History and Memory in the Abbasid Caliphate: Writing the Past in Medieval Arabic Literature

Description

Abu Bakr al-Suli was a noted polymath and table companion in the courts of three Abbasid caliphs. In addition to his work as observer of the court, he is perhaps best known for his poetry - which would have a long-lasting influence on Arabic literature - historiographical insight and skill as a chess player. Letizia Osti here provides the first full-length English-language study devoted to al-Suli. In so doing, she sheds light onto broader questions, such as: How did the Abbasid court make sense of the past? What was the importance of written culture? And book collecting? What does ‘historiography’ mean in a medieval Islamic context? Cover Halftitle page Series page Title page Copyright page Dedication Contents Acknowledgements Transliteration and Translation Map Introduction Timeline of al-Sụ̄lī’s life 1 Life and Afterlife ‘Biography’ Using biography Where: the pervasiveness of al-Sụ̄lī What’s in a profile? The power of stories Person or persona? 2 In his own Words Terminological traps Motivations, intended readers and time Al-Sụ̄lī’s voice ‘Der blosse Lebenslauf’ and beyond Rights and wrongs Person, persona and an arc 3 In his own Time The classroom The court years The legacy of notebooks Networks and texts 4 In his own Books Career path The well-organized mind The well-organized life A well-organized time 5 Insight and Hindsight The clueless observer Persuasion Access The vain memorialist Conclusion Notes Bibliography Index