The () (''The Book Catalogue'') is a compendium of the knowledge and literature of tenth-century

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

compiled by Ibn al-Nadim (d. 998). It references approx. 10,000 books and 2,000 authors.''The Biographical Dictionary of the Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge'', Volume 2, Numero 2, p. 782 A crucial source of medieval

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 ...

-Islamic literature, it preserves the names of authors, books and accounts otherwise entirely lost. is evidence of Ibn al-Nadim's thirst for knowledge among the sophisticated milieu of Baghdad's intellectual elite. As a record of civilisation transmitted through Muslim culture to the Western world, it provides unique classical material and links to other civilisations.

Content

The ''Fihrist'' indexes authors, together with biographical details and literary criticism. Ibn al-Nadim's interest ranges from religions, customs, sciences, with obscure facets of medieval Islamic history, works on superstition, magic, drama, poetry, satire and music from Persia, Babylonia, and Byzantium. The mundane, the bizarre, the prosaic and the profane. Ibn al-Nadim freely selected and catalogued the rich culture of his time from various collections and libraries. The order is primarily chronological and works are listed according to four internal orders: genre; ''orfann'' (chapter); ''maqala'' (discourse); the ''Fihrist'' (the book as a whole). These four chronological principles of its underlying system help researchers to interpret the work, retrieve elusive information and understand Ibn al-Nadim's method of composition, ideology, and historical analyses. The ''Fihrist'' shows the wealth, range and breadth of historical and geographical knowledge disseminated in the literature of the

Islamic Golden Age The Islamic Golden Age was a period of scientific, economic, and cultural flourishing in the history of Islam, traditionally dated from the 8th century to the 13th century. This period is traditionally understood to have begun during the reign o ...

, from the modern to the ancient civilisations of

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. Little survives of the Persian books listed by Ibn al-Nadim. The author's aim, set out in his preface, is to index all books in

, written by Arabs and others, as well as their scripts, dealing with various sciences, with accounts of those who composed them and the categories of their authors, together with their relationships, their times of birth, length of life, and times of death, the localities of their cities, their virtues and faults, from the beginning of the formation of science to this our own time (377 /987). An index as a literary form had existed as ''tabaqat'' biographies. Contemporaneously in the western part of the empire in the

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate or Umayyad Empire (, ; ) was the second caliphate established after the death of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and was ruled by the Umayyad dynasty. Uthman ibn Affan, the third of the Rashidun caliphs, was also a membe ...

seat of Córdoba, the Andalusian scholar Abū Bakr al-Zubaydī, produced '' Ṭabaqāt al-Naḥwīyīn wa-al-Lughawīyīn'' (‘Categories of Grammarians and Linguists’) a biographic encyclopedia of early Arab philologists of the Basran, Kufan and

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

schools of Arabic grammar and ''

tafsir Tafsir ( ; ) refers to an exegesis, or commentary, of the Quran. An author of a ''tafsir'' is a ' (; plural: ). A Quranic ''tafsir'' attempts to provide elucidation, explanation, interpretation, context or commentary for clear understanding ...

'' (Quranic exegesis), which covers much of the same material covered in chapter II of the ''Fihrist''.

Editions and chapters

The ''Fihrist'', written in 987, exists in two manuscript traditions, or "editions": the more complete edition contains ten ''maqalat'' ("discourses" - Devin J. Stewart chose to define ''maqalat'' as ''Book'' when considering the structure of Ibn al-Nadim's work). The first six are detailed bibliographies of books on

ic subjects: * Chapter 1

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

** 1.1 Language and

Calligraphy Calligraphy () is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instruments. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "the art of giving form to signs in an e ...

** 1.2 The

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

, the

Gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

** 1.3 The Quran * Chapter 2

Grammar In linguistics, grammar is the set of rules for how a natural language is structured, as demonstrated by its speakers or writers. Grammar rules may concern the use of clauses, phrases, and words. The term may also refer to the study of such rul ...

