⚔EP034 Dr. Kevin Blankinship on Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī: the Prince, the Prisoner, the Poet. Part 8 of 12 - Spring of Classical Arabic Poetry

<p>Dr. Kevin Blankinship, BYU Utah, speaks about the life, works and legacy of Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī, prince, prisoner, poet.<br /> <br /> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Al-Ḥāri</span><span style= "font-weight: 400;">th</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">b. Abū al-ʿAlā Saʿīd ibn Ḥamdān al-Ta</span><span style= "font-weight: 400;">gh</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">libī, better known by his</span> <em><span style="font-weight: 400;">nom de plume</span></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">of Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī, was an Arab prince and poet. He was a cousin of Sayf al-Dawla, the ruler of northern Syria, whom we mentioned in episode 33. He best known for the collection of poems titled</span> <em><span style="font-weight: 400;">al-Rūmiyyāt</span></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">during his time as a prisoner of war with the Byzantines.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><span style= "text-decoration: underline;">Timestamps<br /></span></span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">01:52 Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī was born at a time when the Abbasid caliphate was beholden to</span> <em><span style="font-weight: 400;">de facto</span></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">autonomous dynasties and facing a Byzantine foe. What do we know about his socio-political context?</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">06:26 Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī was born a prince, lived a while as a prisoner, and was killed as a provocateur against a rival ruler, his own nephew in fact. What do we do know about his life?</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">10:14 Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī is best known for the collection of poems titled</span> <em><span style="font-weight: 400;">al-Rūmiyyāt</span></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">during his time as a prisoner of war with the Byzantines. Tell us about his works.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">16:50 Sir Hamilton Alexander Rosskeen Gibb, the orientalist, praises Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī’s work for its “sincerity, directness, and natural vigour". How would