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the cambridge history of arabic literature arabic literature in the post-classical period The sixth and final volume of The Cambridge History of Arabic Literature explores the Arabic literary heritage of the period from the twelfth to the beginning of the nineteenth century. Traditionalists have tended to characterize this period as one of ‘decadence’ and, having done so, to skip over its several centuries in the quest for more immediately interesting material stimulated by the re-encounter with the West from the end of the eighteenth century. Even though it was during this time that one of the most famous Arabic works of all time – A Thousand and One Nights – was created, this has not provoked a wide-ranging investigation of the period’s literature in general, whether elite or popular, and the period in question has continued to be viewed negatively. This volume seeks to rectify the situation. Roger Allen and D. S. Richards bring together some of the most distinguished scholars in the field to record as much as is known about the literary movements and aesthetic trends of this period. The volume is divided into parts with the traditions of poetry and prose covered separately within both their ‘elite’ and ‘popular’ contexts. The last two parts are devoted to drama, its origins and tentative development, and the indigenous tradition of literary criticism. As the only work of its kind in English covering the post-classical period, this book promises to be a unique resource for students and scholars of Arabic literature for many years to come. Roger Allen is Professor of Arabic and Comparative Literature at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He is the author of The Arabic Novel (1982, 1995) and The Arabic Literary Heritage (1998). He currently serves in an editorial capacity for the journal Middle Eastern Literatures and the Arabic Literature Series of the Dictionary of Literary Biography. D. S. Richards is Emeritus Fellow of St Cross College, Oxford, and University Lecturer in Arabic (retired). His publications include Mamluk Jerusalem (1987) and numerous articles on medieval Islamic history. He is the translator of Ibn Shaddad’s Life of Saladin (2001) and The Annals of the Turks (2002). Cambridge Histories Online © Cambridge University Press, 2008 Cambridge Histories Online © Cambridge University Press, 2008 A R A B I C L I T E R AT U R E I N T H E P O S T- C L A S S I C A L PERIOD edited by RO G E R A L L E N University of Pennsylvania and D. S. RICHARDS University of Oxford Cambridge Histories Online © Cambridge University Press, 2008 cambridge university press Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, S˜ao Paulo Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge cb2 2ru, uk Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521771603 C Cambridge University Press 2006 This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without the written permission of Cambridge University Press. First published 2006 Printed in the United Kingdom at the University Press, Cambridge A catalogue record for this publication is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloguing in Publication Data Arabic literature in the post-classical period / [edited by] Roger Allen, D. S. Richards. – 1st ed. p. cm. – (The Cambridge history of Arabic literature) Includes bibliographical references and index. isbn 0-521-77160-9 – (hardback) 1. Arabic literature – 1258-1800 – History and criticism. I. Allen, Roger M. A. II. Richards, D. S. (Donald Sidney), 1935– III. Title. IV. Series. pj7558.a73 2006 892.7 09 – dc22 2005020