Muhammad al-Nadim

1. I am pleased to introduce our speaker for today, the writer of the Kitab al-Fihrist li-al-Nadim: Muhammad al-Nadim

2. Meet al-Nadim! Click to hear the first part of the introduction! Click to hear the second part of the introduction!

3.  My name is Abu al-Faraj Muhammad ibn Ishaq ibn Muhammad ibn Ishaq… but you may call me al-Nadim. I am called this because I am a companion of the court – a nadim – of Mu’izz al-Dawlah.

4. It is the year 970 C.E. I am about 35 years old and I live in Baghdad with my wife and son. I work in my father’s book shop.

5. I am a warraq – a book dealer. However… … I also make books.

6. I copy manuscripts, too. It is a very nice occupation. From my father I learned the art of conversation, and many scholars visit me in the shop. It has been my job since I was very small to entertain the customers. My father sent me to school when I was a child. I am quite clever, if I do say so myself, and I love to learn.

7. Someone has rung the bell to my shop… Why, it is Abu Sa’id al-Sirafi, the jurist! He is one of my teachers, and a very good friend. He often comes by for tea and conversation. Hopefully he will let me quote him in my work…

8. My discussions with Sa’id are often quite animated. He is the most excitable of all my friends.

9. In the end he usually purchases a book or two and we part until next the time.

10. I should tell you about my work! I have been keeping a catalog of all the books that come into the shop. They are all so interesting… I spend much of my time skimming the pages, and I usually read the whole thing!

11. I got the idea for my catalog while helping customers. It is much easier to find books when we have a list of authors and titles. My notes have grown so large, though -- I’m interested in everything!

12. My friends send me books from all over the world. It is always exciting to receive a parcel!

13. Sometimes I travel to visit with an author or to search for books. I like to make sure a citation is authentic before I include it in my catalog. Here I am at the city gate of al-Mawsil! I travel here often. It is much closer to Baghdad than Damascus or Khurasan, and I like the libraries better. Many book collectors live here, as well as my friend Muhammad ibn Hashim and the tutors of the sons of Nasir al-Dawlah.

14. I have also been to Aleppo. Like Baghdad, Aleppo is a great center of culture.

15. One day I would like my catalog to be an encyclopedia of all knowledge in the Arabic language…. I envision a large tome with scores of classifications such as the grammarians of Basrah, government officials who wrote books, Muslim secrets, mathematics, jugglers, calligraphy, and of course, the Qur’an.

16. There will be room in my book for other cultures, too, for I am interested in all things. The Torah, pre-Islamic poets, and Greek philosophers are all welcome subjects to me. I am in a curious position to be tolerant of others’ beliefs; for you see, I am a Shi’ite, a sect many of my peers consider heretical.

17. My research keeps me very busy, and I fear my beloved books are calling me away. This visit has been a pleasure. I hope you get as much joy out of learning that I do. Who knows… maybe in twenty years or so I’ll be finished with my work, and you can read it!

18. Epilogue Click to hear the first part of the epilogue! Click to hear the second part of the epilogue!

19. CREDITS Al-Nadim ……………… Bill Chisenhall Abu Sa’id al-Sirafi ….... Owen Townes Reader ……………..…. Jenny Townes Photography by Charlotte Hayes Special thanks to Rebecca Gibson for the use of her home.

20. Bibliography The Fihrist of al-Nadim: A Tenth-Century Survey of Muslim Culture. Bayard Dodge, ed. and trans. 2 vols. New York: Columbia University Press, 1970. Wellisch, Hans H. “The First Arab Bibliography: Fihrist al-‘Ulum.” Occasional Papers. University of Illinois Graduate School of Library and Information Science, no. 175, Dec. 1986. Lyden, Jacki. “Islamic Encyclopedia.” All Things Considered, January 23, 1999. <http://www.npr.org/> Accessed 4 Apr. 2006.