Abū al-ʿAzīz Muḥammad Ismāʿīl ʿAlī ( bn, আবুল আজীজ মোহাম্মদ ইসমাঈল আলী; 1868–1937) was a

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the ...

politician, teacher and activist of the

Khilafat Movement The Khilafat Movement (1919–24), also known as the Caliphate movement or the Indian Muslim movement, was a pan-Islamist political protest campaign launched by Muslims of British India led by Shaukat Ali, Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar, Hakim ...

. He wrote poetry in

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

under the

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

of Ālam (

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

: ). His Diwan-i-Alam poem led to the

Calcutta Alia Madrasa Aliah University (AU; ur, جامعہ عالیہ) is a state government controlled autonomous university in New Town, West Bengal, India. Previously known as Mohammedan College of Calcutta, it was elevated to university in 2008. It offers ...

awarding him the title of ''Parrot of Bengal'' in 1910.

Early life and family

Abul Aziz Muhammad Ismail Ali was born in 1868, to a

Bengali Muslim Bengali Muslims ( bn, বাঙালি মুসলমান; ) are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the se ...

family in the village of Batiail in

Kanaighat Kanaighat ( bn, কানাইঘাট) is an upazila of Sylhet Division of Bangladesh. It is the second-largest upazila (sub-district) of Sylhet District after Gowainghat Upazila. It is named after the town of Kanaighat, which is also the only m ...

Sylhet District Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট), located in north-east Bangladesh, is the divisional capital and one of the four districts in the Sylhet Division. History Sylhet district was established on 3 January 1782, and until 1878 it was part of Bengal Pro ...

. His father, Mawlana Shah Abdur Rahman Qadri, was a notable

mufti A Mufti (; ar, مفتي) is an Islamic jurist qualified to issue a nonbinding opinion ('' fatwa'') on a point of Islamic law (''sharia''). The act of issuing fatwas is called ''iftāʾ''. Muftis and their ''fatwas'' played an important rol ...

by occupation. His younger brother was the scholar

Ibrahim Ali Tashna Shāh Muḥammad Ibrāhīm ʿAlī ( bn, শাহ মোহাম্মদ ইবরাহীম আলী; 1872 – 11 September 1931) was a Bengali Islamic scholar, poet and activist of the Khilafat Movement. He wrote poetry in the Bengali, ...

. The family was descended from Shah Taqiuddin, a 14th-century Sufi missionary and companion of

Shah Jalal Jalāl Mujarrad Kunyāʾī (), popularly known as Shah Jalal, was a celebrated Sufi figure of Bengal. His name is often associated with the Conquest of Sylhet and the spread of Islam into the region, part of a long history of interactions bet ...

.Monthly Madina, February 2009 (in Bengali)

Education

Ismail initially studied at home with his father before studying at the

Ajiria Madrasa Ajiria Alia Madrasa ( bn, আজিরিয়া আলিয়া মাদরাসা, ar, المدرسة العالية الأجيرية) is an ''alia'' madrasa, situated in Fulbari, Golapganj Upazila, Sylhet District, Bangladesh. History ...

in Fulbari,

Golapganj Golapganj Upazila ( bn, গোলাপগঞ্জ), previously known as Gulabganj, is an upazila of Sylhet District in the Division of Sylhet, Bangladesh. Geography Golapganj Upazila (Sylhet District) area 278.34 km2, located in bet ...

. After getting good results in

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walte ...

and

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

, he enrolled at the

and graduated in 1897. He was also a

murid In Sufism, a ''murīd'' (Arabic مُرِيد 'one who seeks') is a novice committed to spiritual enlightenment by ''sulūk'' (traversing a path) under a spiritual guide, who may take the title murshid, ''pir'' or '' shaykh''. A ''sālik'' or Suf ...

of Fazlur Rahman Ganj-e-Muradabadi.

Career

Along with his Bengali mother-tongue, Ismail Alam became a confident speaker of Arabic, Persian and

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

. This enabled him to play an important role in the subcontinent-wide

, in addition to writing poetry. He used to judicial work. He also taught

Hadith studies Hadith studies ( ar, علم الحديث ''ʻilm al-ḥadīth'' "science of hadith", also science of hadith, or science of hadith criticism or hadith criticism) consists of several religious scholarly disciplines used by Muslim scholars in th ...

at the Madinatul Uloom, Gauripurin

Assam Assam (; ) is a state in northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh to the north; Nagaland and Manipur ...

, Jhingabari Senior Fazil Madrasa, Sylhet Government Alia Madrasa.

Works

Ismail Alam mainly wrote poetry in the Persian and Urdu languages, which was common among the upper-class Muslims of

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;; ...

. His

magnum opus A masterpiece, ''magnum opus'' (), or ''chef-d’œuvre'' (; ; ) in modern use is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, ...

, titled Diwan-i-Alam was noticed by William Hamilton Harley, the erstwhile principal of

. Harley awarded Alam the title of ''Banglar Tota'', or the ''Parrot of Bengal''. Alam composed the diwan in 1910 from

Kanpur Kanpur or Cawnpore ( /kɑːnˈpʊər/ pronunciation ( help· info)) is an industrial city in the central-western part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Founded in 1207, Kanpur became one of the most important commercial and military station ...

North India North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Centr ...

when he was in Qayyumi, Waqiee Mahalla, Tikapur. It contained a sirah and various

naʽat Naat ( bn, নাত; Punjabi and ur, ) is poetry in praise of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. The practice is popular in South Asia (Bangladesh, Pakistan and India), commonly in Bengali, Punjabi or Urdu. People who recite Naat are known as ''N ...

s dedicated to the Islamic prophet

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monot ...

. Anjab Ali Shawq, another Urdu poet of Bengal, referred to Alam as his teacher of poetry.

Death

Alam was

blind Blind may refer to: * The state of blindness, being unable to see * A window blind, a covering for a window Blind may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Blind'' (2007 film), a Dutch drama by Tamar van den Dop * ''Blind' ...

in the last thirteen years of his life. He died in 1937. He was buried in the Sarakerbazar

Eidgah Eidgah or Idgah, also Eid Gah or Id Gah ( fa, "site of Eid bservances; bn, ঈদগাহ; pnb, ; ur, ; hi, ईदगाह) is a term used in South Asian Islamic culture for the open-air enclosure usually outside the city (or at th ...

graveyard, located 20 miles away from his village in

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alam, Ismail Urdu-language poets Persian-language poets 1868 births 1937 deaths People from Kanaighat Upazila 20th-century Bengalis 19th-century Bengalis Academic staff of Sylhet Government Alia Madrasah Bengali Muslim scholars of Islam