Ibn al-Azraq al-Fariqi

Aḥmad ibn Yūsuf ibn al-Azraq al-Fāriqī (Arabic: أحمد بن يوسف بن الأزرق الفارقي; c. 1116 – c. 1176) was a chronicler from Mayyafariqin, present-day Silvan. His major work, Ta'rikh Mayyafariqin wa-Amid ("the history of Mayyafariqin and Amid"),[1] is written in Arabic.[2]

His ethnic origins are not clearly known.[3] Early in his life, ibn al-Azraq was a trading agent for the Artuqid ruler Husam al-Din Timurtash, son of Ilghazi. During one of his stays in Baghdad, c. 1140, he was educated by leading Muslim scholars for six months. From 1153 to 1154, he was at the court of King Demetrius I of Georgia, as his secretary.[2][4] In his works, ibn al-Azraq specifically mentions the Christian king's benevolent treatment of Muslims.[5] He was again in the Kingdom of Georgia in 1162 or 1163, before becoming mutaqalli ishraf al-waqf, that is, custodian of waqf (charitable endowment), in Mayyafariqin in 1166 or 1167. A year later, he served in the same position in Damascus for two years. He then returned to his native city. The year of his death is not certain. His work is a chronicle chiefly focused on Mayyafariqin and Amid in the Diyar Bakr region, but contains important details about the geography and history of the neighboring regions.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Hillenbrand, Carole (1979). "History of the Jazira, 1100-1150: The Contribution of ibn al-Azraq al-Fariqi, Ph.D. thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1979". hdl:1842/7341.
  2. ^ a b c Thomas, David; Mallett, Alexander (2011). "Ibn Al-Azraq". In Thomas, David; Mallett, Alexander (eds.). Christian-Muslim Relations. A Bibliographical History. Volume 3 (1050-1200). Brill. pp. 690–694. ISBN 978-90-04-21616-7.
  3. ^ Hillenbrand, Carole; al-Fāriqī, Aḥmad ibn Yūsuf ibn ʻAlī Ibn al-Azraq; İstanbul, Nederlands Historisch-Archaeologisch Instituut te (1990). A Muslim principality in crusader times: the early Artuqid state. Nederlands Historisch-Archaeologisch Instituut te Istanbul. ISBN 978-90-6258-066-8.
  4. ^ Edge of Empires: a History of Georgia by Donald Rayfield
  5. ^ Eastmond, Antony (1998). Royal imagery in medieval Georgia. Pennsylvania State University Press. p. 71. ISBN 0271016280.
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