Al-Jahiz

al-Jahiz
al-Jahiz
	Syrian stamp of al-Jahiz from 1968
Born	Abū ʿUthman ʿAmr ibn Baḥr al-Kinānī al-Baṣrī; 776; Basra, Abbasid Caliphate
Died	December 868/January 869 (aged 92-93); Basra, Abbasid Caliphate
Philosophical work
Era	Islamic Golden Age/Medieval era
Region	Islamic Philosophy
School	Aristotelianism
Main interests	Arabic literature, Biology, Trivium, Islamic studies, Islamic theology
Religious life
Religion	Islam
Denomination	Mu'tazila

Abu Uthman Amr ibn Bahr al-Kinani al-Basri (Arabic: أبو عثمان عمرو بن بحر الكناني البصري, romanized: Abū ʿUthman ʿAmr ibn Baḥr al-Kinānī al-Baṣrī; c. 776–868/869), commonly known as al-Jahiz (Arabic: الجاحظ, romanized: al-Jāḥiẓ, lit. 'the bug eyed'), was an Arab polymath and author of works of literature (including theory and criticism), theology, zoology, philosophy, grammar, dialectics, rhetoric, philology, linguistics, and politico-religious polemics.^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5] His extensive zoological work has been credited with describing principles related to natural selection, ethology, and the functions of an ecosystem.^[6]

Ibn al-Nadim lists nearly 140 titles attributed to al-Jahiz, of which 75 are extant. The best known are Kitāb al-Ḥayawān (The Book of Animals), a seven-part compendium on an array of subjects with animals as their point of departure; Kitāb al-Bayān wa-l-tabyīn (The Book of Eloquence and Exposition), a wide-ranging work on human communication; and Kitāb al-Bukhalāʾ (The Book of Misers), a collection of anecdotes on stinginess.^[7] Tradition claims that he was smothered to death when a vast amount of books fell over him.^[8]

^ "al-Jāḥiẓ". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. 7 March 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
^ Yāqūt 1907, pp. 56–80, VI (6).
^ Baghdādī (al-) Khaṭīb 2001, pp. 124–132, 14.
^ Pellat 1953, p. 51.
^ Nadīm (al-) 1970, pp. 397–409.
^ "Darwin's Ghosts, By Rebecca Stott". independent.co.uk. 31 May 2012. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
^ Blankinship (2020). "Giggers, Greeners, Peyserts, and Palliards: Rendering Slang in al-Bukhalāʾ of al-Jāḥiẓ". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 140 (1): 17. doi:10.7817/jameroriesoci.140.1.0017. S2CID 219100706.
^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[1] "al-Jāḥiẓ". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. 7 March 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2020.

[FOOTNOTEYāqūt190756–80VI_(6)-2] Yāqūt 1907, pp. 56–80, VI (6).

[FOOTNOTEBaghdādī_(al-)_Khaṭīb2001124–13214-3] Baghdādī (al-) Khaṭīb 2001, pp. 124–132, 14.

[FOOTNOTEPellat195351-4] Pellat 1953, p. 51.

[FOOTNOTENadīm_(al-)1970397–409-5] Nadīm (al-) 1970, pp. 397–409.

[auto2-6] "Darwin's Ghosts, By Rebecca Stott". independent.co.uk. 31 May 2012. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 19 June 2012.

[7] Blankinship (2020). "Giggers, Greeners, Peyserts, and Palliards: Rendering Slang in al-Bukhalāʾ of al-Jāḥiẓ". Journal of the American Oriental Society. 140 (1): 17. doi:10.7817/jameroriesoci.140.1.0017. S2CID 219100706.

[:0-8] Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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