** 2.1 Grammarians of al-Baṣrah ** 2.1 Grammarians of al-Kūfah ** 2.3 Grammarians of Both Schools * Chapter 3 Hadīth ** 3.1

Historians A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the ...

and Genealogists ** 3.2 Official Government Authors ** 3.3 Court Companions, Singers, and Jesters * Chapter 4

Poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

** 4.1 Pre-Islāmic and

-Era Poets ** 4.2 'Abbāsid-Era Poets * Chapter 5

Theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

& Dogma ** 5.1 Muslim Sects; the Mu'tazilah ** 5.2 The Shī'ah, Imāmīyah, and Zaydīyah ** 5.3 The Mujbirah (Determinists) and al-Ḥashawīyah (Traditionalists) ** 5.4 The Khawārij ** 5.5 Ascetics * Chapter 6

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

** 6.1 Mālik ibn Anas ** 6.2 Abū Hanīfa ** 6.3 al-Shāfi'i ** 6.4 Dāwūd ibn 'Alī ** 6.5 Legal Authorities (Shī'a and Ismā'īlīyah) ** 6.6 Jurists of Ḥadīth ** 6.7 al-Ṭabarī ** 6.8 Jurists of Shurāt * Chapter 7 Philosophy and Ancient Sciences ** 7.1 Philosophy;

Greek philosophers Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BC. Philosophy was used to make sense of the world using reason. It dealt with a wide variety of subjects, including astronomy, epistemology, mathematics, political philosophy, ethics, metaphysics ...

, al-Kindī et al. ** 7.2

Mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

and

Astronomy Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest includ ...

** 7.3 Medicine; Greek and Islāmic * Chapter 8 Entertainment Literature ** 8.1 Storytellers and Legends, ** 8.2 Exorcists, Jugglers, Conjurers and Magicians ** 8.3 Fables and Other Topics * Chapter 9 Religious Doctrines ** 9.1 The Ṣābians, ( Manichaeans, Dayṣānīyah, Khurramīyah, Marcionites, and Other Sects) ** 9.2 Doctrines ('' Maqalat'') of

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

s and the Chinese); * Chapter 10

Alchemy Alchemy (from the Arabic word , ) is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practised in China, India, the Muslim world, and Europe. In its Western form, alchemy is first ...

. Ibn al-Nadim claims he has seen every work listed or relies upon creditable sources. The shorter edition contains (besides the preface and the first section of the first discourse on the scripts and the different alphabets) only the last four discourses, in other words, the Arabic translations from Greek, Syriac and other languages, together with Arabic books composed on the model of these translations. Perhaps it was the first draft and the longer edition (which is the one that is generally printed) was an extension. Ibn al-Nadim often mentions the size and number of pages of a book, to avoid copyists cheating buyers by passing off shorter versions. Cf. ''Stichometry'' of Nicephorus. He refers to copies by famous calligraphers, to bibliophiles and libraries, and speaks of a book auction and of the trade in books. In the opening section, he deals with the alphabets of 14 peoples and their manner of writing and also with the writing-pen, paper and its different varieties. His discourses contain sections on the origins of philosophy, on the lives of

Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...

and

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

, the origin of '' One Thousand and One Nights'', thoughts on the pyramids, his opinions on magic, sorcery,

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic (supernatural), magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly app ...

, and

alchemy Alchemy (from the Arabic word , ) is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practised in China, India, the Muslim world, and Europe. In its Western form, alchemy is first ...

etc. The chapter devoted to what the author rather dismissively calls "bed-time stories" and "fables" contains a large amount of Persian material. In the chapter on anonymous works of assorted content there is a section on "Persian, Indian, Byzantine, and Arab books on sexual intercourse in the form of titillating stories", but the Persian works are not separated from the others; the list includes a "Book of Bahrām-doḵt on intercourse." This is followed by books of

Persians Persians ( ), or the Persian people (), are an Iranian ethnic group from West Asia that came from an earlier group called the Proto-Iranians, which likely split from the Indo-Iranians in 1800 BCE from either Afghanistan or Central Asia. They ...

