al-Wahshiyyat = al-Hamasa al-Sughra
- Author died
- 231 AH
- Editions
- Dār al-Maʿārif
al-Wahshiyyat (also known as al-Hamasa al-Sughra, lit. 'The Lesser Hamasa') is an Arabic poetry anthology compiled by the poet Abu Tammam (d. 231 AH / 845 CE), featuring selected verses and rare poems arranged by theme .
Composition and Transmission
The compilation of the anthology is traditionally linked to Abu Tammam's journey to Khurasan to praise the governor Abdullah ibn Tahir . On his return trip to Iraq, he stopped in Hamadhan, where he was hosted by Abu al-Wafa' ibn Salama (also recorded as Ibn Salm) . A heavy snowfall blocked the mountain passes, confining Abu Tammam to the city for the winter, during which his host granted him access to his extensive private library . During this stay, Abu Tammam compiled several poetic anthologies, including his major anthology al-Hamasa and al-Wahshiyyat .
Unlike his primary anthology, al-Hamasa al-Kubra (The Greater Hamasa), Abu Tammam did not formally transmit al-Wahshiyyat orally during his lifetime; rather, it was discovered after his death written as an autograph draft bearing the title Kitab al-Wahshiyyat . Later scholars and copyists referred to it as al-Hamasa al-Sughra by analogy with his primary collection . A manuscript preserved in Istanbul was found inscribed with the title al-Hamasa al-Sughra .
Structure and Content
al-Wahshiyyat was compiled after al-Hamasa al-Kubra and is smaller in size and in the total number of poems and poetic fragments . The collection shares a similar thematic chapter division with the major anthology, beginning with the chapter on valor and martial prowess (Bab al-Hamasa) .
The work is particularly distinguished by its preservation of rare poetic pieces (nawadir al-ash'ar), including selections from lesser-known, obscure, or otherwise unrecorded Arab poets whose verses survived primarily through Abu Tammam's anthological selection .
Modern Editions
In the modern period, al-Wahshiyyat was critically edited by Abd al-Aziz al-Maymani and Mahmud Muhammad Shakir, published in Cairo in 1967 . Another edition was published in two volumes in Tunis in 1991, edited by Taha al-Mukhtar al-Ubaydi .
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