Muhammad ibn Hamed Isfahani (1125 – 20 June 1201) (Persian: محمد ابن حامد اصفهانی), more popularly known as Imad ad-din al-Isfahani (Persian: عماد الدین اصفهانی) (Arabic: عماد الدين الأصفهاني), was a historian, scholar, and rhetorician of Persian origin.[1] He left a valuable anthology of Arabic poetry to accompany his many historical works[3] and worked as a man of letters during the Zengid and Ayyubid period.
Muhammad ibn Hamed Isfahani
Manuscript of Imad ad-Din al-Isfahani's Tarikh al-Barq al-Bana. Copy made in Mamluk Syria, dated 15th century
He was born in Isfahan in the year 1125, and studied at the Nizamiyya school in Baghdad. He graduated into the bureaucracy, and held jurisdiction over Basra and Wasit. He then became a deputy of the vizier ibn Hubayra. After the death of ibn Hubayra, he went to Damascus in 1166 CE (562 Islamic Calendar) and entered the service of the qadi of Damascus, Kamal ad-Din. The qadi presented him to the Zengid Nur ad-Din, who appointed him a professor in the school he had established there, which then became known as the Imadiyya school in his honour. Nur ad-Din was later appointed to be his Chancellor.
After the death of Nur ad-Din in 1174, Imad ad-Din was removed from all his bureaucratic duties, and was banished from the palace. He went to live in Mosul and later entered the service of Saladin, the Sultan of Egypt during that time. When Saladin took control of Damascus, Saladin's vizier, al-Qadi al-Fadil, appointed him chancellor, and he also became al-Fadil's deputy. Although Saladin had been unsure of his talent because he was only a scribe, Imad ad-Din soon became one of the sultan's favourites. As chancellor he did not have to perform the everyday duties of the chancery scribes, and he had a lot of leisure time in Egypt.
From then on he accompanied Saladin on all his campaigns. After a certain raid, he was chosen to kill one of the prisoners, but the prisoner was a child and was instead exchanged for a Muslim prisoner held by the Crusaders. Imad ad-Din was present at the Battle of Marj Uyun, the Battle of Hattin, and the subsequent campaign to expel the Crusaders from the Holy Land. At Acre, he criticised Saladin for giving away the city's treasure instead of spending it on the reconquest. At Beirut, he became ill, but was the only scribe capable of writing the terms of surrender. He had recuperated in time to see the aftermath of the Siege of Jerusalem (1187), where he again criticised Saladin's generosity; he was also disgusted by those in charge of the ransom who took bribes, and the rich Crusader nobles who took their treasures with them rather than ransoming the poor. He was present at Acre again during the Third Crusade when the Christians retook the city of Acre, and was among those who fled after the defeat.
After Saladin's death in 1193, he began writing his biographies of the sultan. He wrote the Kitab al-Barq al-Shami, which is largely lost, save for its third and fifth volumes, but was abridged by al-Bundari and used heavily by the Muslim historians Ibn al-Athir and Abu Shama in their own chronicles. He also wrote al-Fath al-Qussi fi-l-Fath al-Qudsi, which survives. One manuscript of the Bustan al-jami' attributes it to Imad ad-Din, but this seems to be an error, for its information on Saladin does not align too well with that of Imad ad-Din's biography.[4] He died on 5 June 1201 in Damascus.[2]
^ abDonald S. Richards, "Emad al-Din Kateb Esfahani" in Encyclopedia Iranica. "The family of Persian origin into which ʿEmād-al-Dīn Kāteb was born had a tradition of administrative service for the Saljuq dynasty and the caliphate." [1]
^ abŞeşen, Ramazan (2000). İMÂDÜDDİN el-İSFAHÂNÎ - An article published in Turkish Encyclopedia of Islam (in Turkish). Vol. 22 (Ihvan-i Safa - Iskit). Istanbul: TDV Encyclopedia of Islam. pp. 174–176. ISBN978-975-389-449-4. Retrieved 3 February 2022.
