Abd al-Hamid al-Katib
Abd al-Hamid ibn Yahya al-Katib | |
|---|---|
| Died | AH 132 (749/750)[1] |
| Era | Medieval era |
Abd al-Hamid ibn Yahya al-Katib (Arabic: عبد الحميد بن يحيى الكاتب) was the secretary to the last Umayyad Caliph, Marwan II, and a supreme stylist of early Arabic prose.[2]
Quote:
- Cultivate the Arabic language so that you may speak correctly; develop a handsome script which will add luster to your writings; learn the poetry of the Arabs by heart; familiarize yourself with unusual ideas and expressions; read the history of the Arabs and the Persians, and remember their great deeds[2]
He may have been a descendant of a Persian captive at the battle of Qadesiya who became a mawlā of the Qorashī clan of the Banu Amer b. Loʾayy. Some accounts, however, make the less likely claim that he was of this clan, hence of pure Arab descent.[3]
References
- ^ Mit-Ejmes
- ^ a b Islamic History in Arabia and Middle East
- ^ Brinner, W. N. "ʿABD-AL-ḤAMĪD B. YAḤYĀ". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
