Abu Said Gardizi
Encyclopedia
Abu Saʿīd Abdul-Hay ibn Dhaḥḥāk ibn Maḥmūd Gardēzī, Gardīzī or Gurdēzī (died c. 1061 CE) was a Persian Muslim
geographer
and historian
of the early 11th century from Gardēz (now in Afghanistan
) who wrote the book Zayn al-Akhbār. Gardēzī's work, written in Persian, is considered important for the Islam
ic history of Central Asia
and Eastern Persia
and Hungary
.
A critical edition was published by ʿAbd al-Ḥayy Ḥabībī, Tehran, 1347 Š./1968 under the title of "Tarikh-e Gardizi".
He wrote the following text about Hungarian people and their culture: "These Hungarian people are pretty and handsome. Their clothes are made of brocade. Their weapons are decorated by silver and gold. In the time of proposal they have to pay for the girl, mainly they give animals. But it can be the fur of ermine, squirrel, mart or fox."
The records of Gardīzī are similar to teh records of Ahmad ibn Rustah
. Both of them used the notes of Ibn Harrudadbhi, called Roads and Countries as there sources, but Ahmad ibn Rustah
used an older and Gardīzī used a newer one, so Gardīzī's texts contain plus information as well. For instance: "On the left [=western] side of the territory of the Hungarians near the river of Slavs there is a tribe of Rum, which is christian and they are known as wonondur."
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
geographer
Geographer
A geographer is a scholar whose area of study is geography, the study of Earth's natural environment and human society.Although geographers are historically known as people who make maps, map making is actually the field of study of cartography, a subset of geography...
and historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
of the early 11th century from Gardēz (now in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
) who wrote the book Zayn al-Akhbār. Gardēzī's work, written in Persian, is considered important for the Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic history of Central Asia
Central Asia
Central Asia is a core region of the Asian continent from the Caspian Sea in the west, China in the east, Afghanistan in the south, and Russia in the north...
and Eastern Persia
Greater Iran
Greater Iran refers to the regions that have significant Iranian cultural influence. It roughly corresponds to the territory on the Iranian plateau and its bordering plains, stretching from Iraq, the Caucasus, and Turkey in the west to the Indus River in the east...
and Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
.
Work
Gardīzī took a dispassionate view of history which is fairly remarkable for its time. For example he does not either praise the Ghaznavids nor the coming of the Saljuqs. His style of Persian is simple but mature and provides one of the classical examples of Persian prose-writing.A critical edition was published by ʿAbd al-Ḥayy Ḥabībī, Tehran, 1347 Š./1968 under the title of "Tarikh-e Gardizi".
Quotations
Gardīzī told about the territory of Hungarians: "The Hungarians' country is situated between the territory of bulkars and eskils, who date back to the bulkars. (...) Their country reaches the Rum-sea [=Black Sea]. (...) The two rivers, which flow into the Rum-sea, are called Atil [=Volga] and Danube."He wrote the following text about Hungarian people and their culture: "These Hungarian people are pretty and handsome. Their clothes are made of brocade. Their weapons are decorated by silver and gold. In the time of proposal they have to pay for the girl, mainly they give animals. But it can be the fur of ermine, squirrel, mart or fox."
The records of Gardīzī are similar to teh records of Ahmad ibn Rustah
Ahmad ibn Rustah
Ibn Rustah was a 10th century Persian explorer and geographer born in Rosta district, Isfahan, Persia....
. Both of them used the notes of Ibn Harrudadbhi, called Roads and Countries as there sources, but Ahmad ibn Rustah
Ahmad ibn Rustah
Ibn Rustah was a 10th century Persian explorer and geographer born in Rosta district, Isfahan, Persia....
used an older and Gardīzī used a newer one, so Gardīzī's texts contain plus information as well. For instance: "On the left [=western] side of the territory of the Hungarians near the river of Slavs there is a tribe of Rum, which is christian and they are known as wonondur."