^Claude Cahen, "Une chronique syrienne du VIe/VIIe siècle: Le Bustān al-Jāmiʿ", Bulletin d'études orientales 7/8 (1937/1938), 113–158. JSTOR 41603412
External linksEdit
Crusades-encyclopedia.com
EMĀD-AL-DĪNKĀTEB, ABŪ ʿABD-ALLĀH MOḤAMMAD b. Moḥammad b. Ḥāmed EṢFAHĀNĪ in Encyclopedia Iranica by Donald S. Richards
October 21, 2023
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This article uses bare URLs which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting such as reFill documentation and Citation bot documentation September 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Muhammad ibn Hamed Isfahani 1125 20 June 1201 Persian محمد ابن حامد اصفهانی more popularly known as Imad ad din al Isfahani Persian عماد الدین اصفهانی Arabic عماد الدين الأصفهاني was a historian scholar and rhetorician of Persian origin 1 He left a valuable anthology of Arabic poetry to accompany his many historical works 3 and worked as a man of letters during the Zengid and Ayyubid period Muhammad ibn Hamed IsfahaniManuscript of Imad ad Din al Isfahani s Tarikh al Barq al Bana Copy made in Mamluk Syria dated 15th centuryNickname s Imad ad dinBorn1125 1 Isfahan Seljuk EmpireDied5 June 1201 2 Damascus Ayyubid DynastyAllegianceZengid dynasty Ayyubid dynastyUnitKings GuardBattles warsBattle of Marj UyunBattle of HattinSiege of Jerusalem 1187 Third Crusade Contents 1 Biography 2 In popular culture 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksBiography EditHe was born in Isfahan in the year 1125 and studied at the Nizamiyya school in Baghdad He graduated into the bureaucracy and held jurisdiction over Basra and Wasit He then became a deputy of the vizier ibn Hubayra After the death of ibn Hubayra he went to Damascus in 1166 CE 562 Islamic Calendar and entered the service of the qadi of Damascus Kamal ad Din The qadi presented him to the Zengid Nur ad Din who appointed him a professor in the school he had established there which then became known as the Imadiyya school in his honour Nur ad Din was later appointed to be his Chancellor After the death of Nur ad Din in 1174 Imad ad Din was removed from all his bureaucratic duties and was banished from the palace He went to live in Mosul and later entered the service of Saladin the Sultan of Egypt during that time When Saladin took control of Damascus Saladin s vizier al Qadi al Fadil appointed him chancellor and he also became al Fadil s deputy Although Saladin had been unsure of his talent because he was only a scribe Imad ad Din soon became one of the sultan s favourites As chancellor he did not have to perform the everyday duties of the chancery scribes and he had a lot of leisure time in Egypt From then on he accompanied Saladin on all his campaigns After a certain raid he was chosen to kill one of the prisoners but the prisoner was a child and was instead exchanged for a Muslim prisoner held by the Crusaders Imad ad Din was present at the Battle of Marj Uyun the Battle of Hattin and the subsequent campaign to expel the Crusaders from the Holy Land At Acre he criticised Saladin for giving away the city s treasure instead of spending it on the reconquest At Beirut he became ill but was the only scribe capable of writing the terms of surrender He had recuperated in time to see the aftermath of the Siege of Jerusalem 1187 where he again criticised Saladin s generosity he was also disgusted by those in charge of the ransom who took bribes and the rich Crusader nobles who took their treasures with them rather than ransoming the poor He was present at Acre again during the Third Crusade when the Christians retook the city of Acre and was among those who fled after the defeat After Saladin s death in 1193 he began writing his biographies of the sultan He wrote the Kitab al Barq al Shami which is largely lost save for its third and fifth volumes but was abridged by al Bundari and used heavily by the Muslim historians Ibn al Athir and Abu Shama in their own chronicles He also wrote al Fath al Qussi fi l Fath al Qudsi which survives One manuscript of the Bustan al jami attributes it to Imad ad Din but this seems to be an error for its information on Saladin does not align too well with that of Imad ad Din s biography 4 He died on 5 June 1201 in Damascus 2 In popular culture EditA heavily fictionalised version of Imad ad Din is portrayed in the 2005 Ridley Scott epic film Kingdom of Heaven by actor Alexander Siddig Imad ad Din is also portrayed in The Book of Saladin A Novel by Tariq Ali the second instalment of what is known as the Islam Quintet See also EditList of Iranian ScientistsReferences Edit a b Donald S Richards Emad al Din Kateb Esfahani in Encyclopedia Iranica The family of Persian origin into which ʿEmad al Din Kateb was born had a tradition of administrative service for the Saljuq dynasty and the caliphate 1 a b Sesen Ramazan 2000 IMADUDDIN el ISFAHANI An article published in Turkish Encyclopedia of Islam in Turkish Vol 22 Ihvan i Safa Iskit Istanbul TDV Encyclopedia of Islam pp 174 176 ISBN 978 975 389 449 4 Retrieved 3 February 2022 http www crusades encyclopedia com imadaldin html Claude Cahen Une chronique syrienne du VIe VIIe siecle Le Bustan al Jamiʿ Bulletin d etudes orientales 7 8 1937 1938 113 158 JSTOR 41603412External links EditCrusades encyclopedia com EMAD AL DiNKATEB ABu ʿABD ALLAH MOḤAMMAD b Moḥammad b Ḥamed EṢFAHANi in Encyclopedia Iranica by Donald S Richards Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Imad ad Din al Isfahani amp oldid 1141568242, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
