Al-Nābighah (), al-Nābighah al-Dhubiyānī, or Nābighah al-Dhubyānī; real name Ziyad ibn Muawiyah (); was one of the last Arabian poets of pre-

Islamic Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...

times. "Al-Nabigha" means "

genius Genius is a characteristic of original and exceptional insight in the performance of some art or endeavor that surpasses expectations, sets new standards for future works, establishes better methods of operation, or remains outside the capabiliti ...

or intelligent" in Arabic. His tribe, the

Banu Dhubyan Dhubyan or Banu Dhubyan ( ar, بنو ذبيان) are an Arabian tribe of Ghatafan branch, one of the Adnani branches. Banu Dhubyan inhabited the Hijaz region and were mostly Christian. Influential people of Dhubyan *Al-Nabigha References D ...

, belonged to the district near

Mecca Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...

, but he spent most of his time at the courts of

Hirah Al-Hirah ( ar, الحيرة, translit=al-Ḥīra Middle Persian: ''Hērt'' ) was an ancient city in Mesopotamia located south of what is now Kufa in south-central Iraq. History Kingdom of the Lakhmids Al-Hirah was a significant city in pre- I ...

and

Ghassan The Ghassanids ( ar, الغساسنة, translit=al-Ġasāsina, also Banu Ghassān (, romanized as: ), also called the Jafnids, were an Arab tribe which founded a kingdom. They emigrated from southern Arabia in the early 3rd century to the Levan ...

. In

Hira Hira may refer to: Places * Cave of Hira, a cave associated with Muhammad *Al-Hirah, an ancient Arab city in Iraq ** Battle of Hira, 633AD, between the Sassanians and the Rashidun Caliphate *Hira Mountains, Japan * Hira, New Zealand, settlement no ...

he remained under Mundhir III, and then his successor in 562. After a sojourn at the court of Ghassan, he returned to Hirah under

Numan III Numan may refer to: Places * Ma`arat al-Numan, Syria * Numan, Nigeria People * Ahmad Muhammad Numan (1909–1996), twice Prime Minister of the Yemen Arab Republic (1965, 1971) * An-Numan ibn Muqarrin (died 641), a companion of the Islamic proph ...

. Owing to his verses written about the Queen he was compelled to flee to Ghassan, but returned ca., 600. When Numan died five years later he withdrew to his own tribe. His date-of-death is uncertain, but seems to predate Islam. His poems consist largely of eulogies and satires, and are concerned with the strife of Hirah and Ghassan, and of the

Banu Abs ) , type = Ghatafan, Qays, Adnanite , image = Antarah ibn Shaddad & Abla.jpg , image_size = , alt = , caption = , nisba = Al-ʿAbsī , location = Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Eritrea, Kuwait, Jordan, Unite ...

and the Banu Dhubyan. He is one of the six eminent pre-Islamic poets whose poems were collected before the middle of the 2nd century of Islam, and have been regarded as the standard of Arabic poetry; some writers consider him the first of the six. These poets have written long poems comparable to epic poems, known as Muʿallaqat (معلقات) since they were hung on the walls of the Kaaba for all to admire and read. His poems were edited by

Wilhelm Ahlwardt Wilhelm Ahlwardt (4 July 1828, Greifswald – 2 November 1909, Greifswald) was a German Oriental studies, orientalist who specialized in research of Arabic literature. He was the son of philologist Christian Wilhelm Ahlwardt (1760–1830). ...

in the ''Diwans of the Six Ancient Arabic Poets'' (London, 1870), and separately by H. Derenbourg (Paris, 1869, a reprint from the ''Journal asiatique'' for 1868).

References

535 births 604 deaths Arab Christians in Mesopotamia 6th-century Arabic poets Ghatafan {{MEast-poet-stub