Iktifa al-Qanu bima huwa Matbu
- Author died
- 1313 AH
- Editions
- مطبعة التأليف (الهلال)
Iktifa al-Qanu bima huwa Matbu (Sufficiency of the Contented with What Is Printed) is an Arabic bibliographic reference work authored by the American orientalist Edward Cornelius Van Dyck (d. 1313 AH / 1895–1896 CE) documenting Arabic books issued by Eastern and Western printing presses .
Scope and Composition
The book was conceived as a comprehensive bibliography and catalog of ancient and modern Arabic works that had been published in print across the East and West . The author completed its fair copy on 9 September 1896 . The text was corrected, edited, and supplemented by al-Sayyid Muhammad Ali al-Bablawi (d. 1323 AH / 1905 CE), who served as the director of the Egyptian National Library (Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya) and later as the Grand Imam of al-Azhar . It was first published under the title Iktifa al-Qanu bima huwa Matbu min Ashhar al-Ta'alif al-Arabiyya fi al-Matabi' al-Sharqiyya wa-al-Gharbiyya at Matba'at al-Hilal (also known as Matba'at al-Ta'lif) in Cairo in 1313 AH / 1896 CE in approximately 677 to 680 pages .
Structure and Contents
The work consists of an introduction and four main parts (abwab) :
- First Part: Dedicated to European interest in the Arabic language (Fi I'tina al-Ifranj bi-al-Lugha al-Arabiyya), divided into twelve chapters treating the Arabic language, ancient inscriptions, Arabic outside the Arabian Peninsula, modern colloquial Arabic, Arabic in Spain, the beginnings and progression of European Arabic studies, European Arabic lexicons, chrestomathies and reading selections, European grammars of colloquial Arabic, collections of proverbs, and folk tales gathered by Europeans .
- Second Part: The largest section of the book, covering Arabic literature during its flourishing era up to shortly after the fall of Baghdad (Fi al-Adab al-Arabiyya muddat zahwiha). It is divided into five chapters: (1) pre-Islamic poetry; (2) the mukhadramun poets; (3) authentic written literature; (4) prominent Umayyad poets; and (5) the most famous printed books of the classical flourishing era, arranged by scholarly disciplines, along with biographical notices of various authors .
- Third Part: Covers the period of decline following the classical flourishing (Fi zaman al-khafda ba'd al-nahda) .
- Fourth Part: Covers the period of modern awakening following the decline (Fi zaman al-yaqaza ba'd al-khafda), reviewing prominent modern figures and their printed works .
Reception and Editions
The work is considered one of the foundational modern references in Arabic bibliography alongside works such as Youssef Élian Sarkis's Mu'jam al-Matbu'at al-Arabiyya wa-al-Mu'arraba . Sarkis noted that while Van Dyck succeeded in compiling a large portion of early and contemporary printed Arabic literature, the work nevertheless suffered from notable gaps and omissions . Modern scholars have also noted occasional errors in its attribution or descriptions of specific printings .
Following its initial 1896 Cairo printing, the work has been reissued in facsimile reprints by publishers including Dar Sadir in Beirut and Alam al-Kutub .
Answer updated