Mukhtarat Shuara al-Arab li-Ibn al-Shajari
- Author died
- 542 AH
- Editions
- Maṭbaʿat al-Iʿtimād
Mukhtarat Shuara al-Arab (Selected Poems of the Arabs) is a classical anthology of early Arabic poetry compiled by the grammarian and philologist Ibn al-Shajari (450–542 AH / 1058–1147 CE; another report gives his birth year as 405 AH) . It gathers complete odes and poetic selections primarily from pre-Islamic (Jahili) and early Islamic (Mukhadram) poets, accompanied by the compiler's own linguistic commentary and vocalization .
Scope and Structure
The work comprises fifty odes along with several shorter fragments, functioning in parts like concise diwans for selected poets . Unlike Ibn al-Shajari's thematic anthology al-Hamasa, which arranges poems by subject headings such as bravery and elegies, Mukhtarat Shuara al-Arab is structured into three main sections (aqsam) organized around entire odes and specific poets :
- The First Section: Contains twelve odes by ten poets: Laqit ibn Ya'mar (his ode rhyming in 'ayn), Qa'nab ibn Umm Sahib (rhyming in nun), A'sha Bahila (rhyming in ra'), Hatim al-Ta'i (rhyming in mim), Bashama ibn al-Ghadir (rhyming in lam), al-Namir ibn Tawlab (rhyming in mim), al-Shanfara (his Lamiyyat al-Arab), Ka'b ibn Sa'd al-Ghanawi (rhyming in ba'), al-Mutalammis (two odes, rhyming in mim and sin), and Tarafa ibn al-'Abd (two odes, rhyming in ra' and mim) .
- The Second Section: Contains twenty-five odes dedicated to three prominent pre-Islamic poets: Zuhayr ibn Abi Sulma (seven odes), Bishr ibn Abi Khazim, and 'Ubayd ibn al-Abras (twelve odes) .
- The Third Section: Contains selections from the diwan of the Mukhadram poet al-Hutay'a, comprising thirteen odes .
Manuscripts and Publication
An autograph manuscript copied by Ibn al-Shajari, dated to the year of his death in 542 AH, was preserved in the Khedivial Library in Cairo . Other manuscript copies are held in libraries including the Berlin State Library and Princeton University Library .
The work was first printed as a lithograph in Cairo in 1306 AH (1888–1889 CE) with full vocalization and marginal commentary . It was subsequently edited by Mahmud Hasan Zanati (Cairo, 1344 AH / 1925 CE), by Ali Muhammad al-Bijawi (Cairo, 1975 CE), and by Nu'mat Muhammad Amin Taha (Riyadh/Cairo, 1399 AH / 1979 CE) .
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