¶ÙĪ±·´¡³Õ´¡¸éĪ, ABŪ ḤANĪFA AḤMAD b. DÄwÅ«d b. Vanand (d. between 281/894 and 290/903), grammarian, lexicographer, astronomer, mathematician, and Islamic traditionist of Persian origin, who lived at ¶ÙÄ«²Ô²¹±¹²¹°ù and in several cities in Iraq in the 9th century. There is little information on his life, but he is known to have attended the lectures of EsḥÄq SekkÄ«t and his son YaÊ¿qÅ«b b. EsḥÄq, both renowned philologists.
¶ÙÄ«²Ô²¹±¹²¹°ùÄ« has been compared to his older contemporary JÄḥeẓ (d. 255/869), but he differed in that he was interested in mathematics and the Islamic sciences. He was the author of about fifteen works, which are enumerated by Ebn al-NadÄ«m (ed. Flügel, I, p. 86; cf. Brockelmann, GAL, S I, p. 187; Sezgin, GAS IV, pp. 338-43; V, pp. 262-63, 428; VI, pp. 158-59; VIII, pp. 168-70) and in later biographies. They ranged from a commentary on the Koran to treatises on arithmetic (KetÄb al-baḥṯ fÄ« ḥesÄb al-Hend), algebra (KetÄb al-jabr wa’l-moqÄbala), and popular astronomy (KetÄb al-anwÄʾ). ¶ÙÄ«²Ô²¹±¹²¹°ùÄ« was an adherent of the purist reaction against “errors” in language (KetÄb mÄ yalḥan fÄ«h al-Ê¿Ämma), took an interest in the history of poetry (KetÄb al-šeÊ¿r wa’l-šoÊ¿arÄʾ), and even published a manual of erotism (KetÄb al-bÄh). All these works are lost or at least have not been found, but it is not impossible that traces of them can be recognized in later writings, notably those of Ebn Qotayba ¶ÙÄ«²Ô²¹±¹²¹°ùÄ«, whom MasÊ¿Å«dÄ« accused of having borrowed extensively from, if not actually having plagiarized (²Ñ´Ç°ùÅ«Âá, ed. Pellat, par. 1327), ¶ÙÄ«²Ô²¹±¹²¹°ùÄ«’s works, particularly KetÄb al-anwÄʾ; several passages of various lengths from the latter work are also quoted in ²Ñ´Çḵaṣṣ²¹á¹£ by the Andalusian Ebn SÄ«doh (d. 458/1066).
Otherwise, from the list of ¶ÙÄ«²Ô²¹±¹²¹°ùÄ«’s works only one text has been preserved in its entirety; another, which is partially preserved, has been complemented from numerous quotations in the later literature. The first, entitled KetÄb al-aḵbÄr al-á¹ewÄl (ed. V. Guirgass, Leiden, 1888; preface, variants, and index by I. Yu. Krachkovsky, Leiden, 1912), is a history of Islam, although ¶ÙÄ«²Ô²¹±¹²¹°ùÄ« has never been considered a historian; the work is written from a Persian point of view, with particular emphasis on events involving Persia. A clear idea of the second work, which has long aroused the interest of scholars, can be obtained from the preserved and restored sections. It is entitled KetÄb al-nabÄt, a botanical treatise consisting of an alphabetical dictionary and a series of monographs on plants with specific uses. The portion of the dictionary from alef to zayn was edited by Bernhard Lewin (The Book of Plants of AbÅ« ḤanÄ«fa ad-DÄ«nawarÄ«. Part of the Alphabetical Sections (Alif-Zayn), Uppsala, 1953) and that from ²õÄ«²Ô to ²âÄå by M. Hamidullah (Le dictionnaire botanique d’AbÅ« ḤanÄ«fa ad-DÄ«nawarÄ«, Cairo, 1973). The monographs were also published by Lewin (The Book of Plants. Part of the Monograph Section, Wiesbaden, 1974). This work is of the greatest importance for the study of the flora of ancient Arabia; it is based on written sources, information furnished by bedouin, and the personal observations of the author. Subsequent studies and commentaries have included those by B. Silberberg and Thomas Bauer.
Bibliography:
(For cited works not given in detail. see “Short References.”) T. Bauer, Das Pflanzenbuch des AbÅ« ḤanÄ«fa ad-DÄ«nawarÄ«, Wiesbaden, 1988.
B. Lewin, “al-DÄ«nawarÄ«,” EI2 II, p. 300.
KaḥḥÄla, I, pp. 218-19.
Kašf al-ẓonÅ«n, ed. Flügel, V, p. 358.
Ê¿AlÄ« b. YÅ«sof Qefá¹Ä«, EnbÄh al-rowÄtÊ¿alÄ anbÄh al-noḥÄt I, Cairo, 1950, pp. 42-44.
O. Rescher, Abriss der arabischen Litteraturgeschichte II, Istanbul, 1925, pp. 198-200.
B. Silberberg, “Das Pflanzenbuch des Dinawari,” ZA 24, 1910, pp. 225-65; 25, 1911, pp. 39-88.
JalÄl-al-DÄ«n Ê¿Abd-al-RaḥmÄn SoyÅ«á¹Ä«, KetÄbboḡyat al-woÊ¿Ät, Cairo, 1326/1908, p. 132.
³ÛÄå±çÅ«³Ù, °¿»å²¹²úÄåʾ III, pp. 26-32.
(Charles Pellat)
Originally Published: December 15, 1995
Last Updated: November 28, 2011
This article is available in print.
Vol. VII, Fasc. 4, p. 417
