Al-Hanin Ila-l-Awtan Anthology: A Review and the Problem of Attribution

Abstract

Al-hanin ila-l-awtan (“longing for the native places”) is a group of motives in classical Arabic literature which emerged in the pre-Islamic era and gained popularity in the I/VIII-II/IX cc., whereby the expansion of the caliphate, the concentration of literary activity at courts, and a number of other reasons made poets leave their homelands. They expressed their homesickness in different literary forms, including poetic improvisations, prose sayings, and separate motifs in polythematic works. The II/IX century marked the appearance of the first al-hanin ila-l-awtan anthologies, the earliest of which is attributed to al-Jahiz. This collection, of a relatively moderate volume, contains examples of al-hanin ila-l-awtan poetry and prose of various periods. It was frequently quoted later on. Nevertheless, the anthology has been little studied; although mentioned in a number of review articles, it has not yet been subject to a separate research. This article considers the issues related to the source attribution, structure, and content, as well as its role in the literary tradition.

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