From Nineveh to Fars

Scrinium: Journal of Patrology and Critical Hagiography. 2021. Vol. 17. No. 1. P. 382–392.

Pritula A.

The Syriac poetry of the 11th–14th centuries (so-called Syriac Renaissance) was studied
very purely until quite recently. One of the reasons for such indifference is a traditional
approach of the scholars, who treated this poetry as a secondary one, because of a
strong influence of the Islamic literature.
In this article, it is argued that the authors of this period were trying to connect
their own poetical traditions with the achievements of the Persian and Arabic poetry.
As the result, they created new original forms that need to be carefully examined.
One of the creators of this new style was probably Bar ʿEbrōyō (1226–1286), a
famous West-Syrian philosopher and scientist. His esthetic approach was developed
by his East-Syrian contemporary Khāmīs bar Qardaḥē of Arbela, who used sophisticated
rhythmic and rhyme schemes to achieve a stronger expressive effect. The article
discusses one of his poems that demonstrates his outstanding skills as a poet experimentalist
in both rhythm and rhyming.

Keywords: сирийская поэзия, сирийский ренессанс, Syriac poetry, Syriac Renaissance, quatrains, Persian influence, четверостишия, Mongol court, персидское влияние, монгольский двор