Khalq al-Insan
- Author died
- 216 AH
- Editions
- Khalq al-Insan
Khalq al-Insan (The Creation/Physique of Man) is an early Arabic thematic lexical treatise authored by the Basran philologist al-Asma'i (d. 216 AH / 831 CE), documenting classical Arabic vocabulary related to human development, physical traits, and anatomy.
Scope and Structure
The treatise classifies Arabic terms for the human body and the stages of human life. It opens with a section on pregnancy, childbirth, and infancy (mā yudhkaru min haml al-mar'a wa-wilādatihā wal-mawlūd), detailing terminology for conception, pregnancy symptoms, stages of gestation, fetal movement, labor, delivery, nursing, and the conditions of newborns.
The work proceeds to chart the sequence of human aging (mā yudhkaru min taqallub ahwāl al-insān), providing specific designations for an individual from infancy and childhood (walīd, tifl, fatīm), through youth and puberty (yafa', hālim), full adulthood and maturity (kahl, saml), up to senescence and decrepitude (shaykh, qahm, haram, kharaf).
The text then examines comprehensive descriptors for the overall form, stature, and silhouette of the human person (shakhs, talal, āl, samāma, amah). Following this, it provides detailed treatments of specific anatomical parts and their physical attributes, including:
- The eye (al-'ayn), detailing the globe (muqla), pupil (hadaqa), sight center (nāzir), eyelids (ajfān), eyelashes (hudb), eye corners (lahāz, mūq), and distinct visual conditions.
- The mouth, teeth, molars, neck, chest, arms, and extremities, noting specific terms for bone structures, joints, and physical defects.
Methodology and Sources
al-Asma'i's method relies on recording authentic Bedouin usage alongside classical Arabic poetic evidence (shawāhid). He cites verses from pre-Islamic and early Islamic poets—including al-'Ajjaj, Ru'ba ibn al-'Ajjaj, Dhu al-Rumma, Abu Dhu'ayb al-Hudhali, Aws ibn Hajar, and al-Mutanakhkhil al-Hudhali—to corroborate morphological derivations, vocalizations, and precise semantic nuances. The book also records morphological patterns, dialectal variants (such as differing vocalizations and Hamza usage), and anatomical counts, such as his enumeration of the human teeth and molars.
Reception and Transmission
Khalq al-Insan is cited in classical bibliographical works, including the Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadim and the biographical compendia of al-Safadi and al-Suyuti, as one of al-Asma'i's standard topical monographs. The work served as a primary source for subsequent lexicographers compiling thematic vocabularies on human anatomy, including Abu Ubayd al-Qasim ibn Sallam in his al-Gharib al-Musannaf, Ibn al-Sikkit, and Ibn Qutaybah. Subsequent scholars, such as Ibn al-Sayyid al-Batalyawsi, directly discussed and evaluated al-Asma'i's specific classifications and anatomical definitions in their commentaries. The treatise was published in modern print, including within early twentieth-century lexicographical collections edited by August Haffner.
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