'Awni 'Abd al-Ra'uf, published by Matba'at al-Hadarah al-'Arabiyyah in Cairo (1975) .
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