Abbreviation books in the Mamluk era Abbreviation kitaab alaghani as a model

Abstract

In the later Islamic periods, scholarly writing took a new direction aimed at presenting classical Arab heritage in a contemporary form. This gave rise to explanatory commentaries, marginal notes, addenda, abridgments, and educational versifications. While certain disciplines such as jurisprudence, Hadith, Qur’anic exegesis, and grammar received exceptional attention, other fields like philosophy, logic, astronomy, medicine, and literature did not enjoy the same level of interest.

The trend of book abridgment intensified over time, reaching its peak during the Mamluk era, especially as students increasingly relied on religious abridgments. In contrast, abridged works in philosophy, logic, medicine, and literature failed to find a place in formal education institutions and schools.

However, the book Al-Aghani by Abu al-Faraj al-Isfahani stands as an exception, having received significant scholarly attention. It was abridged fifteen times, with two of the most notable abridgments being Tajrid al-Aghani by Ibn Wasil al-Hamawi and Mukhtar al-Aghani by Ibn Manzur. Each author employed a distinct method in condensing the book’s content and addressing the biographies and poetry of the poets. The Tajrid adopts a more religiously and morally conservative approach, while the Mukhtar is more open and closer in spirit to the original Al-Aghani.