'Urwa ibn al-Ward al-'Abasi ( ar, عروة بن الورد; 540–607 CE) was a pre-Islamic Arabic ''
su'luk In early Arabian history, su'luk ( ar, صعلوك; pl. sa'alik ) was a term that can be translated as brigand, brigand-poet, or vagabond. The sa'alik were mostly individuals who had been forced out of their tribes and who lived on the fringes of soc ...
'' poet. He was a member 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 ...
tribe.
Life
Little is known about his life, but he had a reputation for being "the most generous of the ancient Arabs."
Poetry
Urwa was the most prolific of the ''su'luk'' poets.
Yaqub Ibn as-Sikkit
Abū Yūsuf Ya‘qūb Ibn as-Sikkīt () was a philologist tutor to the son of the Abbasid caliph Al-Mutawakkil and a great grammarian and scholar of poetry of the al-Kūfah school. He was punished on the orders of the caliph and died between 85 ...
wrote a commentary on his poetic
diwan. His most famous poem is preserved in the ''
Asma'iyyat The Aṣmaʿiyyāt ( ar, الأصمعيات) is a well-known early anthology of Arabic poetry by Al-Asma'i. The collection is considered one of the primary sources for early Arabic poetry along with the Jamharat Ash'ar al-Arab, Hamasah, Mu'allaqa ...
''. Some of his poetry expresses his love for Salma, his estranged wife who he divorced while drunk. When he recovered, he fell into despair at what he had done. His diwan was edited by
Theodor Nöldeke
Theodor Nöldeke (; born 2 March 1836 – 25 December 1930) was a German orientalist and scholar. His research interests ranged over Old Testament studies, Semitic languages and Arabic, Persian and Syriac literature. Nöldeke translated several ...
, who published it as ''Die Gedichte des Urwa ibn Alward'' in 1864.
References
René Basset: Le Dîwân de ‘Orwa ben el Ward. Traduit et annoté par René Basset. Paris: Geuthner 1928. (Publications de la Faculté des Lettres d’Alger. Prémiere Série. Bulletin de correspondence africaine. Tome 62.)
Theodor Nöldeke: Die Gedichte des ‘Urwa ibn al-Ward al-‘Abasi. Herausgegeben, übersetzt und erläutert von Theodor Nöldeke. In: Abhandlungen der Königlichen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften. Historisch-philosophische Klasse 11 (1863) S. 231-321. (Auch als Einzeldruck in Göttingen: Dieterich 1863.)
Albert Socin: Die Dîwâne der Dichter Nâbiga, Urwa, Hâtim, ‘Alkama und Farazdak. In: Zeitschrift der Deutschen Morgenländischen Gesellschaft 31 (1877) S. 667-715.
Cultural portrayals
Urwa ibn al-Ward has been portrayed in a number of plays, films, and television series in the Arab world. His association with the famous knight
Antarah ibn Shaddad
Antarah ibn Shaddad al-Absi ( ar, عنترة بن شداد العبسي, ''ʿAntarah ibn Shaddād al-ʿAbsī''; AD 525–608), also known as ʿAntar, was a pre-Islamic Arab knight and poet, famous for both his poetry and his adventurous life ...
is because the two were from the same tribe, the Banu Abs.
*1961: The film ''Antara ibn Shaddad'', directed by
Niazi Mostafa
Niazi Mostafa ( arz, نيازي مصطفى) was an Egyptian film director.
Egyptian Cinema
Egyptian movie critic Samīr Farīd wrote that Mostafa was one of " e most important directors in the history of Egyptian cinema".
In 1936, he directed s ...
. The role of Urwa was played by .
*1978: The television series ''Urwa ibn al-Ward'', directed by Salah Abu Hanud. The role of Urwa was played by .
*2007: The television series ''Antara ibn Shaddad'', directed by . The role of Urwa was played by .
*2012: The play ''Antarah ibn Shaddad'', presented at the Ukazz Theater in
Ta'if
Taif ( ar, , translit=aṭ-Ṭāʾif, lit=The circulated or encircled, ) is a city and governorate in the Makkan Region of Saudi Arabia. Located at an elevation of in the slopes of the Hijaz Mountains, which themselves are part of the Sarat M ...
.
See also
*
Ta'abbata Sharran
Thabit ibn Jabr, better known by his epithet Ta'abbata Sharran (; lived late 6th century or early 7th century CE) was a pre-Islamic Arabic poet of the '' su'luk'' (vagabond) school. He lived in the Arabian Peninsula near the city of Ta'if, and ...
*
Al-Shanfara Al-Shanfarā ( ar, الشنفرى; died c. 525 CE) was a semi-legendary pre-Islamic poet tentatively associated with Ṭāif, and the supposed author of the celebrated poem '' Lāmiyyāt ‘al-Arab''. He enjoys a status as a figure of an archetypa ...
References
{{reflist
External links
Arabic Magazine: Urwa ibn al Ward: Reading His Ideal (in Arabic)
540 births
607 deaths
6th-century Arabic poets