About
'Arabian Proverb' is a collective attribution used in quotation dictionaries and anthologies to designate traditional proverbs originating from Arabic-speaking cultures. Arabs were among the first peoples to systematically gather and annotate their own proverbs, with the earliest extant collections dating from the Islamic classical period, such as al-Maydānī's Kitāb Majmaʿ al-amthāl (12th century CE), containing over 6,000 proverbs. The earliest European scholarly collection was Thomas Erpenius's, published in Leiden in 1623. Arabic proverbs play an enormous cultural role in Arab societies, being quoted in everyday speech, travel journals, and biographical literature.
Major works
- Kitāb Majmaʿ al-amthāl (XIIe siècle)proverb collection
- Proverbiorum Arabicorum centuriae duae (1623)proverb collection
Key milestones
- XIIe siècleAl-Maydānī compiles Kitāb Majmaʿ al-amthāl, containing over 6,000 proverbs.
- 1623Thomas Erpenius publishes the first European scholarly collection of Arabic proverbs in Leiden.
- 1899James Wood's Dictionary of Quotations includes 'Arabian Proverb' as a distinct author entry.
Themes
Popular wisdomEveryday lifeMoralityHuman experienceOral transmission
Sources: cambridge.org · cambridge.org · www1.bartleby.com