Shāriyah (, born c. 815 in al-Basra; died c. 870 C.E.) was an ‘

Abbasid The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 C ...

'' qayna'' (enslaved singing-girl), who enjoyed a prominent place in the court of Al-Wathiq (r. 842–847).

Biography

The main source for Shāriyah's life is the tenth-century '' Kitāb al-Aghānī'' of Abū ’l-Faraj al-Iṣfahānī. Shāriya seems to have been an illegitimate daughter of a Qurashī and was sold into slavery by a woman claiming to be her mother to the ‘Abbasid prince Ibrahīm ibn al-Mahdī, son of third Abbasid caliph,

al-Mahdi Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-Manṣūr (; 744 or 745 – 785), better known by his regnal name al-Mahdī (, "He who is guided by God"), was the third Abbasid Caliph who reigned from 775 to his death in 785. He succeeded his ...

(r. 775–785), and half-brother of the fifth caliph Harun al-Rashid (r. 786–809) and the poet and princess ‘Ulayya bint al-Mahdī. There was later some dispute about the sale, as Shāriyah's alleged mother tried to claim that she was freeborn, in an effort to cash in on her daughter's success; but Ibrahīm retained ownership of Shāriya until she was manumitted during the reign either of al-Muʿtaṣim (r. 833–842) or al-Wathiq. Her greatest success was at al-Wathiq's court.

Works

The most important attestation of Shāriyah's poetry and skill comes in the form of an account of a musical contest between her and her older rival ‘Arīb al-Ma’mūnīya (and their respective troupes of singing-girls) in Sāmarrā’, reported in Abū ’l-Faraj al-Iṣfahānī's ''Kitāb al-Aghānī''. It probably took place in the reign of al-Mutawakkil (r. 847–861). The description is also an important attestation of the activities of female musicians in ‘Abbasid courtly life. According to the account, "at that time, the refined and well-bred people were divided into two communities – one supported ‘Arīb (''‘Arībiyya'') and the other backed Shāriya (''Shārawiyya''). Each party favored the singer whom they admired in terms of applause, ''ṭarab'' limactic moments and improvisation".Agnes Imhof
"Traditio vel Aemulatio? The Singing Contest of Sāmarrā’, Expression of a Medieval Culture of Competition"
''Der Islam'', 90 (2013), 1–20 (p. 4, with a translation pp. 4–7), DOI 10.1515/islam-2013-0001. The account opens:

One day we sat together at Abū ‘Isa ibn al-Mutawakkil’s, who had invited us for a morning drink. With me were also Ja‘far ibn al-Ma’mun, Sulaymān ibn Wahb and Ibrāhīm ibn al-Mudabbir, furthermore ‘Arīb and Shāriya and their singing-girls. We were all filled with joy, when Bid‘a, ‘Arīb’s slave-girl, sang: This song was by ‘Arīb. Then ‘Irfān sang: This song was by Shāriya.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shariyah Women poets from the Abbasid Caliphate Poets from the Abbasid Caliphate Arabic-language women poets Arabic-language poets 9th-century women writers 9th-century Arabic-language writers 9th-century deaths Year of birth uncertain 9th-century women from the Abbasid Caliphate 9th-century people from the Abbasid Caliphate Qiyan 9th-century women musicians Slaves in the Abbasid Caliphate People from Basra Singers of the medieval Islamic world Medieval Arabic-language singers 9th-century slaves