1. Abu Tammam is well known for compiling the Hamasah, which is considered to be one of the greatest anthologies of Arabic literature ever assembled.
11 Facts About Abu Tammam
1. 2.
Abu Tammam was born in Syria near Damascus in a small town called Jasim, north-east of the Sea of Tiberias and close to Daraa.
3.
Abu Tammam was the son of a Christian named Thadhus who sold wine in Damascus.
4.
Abu Tammam was a contemporary of the Imams Ali al-Rida and his son Muhammad al-Jawad, whom he mentioned in some of his poems.
5.
Abu Tammam seems to have spent his youth in Homs, though, according to one story, he was employed during his boyhood selling water at a mosque in Cairo.
6.
Abu Tammam then traveled towards the eastern part of the caliphate, eventually gaining admirers and patrons by praising various officials, such as the governor of Arminiya Khalid ibn Yazid al-Shaybani who reportedly gave him 10,000 dirhams on each occasion and financed his travels.
7.
Abu Tammam is best known in literature by his 9th-century compilation of early poems known as the Hamasah.
8.
Abu Tammam gathered these works together when he was snowbound in Hamadan, where he had access to an excellent library belonging to Abu al-Wafa ibn Salama.
9.
The famous poet al-Buhturi, who was a student and contemporary of Abu Tammam, was a member of the Tay' tribe.
10.
Generally, Abu Tammam is accepted as the representative of the artificial poetry style.
11.
Abu Tammam's poems reflect a stylistic break from prevailing oral-based concepts of Arab poetry, often describing historical events and people.