Ritha' al-Andalus

Rithā’ al-Andalus (Arabic: رثاء الأندلس‎, variously translated as "An Elegy to al-Andalus"[1] or "Elegy for the fall of al-Andalus"[2]), also known as Lament for the Fall of Seville, is an Arabic qaṣīda nūniyya[3][4] which is said to have been written by Andalusi poet Abu al-Baqa ar-Rundi in 1267,[2] "on the fate of al-Andalus after the loss, in 664/1266, of several places in the provinces of Murcia and Jerez" to the Christian kingdoms during the Reconquista.[5]

Rithā’ al-Andalus
by Abu al-Baqa ar-Rundi
Original titleرثاء الأندلس
Written1267
LanguageArabic
Genre(s)rithā’
Formqaṣīda nūniyya
Read online"Rithā’ al-Andalus" at Wikisource

This poem is considered the most significant of a series of poems that were written in the classical tradition of rithā’ (which denotes both lamentation and a literary genre in itself[6]) by Andalusi poets who had been inspired by the Reconquista.[5] Ar-Rundi makes notable use of personification as a rhetorical device.[7]

Context and purpose

Ar-Rundi lived through the fall of most of the major Andalusi cities—such as Cadiz, Cordoba, Seville (mentioned as "Hims"), and others—to the forces of the Catholic monarchs: Alfonso VIII of Castile and his grandson Ferdinand III, Sancho VII of Navarre, and Peter II of Aragon.[8] Most major Andalusi cities fell within the span of a century with the collapse of the Almohad Caliphate.[8]

Ar-Rundi composed his poem mourning the fall of al-Andalus and calling the Islamic kingdoms on the North African shore, particularly the Marinid Sultanate, when the king of Granada started to concede towns and castles to the Crown of Castille.[9]

Composition

The poem is a nūniyya, as virtually all of its couplets end in an alveolar nasal—either from the letter ن (nun) or from nunation. The opening line alludes to that of the famous nūniyya of Abu al-Fath al-Busti:[10][11]

Opening line of Rithā’ al-Andalus Opening line of Nūniyyat al-Bustī
لِكُلِّ شَيءٍ إِذَا ما تَمَّ نُقْصانُ زِيادَةُ المُرْءِ في دُنِياهُ نُقْصانُ
li-kulli shay'in idha ma tamma nuqsan ziyadatu l-mur'i fi dunyahu nuqsan
In all that exists, there is imperfection The mortal's excess in his worldliness is loss

The poem is full of allusions to figures and symbols from the depths of Arab and Middle Eastern culture.[12] It mentions ancient Arab tribes such as ʿĀd, Shaddad, and Qahtan, as well as quasi-mythic historical figures such as Sasan, Korah, Sayf ibn Dhi Yazan, Darius the Great, and Solomon, asking: "Where are they now?"

In the poem, the speaker eulogizes the fallen cities one by one,[13][14] using religious symbols to concretize the impending, menacing threat of the Catholics' invasion. The speaker mentions the minbars and the mihrabs that "mourn" beside the bells and crucifixes in the mosques that were transformed into churches.[15]

Cultural references

N3rdistan, led by Walid Ben Selim, performed this poem in a musical arrangement in 2014.[16]

References
  1. Alansari 2009, p. 9
  2. Khalidi 2016, p. 14
  3. Jayyusi 1996, p. 17
  4. The Encyclopaedia of Islam. 6. 1954. p. 606.
  5. The Encyclopedia of Islam. 6. 1989. p. 606.
  6. The Encyclopedia of Islam. 6. 1989. p. 603.
  7. Kahera 2012, p. xviii
  8. IslamKotob. دراسات أندلسية في الأدب والتاريخ والفلسفة (in Arabic). IslamKotob.
  9. "رِثَاءُ اَلْأَنْدَلُس - Lament for the fall of Andalusia". Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  10. Benhamouda 1935, p. 194
  11. IslamKotob. دراسات أندلسية في الأدب والتاريخ والفلسفة (in Arabic). IslamKotob.
  12. "Lament for Saville". www.muslimphilosophy.com. Retrieved 2020-02-28.
  13. Meisami, Julie Scott; Starkey, Paul (1998). Encyclopedia of Arabic Literature. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-415-18571-4.
  14. "رِثَاءُ اَلْأَنْدَلُس - Lament for the fall of Andalusia". learning.aljazeera.net. Retrieved 2020-02-27.
  15. IslamKotob. دراسات أندلسية في الأدب والتاريخ والفلسفة (in Arabic). IslamKotob.
  16. الرايس, سارة. ""نردستان" في بلاد المنفى، الموسيقى، والشعر". almodon (in Arabic). Retrieved 2020-06-17.

Sources
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