, Indians, etc. on fortune-telling, books of "all nations" on horsemanship and the arts of war, then on horse doctoring and on falconry, some of them specifically attributed to the Persians. Then we have books of wisdom and admonition by the Persians and others, including many examples of Persian andarz literature, e.g. various books attributed to Persian emperors Khosrau I,

Ardashir I Ardashir I (), also known as Ardashir the Unifier (180–242 AD), was the founder of the Sasanian Empire, the last empire of ancient Iran. He was also Ardashir V of the Kings of Persis, until he founded the new empire. After defeating the last Par ...

, etc.

Manuscripts

Gustav Flügel *Old Paris MS - four chapters *MS Istanbul, copy transcribed by Aḥmad al-Miṣrī for de Slane's use in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

*Vienna MS - two copies *Leiden MS - several fragments Bayard Dodge *Beatty MS - MS no. 3315, Chester Beatty Library in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

; up to Chap. V, §.I, (account of al-Nashi al-Kabir). 119 f.f., handwriting in an old naskh script; belonged to historian Aḥmad ibn ‘Ali al-Maqrīzī. The Beatty MS, a copy of the original, probably escaped destruction at Baghdad in 1258, having been taken to Damascus where in 1423 the historian Aḥmad ibn ‘Alī al-Maqrīzī acquired it. At the fall of Aḥmad Pāshā al-Jazzār (d.1804) it was in the library of the great mosque at

Acre The acre ( ) is a Unit of measurement, unit of land area used in the Imperial units, British imperial and the United States customary units#Area, United States customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one Chain (unit), ch ...

and the manuscript was probably divided when stolen from there, and later the first half was sold by the dealer Yahudah to the collector Chester Beatty for his library at Dublin. *MS 1934 - library adjacent to

Süleymaniye Mosque The Süleymaniye Mosque (, ) is an Ottoman imperial mosque located on the Seven hills of Istanbul, Third Hill of Istanbul, Turkey. The mosque was commissioned by Suleiman the Magnificent () and designed by the imperial architect Mimar Sinan. An ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

; “Suleymaniye G. Kütüphanesi kismi Shetit Ali Pasha 1934”; from Chap. V, §.2., an account of al-Wāsiṭī. *MS 1134 (no. 1134) & MS 1135 (no. 1135) - Koprülü Library, Istanbul. *Tonk MS - Sa‘īdīyah Library at Tonk,

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

it originally belonged to the Nabob. *MS 4457 - Bibliothèque nationale Paris; Fonds Arabe, 1953; cat., p. 342 (cf. 5889, fol. 128, vol. 130), No. 4457; first part; (AH 627/1229-30 CE); 237 folios. *MS 4458 -BNP; Fonds Arabe, 1953; cat., p. 342 (cf. 5889, fol. 128, vol. 130), No. 4458. *Vienna MSS - Nos. 33 & 34. *Leiden MS (No. 20 in Flügel) *Ṭanjah MS -(Majallat Ma‘had al-Khuṭūṭ al-‘Arabīyah, published by the League of Arab States,

Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...

, vo. I, pt 2, p. 179.) *Aḥmad Taymūr Pasha Appendix - al-Fihrist, Egyptian edition, Cairo, Raḥmānīyah Press, 1929.

Notes

References

Sources

* omplete English translation * * * * *

External links

Encyclopaedia Iranica
with notes and an introduction in German. Leipzig, 1872. PDF format.
Chapter 7 the ''Fihrist'' in English
English translation by Bayard Dodge. PDF format. {{Authority control 987 10th-century Arabic-language books 10th-century encyclopedias Arabic non-fiction books Biographical dictionaries History books about Iraq Abbasid literature