Diwan Ibn Nubata al-Misri
- Author died
- 768 AH
- Editions
- Dār Iḥyā’ al-Turāth al-‘Arabī
Diwan Ibn Nubata al-Misri (The Diwan of Ibn Nubata al-Misri) is the major collection of poetry compiled by the Mamluk-era Egyptian poet and epistolographer Ibn Nubata al-Misri (686–768 AH / 1287–1366 CE; also reported as born in 676 AH / 1277 CE) .
Scope and Contents
The collection contains a broad array of classical poetic forms and themes, comprising long odes as well as shorter verses in panegyric (madih), elegiac verse (ritha'), love lyrics (ghazal), bacchic poetry (khamr), and nature descriptions (wasf al-tabi'a) . A significant portion of the Diwan is dedicated to panegyrics addressed to contemporary rulers, governors, and scholars across Egypt and the Levant, most notably al-Malik al-Mu'ayyad (the ruler of Hama), the Mamluk Sultan al-Nasir Hasan, Chief Judge Taqi al-Din al-Subki, Sayf al-Din, and Nasir al-Din . His panegyric dedicated to al-Subki takes the form of an urjuza incorporating lines from Mulhat al-I'rab . The collection also includes five devotional odes in praise of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ (al-mada'ih al-nabawiyya), one of which was composed on the meter and rhyme of Ka'b ibn Zuhayr's Banat Su'ad .
Alongside his comprehensive grand Diwan, Ibn Nubata organized specific sub-collections drawn from or complementing his verse, including:
- Al-Qatr al-Nubati, dedicated to his short epigrams and poetic snippets (maqati') .
- Suq al-Raqiq, focused on love poetry and ghazals .
- Al-Diwan al-Saghir, also known as al-Mu'ayyadiyyat or Muntakhab al-Hadiyya min al-Mada'ih al-Mu'ayyadiyya, containing his selected panegyrics for al-Malik al-Mu'ayyad .
Poetic Style and Themes
Ibn Nubata's style in the Diwan followed the literary traditions exemplified by al-Qadi al-Fadil . His verse is characterized by delicate phrasing, refined imagery, and extensive use of rhetorical figures (badi'), particularly double entendre (tawriya), literary allusion (talmih), and antithesis (tibaq) . Critics regarded him as reaching an unmatched degree of delicacy and expressive harmony among the poets of Egypt and the Levant in his era .
Reception and Influence
Ibn Nubata's poetry enjoyed widespread acclaim during the eighth century AH, and he was regarded as the foremost poet of his generation, vying with Safi al-Din al-Hilli for poetic primacy . Contemporary poets composed numerous contrafactions (mu'aradat) of his odes . His extensive use of intricate puns and motifs led to literary friction; he accused his contemporary al-Salah al-Safadi of appropriating his original concepts and tawriya devices, dedicating his treatise Khubz al-Sha'ir to documenting these alleged borrowings . Later anthologists and rhetoricians, including Ibn Hijja al-Hamawi in Khizanat al-Adab, cited Ibn Nubata's verses extensively as models of rhetorical excellence .
Publication History
The Diwan was preserved across numerous manuscript copies and saw several early print editions in Egypt and Beirut . Notable early printings include an edition produced by al-Matba'a al-Wataniyya in Cairo (1288 AH), an edition in Beirut (1304 AH / 1886 CE), and a subsequent Cairo edition by Matba'at al-Tamaddun (1323 AH / 1905 CE) .
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