Al-Maqqarı's Ziryab: The Making of a Myth
sankarr 8/8/08 CAME_A_ (XML) Middle Eastern Literatures, Vol. 11, No. 2, August Al-Maqqarı’s Ziry ab: The Making of a Myth DWIGHT F. REYNOLDS Abstract This essay compares al-Maqqarı’s well-known seventeenth-century biography of the famous singer Ziryab with its eleventh-century source text, Kit ab al-Muqtabis, composed by the Andalusian writer Ibn Hayyan. Ibn Hayyan’s text is a complex work with parallel, ˙ ˙ sometimes contradictory, quotations from seven different sources, all of which were melded into a single narrative voice in al-Maqqarı’s text. Close analysis reveals that al-Maqqarı systematically eliminated all passages that shed unflattering light on Ziryab, including references to rival singers, the achievements of his own children, off-colour jokes of which Ziryab was the butt, and anecdotes where he was portrayed in an undignified manner. Al-Maqqarı drew heavily on one of the sources quoted by Ibn Hayyan, the anonymous Kit ab Akhb ar Ziry ab. The essay concludes by offering a theory ˙ as to the identity of author of the Kit ab Akhb ar Ziry ab and the motivations of that author and al-Maqqarı for their ‘
A Musician Slave Changed Fashion, Music, and Dining in the Middle Ages
Abul-Hasan Ali Ibn Nafi, also known as Ziryab, was one of the greatest innovators of his era yet his name is forgotten by all but the most fanatical lovers of history. He was a true Renaissance Man but lived hundreds of years before the cultural growth of that period. Ziryab was born in either Baghdad or Mosul in AD and was probably African or African-Arab. According to several Arab historians, he was a freed slave, and his family had served Al-Mahdi, the caliph of the Abbasid Dynasty, until Al-Mahdi’s death in
He was given the nickname ‘Ziryab,’ which means blackbird, because of the color of his skin and his melodious voice. He had exceptional knowledge in a variety of fields including geography, astrology, botany and even fashion amongst other things. Ziryab was centuries ahead of his time and was clearly head and shoulders above his contemporaries.
The Musical Maestro
Ziryab’s main talent was as a musician, and he trained under the tutelage of an exceptional teacher called Ishaq al-Mawsili. At that time, Baghdad was the music, art and cultural center of the Muslim world, s
Ziryab: The cultural icon of al-Andalus
Creative Commons via Wikimedia Commons
CAIRO May Culture is often a difficult topic to study historically. How did present-day cultures develop? What other regions and times have affected our modern-day cultures? How were ancient cultures different from our own?
One of the best ways to address such questions is to look at some of the cultural giants of the past. One of these giants was a Muslim man who lived in al-Andalus (Muslim Spain) in the s. He was affectionately known as Ziryab and he revolutionized everything from fashion, to dining, to music, to hairstyles, to hygiene. He was one of the greatest cultural icons of the Middle Ages and the impact he had is still felt in the world today.
Music and Origins
Ziryab’s birth name was Abu al-Hassan. He was born in , but his place of birth is debated. Historians throughout the ages have claimed him to be Arab, Persian, Kurdish, and Black African. No doubt this confusion exists as each group wants to claim him as their own. His nickname of Ziryab means “Blackbird” in Arabic. He got this nickname because of his dark skin and beautiful singing voice.
He was originally
Ziryab, (also spelled as Ziriab or Ziriyab) () was a polymath: a poet, musician, singer,cosmetologist, fashion designer, celebrity, trendsetter, strategist, astronomer, botanist and geographer at the Umayyad court of Córdobain Islamic Spain. He first achieved notoriety at the Abbasid court in Baghdad, as a performer and student of the great musician and composer, Ishaq al-Mawsili. Ziryab was a gifted pupil of Ishaq al-Mawsili. He had to leave Baghdad when his skills as a musician surpassed those of his teacher. He moved to Córdoba in southern Spain and was accepted as court musician in the court of Abd al-Rahman II of the Umayyad Dynasty.
Ziryab left Baghdad some time after the death of the Caliph al-Amîn in and traveled first to Sham (Syria), then to Ifriqiyya (Tunisia), where he lived at the Aghlabid court of Ziyadat Allah (ruled ). Ziryab fell out with Ziyadat Allah but was invited to Al-Andalus by the Umayyad prince, al-Hakam I. He found on arrival in that the prince had died, but the prince's son, Abd ar-Rahman II, renewed his father's invitation. Ziryab settled in Córdoba, where he soon became even more celebrated as the court's aficionado of food, fashion, singing
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