Yawmiyat Shamiyya
- Author died
- 1153 AH
- Editions
- Yawmiyat Shamiyya
Yawmiyat Shamiyya (Damascene Diaries) is a historical chronicle by the Damascene Hanbali scholar Ibn Kinan (1074–1153 AH / 1663–1740 CE), documenting daily events, political appointments, and social and scholarly life in Ottoman Damascus.
Title and Composition
The author originally named the work al-Hawadith al-Yawmiyya min Tarikh Ihda 'Ashara wa-Alf wa-Miyyah (Daily Events from the Year One Thousand One Hundred and Eleven). It is also cited under the abbreviated title al-Hawadith al-Yawmiyya (Daily Events). In his introduction, Ibn Kinan notes that he intended the text to compile daily occurrences along with valuable literary selections in prose and verse. According to Khayr al-Din al-Zirikli, the chronicle spans a period of twenty-three years.
Content and Method
The chronicle opens at the beginning of the Hijri year 1111 AH (June 1699 CE). In the preface, Ibn Kinan divides historical reports into three categories: those concerning prophets, rulers, and scholars and dignitaries, emphasizing the moral and didactic value of studying past lives and virtuous conduct.
At the start of the year 1111 AH, he records the governing Ottoman hierarchy, noting the reigning Sultan Mustafa II (Mustafa Khan ibn Muhammad Khan), the Grand Vizier Mustafa Pasha al-Kubrili, the governor (kafil) of Damascus Hasan Pasha al-Silahdar, the judge Ata'ullah Efendi Shuway-Zadah, the Chief Mufti (Mufti al-Rum) Faydullah Efendi, and the Mufti of Damascus Isma'il Efendi ibn al-Hayik.
The chronicle follows a daily diary format, detailing local news, disputes, and judicial appeals in Damascus and neighboring districts such as Baalbek and Tripoli. It also records the author's own intellectual activities and education, including scholarly discussions and texts he read with his teachers, such as Mullah 'Abd al-Rahim al-Kabili, who had settled in Damascus in 1109 AH.
Manuscripts
A manuscript copy of the chronicle under the title al-Hawadith al-Yawmiyya is preserved in the Berlin State Library under shelfmark 9479.
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