Abū Isḥāq Ibrāhīm al-Kānemī (; c. 1159 – c. 1212) was a West African poet and grammarian from the Kanem-Bornu Empire of contemporary Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, Libya, and Chad. He was the first to write in

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

in the central Sudan. Ibrāhīm was born in the oasis of

Bilma Bilma is an oasis town and commune in north east Niger with, as of the 2012 census, a total population of 4,016 people. It lies protected from the desert dunes under the Kaouar Cliffs and is the largest town along the Kaouar escarpment. It ...

, then a part of Kanem. In one poem, he refers to himself as belonging to the Dhakwān branch of the Banū Sulaym. The Dhakwān moved from

Upper Egypt Upper Egypt ( ', shortened to , , locally: ) is the southern portion of Egypt and is composed of the Nile River valley south of the delta and the 30th parallel North. It thus consists of the entire Nile River valley from Cairo south to Lake N ...

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

in the 11th century. He is described as "jet-black in hue", indicating that his mother at least was Sub-Saharan African. He was educated in the Sudan; in

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

, according to Ibn Ḥamuwayh. Ibrāhīm visited

Marrakesh Marrakesh or Marrakech (; , ) is the fourth-largest city in Morocco. It is one of the four imperial cities of Morocco and is the capital of the Marrakesh–Safi Regions of Morocco, region. The city lies west of the foothills of the Atlas Mounta ...

around 1197–98, gaining there a reputation as a grammarian and poet. Only fragments of eight of his works survive, mainly quotations in the works of

Ibn al-Abbār Ibn al-Abbār (), he was Hāfiẓ Abū Abd Allāh Muḥammad ibn 'Abdullah ibn Abū Bakr al-Qudā'ī al-Balansī () (1199–1260) a secretary to Hafsid dynasty princes, well-known poet, diplomat, jurist and hadith scholar from al ...

and Ibn al-Shaʿār. A poem in which he explains why he eschewed satire and wrote mostly ''

qaṣīda The qaṣīda (also spelled ''qaṣīdah''; plural ''qaṣā’id'') is an ancient Arabic word and form of poetry, often translated as ode. The qasida originated in pre-Islamic Arabic poetry and passed into non-Arabic cultures after the Arab Mus ...

''s is quoted by both. He was patronized by the

Almohad Caliph The Almohad Caliphate (; or or from ) or Almohad Empire was a North African Berber Muslim empire founded in the 12th century. At its height, it controlled much of the Iberian Peninsula (Al-Andalus) and North Africa (the Maghreb). The Almohad ...

Yaʿqūb al-Manṣūr Abū Yūsuf Yaʿqūb ibn Yūsuf ibn Abd al-Muʾmin al-Manṣūr (; d. 23 January 1199), commonly known as Yaqub al-Mansur () or Moulay Yacoub (), was the third Almohad caliph. Succeeding his father, al-Mansur reigned from 1184 to 1199. His reig ...

(1184–1199). Two lines of a poem Ibrāhīm recited before his patron are quoted by the 19th-century historian

Aḥmad al-Nāṣirī al-Salāwī Ahmad () is an Arabic male given name common in most parts of the Muslim world. Other English language, English spellings of the name include Ahmed. It is also used as a surname. Etymology The word derives from the root (Ḥ-M-D, ḥ-m-d), f ...

. Ibrāhīm wrote

panegyrics A panegyric ( or ) is a formal public speech or written verse, delivered in high praise of a person or thing. The original panegyrics were speeches delivered at public events in ancient Athens. Etymology The word originated as a compound of - 'a ...

on other leading Almohad figures and was a friend of fellow panegyrist ʿAbd al-Raḥmān Fāzāzī, who praised his verses. He also wrote in defence of his dark skin and exchanged stanzas on his race with al-Jirāwī. In Marrakesh, he married a "white" woman named Zahrāʾ and wrote her poetry dealing with his dark skin. Ibrāhīm eventually moved to

al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...

(Spain). He resided in

Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...

. He died in Spain in AH 608 or 609 (between AD 1211 and 1213), at the age of 53.

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{refend

External links

*Natty Mark Samuels (2015)
Ibrahim al-Kanemi
''Muslim Heritage'' (Foundation for Science, Technology and Civilisation, UK). 12th-century births 1210s deaths People from the Kanem Empire 12th-century Arab people Medieval grammarians of Arabic Poets from the Almohad Caliphate 12th-century Arabic-language poets Banu Sulaym African Muslims Kanemi, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim Kanemi, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim