Ibn Zamrak
Encyclopedia
Ibn Zamrak or Abu Abd Allah Muhammad b, Yusuf b. Muhammad b. Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Yusuf al-Surayhi, (1333-1393) was a poet and statesman from Granada
, Al-Andalus
. Some his poems still decorate the fountains and palaces of Alhambra
in Granada.
He was of humble origin but thanks to his teacher Ibn al-Khatib
he was introduced at the court of the Nasrids. He accompanied sultan Abu Abd Allah Mohammed V
to Morocco
and when Mohammed was reinstated on the throne in Granada
in 1361 he was appointed as his private secretary and a court poet. When Ibn al-Khatib
was dismissed as vizier in 1371, Ibn Zamrak succeeded him and hired a group of assassins to kill him in prison after his arrest in Fez
. Later, Ibn Zamrak himself was imprisoned for nearly two years by Yusuf II
and was assassinated on the orders of Sultan Muhammad VII
while he was reading the Qur'an
at home in 1393.
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
, Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
. Some his poems still decorate the fountains and palaces of Alhambra
Alhambra
The Alhambra , the complete form of which was Calat Alhambra , is a palace and fortress complex located in the Granada, Andalusia, Spain...
in Granada.
He was of humble origin but thanks to his teacher Ibn al-Khatib
Ibn al-Khatib
Lisan al-Din ibn al-Khatib was a poet, writer, historian, philosopher, physician and politician from Emirate of Granada. Some of his poems decorate the walls of the Alhambra in Granada.He was born at Loja, near Granada...
he was introduced at the court of the Nasrids. He accompanied sultan Abu Abd Allah Mohammed V
Muhammed V, Sultan of Granada
Muhammed V was the eighth Nasrid ruler of the Moorish Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus on the Iberian Peninsula.Muhammad V was the eldest son and heir of Yusuf I by his slave Butayna, born in 1338. He also had a younger full-blood sister, A'isha, two half brothers and five half-sisters...
to Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
and when Mohammed was reinstated on the throne in Granada
Emirate of Granada
The Emirate of Granada , also known as the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada , was an emirate established in 1238 following the defeat of Muhammad an-Nasir of the Almohad dynasty by an alliance of Christian kingdoms at the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212...
in 1361 he was appointed as his private secretary and a court poet. When Ibn al-Khatib
Ibn al-Khatib
Lisan al-Din ibn al-Khatib was a poet, writer, historian, philosopher, physician and politician from Emirate of Granada. Some of his poems decorate the walls of the Alhambra in Granada.He was born at Loja, near Granada...
was dismissed as vizier in 1371, Ibn Zamrak succeeded him and hired a group of assassins to kill him in prison after his arrest in Fez
Fes
Fes or Fez is the second largest city of Morocco, after Casablanca, with a population of approximately 1 million . It is the capital of the Fès-Boulemane region....
. Later, Ibn Zamrak himself was imprisoned for nearly two years by Yusuf II
Yusuf II, Sultan of Granada
Yusuf II was the eleventh Nasrid ruler of the Moorish Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus on the Iberian Peninsula.- References :*Islamic Spain 1250 to 1500 by Leonard Patrick Harvey; University of Chicago Press, 1992...
and was assassinated on the orders of Sultan Muhammad VII
Muhammed VII, Sultan of Granada
Muhammed VII was the twelfth Nasrid ruler of the Moorish Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus on the Iberian Peninsula..- References :*Islamic Spain 1250 to 1500 by Leonard Patrick Harvey; University of Chicago Press, 1992...
while he was reading the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
at home in 1393.
Sources
- "Biography of Ibn Zamrak", in: The Encyclopaedia of Islam.(2), iii, pp. 972–973, article by F. de la Granja
- "The Eye of Sovereignty: Poetry and Vision in the Alhambra's Lindaraja Mirado" by D. Fairchild Ruggles, in: Gesta, Vol. 36, No. 2, Visual Culture of Medieval Iberia (1997), pp. 180–189
- García Gómez, Emilio (1905-1995), Ibn Zamrak el poeta de la Alhambra, Granada : Patronato de la Alhambra, 1975
- Le poete vizir Ibn Zamrak: du faubourg d' Al baycine au palais de l'Alhambra, by Hamdan Hadjadji, 2005
- Ibn Zamrak al-Gharnāṭī, 733-796 H/1333-1393 M : sīratuhu wa-adabuh, by Aḥmad Salīm Ḥimṣī, Bayrūt : Mu'assasat al-Risālah ; Ṭarābulus, Lubnān : Där al-Īmān, 1985.