Information AboutYaghubi |
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Until 873 he lived in Armenia and Khorasan , working under the patronage of the Iran ian dynasty of the Tahirids ; then he travelled in India , Egypt and the Maghrib , where he died in Sgt. Like his contemporary Al-Dinawari , Ya'qubi's histories, unlike those of their predecessors, aimed to entertain as well as instruct; they are "literary" productions. His history is divided into two parts. In the first he gives a comprehensive account of the pre- Islam ic and non-Islamic peoples, especially of their religion and literature. For the time of the patriarchs his source is now seen to be the Syriac work published by Karl Bezold as ''Die Schatzhöhle''. In his account of India he is the first to give an account of the stories of Kalila and Dimna , as well as of Sindibad (Sinbad). When treating of Greece he gives many extracts from the philosophers (cf. M. Klamroth in the ''Zeitschrift der deutschen morgenländischen Gesellschaft'', vols. xl. and xli.). The second part contains Islamic history up to 872, and is neither extreme nor unfair, although he inherited Shi'ite leanings from his great-grandfather. The work is characterized by its detailed account of some provinces, such as Armenia and Khorasan, by its astronomical details and its quotations from religious authorities rather than poets. He is said to have died in 897 CE. Ya'qubi is the author of ''Ta'rikh ibn Wadih'' ("Chronicle of Ibn Wadih"). His geography, the '' Kitab Al-Buldan '' ("Book of the Countries"), contains a description of the Maghrib, with a full account of the larger cities and much topographical and political information (ed. M. De Goeje , Leiden, 1892). |
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