Dananir al Barmakiyya (Arabic: دنانير البرمكية; late 8th-century – early 9th-century) was an Arabian qiyan musician, singer and poet. She is also known as the author of the famous Book of Songs.[1]
Dananir al Barmakiyya دنانير البرمكية | |
|---|---|
| Died | c. 810s Baghdad |
| Resting place | Baghdad |
| Occupation | Arabic poet and singer |
| Language | Arabic |
| Nationality | Caliphate |
| Period | Islamic Golden Age (Abbasid era) |
She was from Medina. A slave, she was sold to Yahya ibn Khalid al-Barmaki.[2]
As a slave, she was trained to become a qiyan. She was a student of the qiyan-musician Badhl, who was known for the number of songs she retained in her memory.[3] Among her instructors were Ibrahim andd Ishaf al-Mausuli, Ibn Jami, Fulaih, and Badhl.[4]
Dananir is noted as one of the most famous quian-musicians. She is described as an accomplished poet, musician and singer. As a singer, she was popular with the Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid (r. 786–809), who visited his minister's house in Baghdad to hear her perform, and gave her extravagant gifts, including a necklace worth 30,000 gold coins.[4]
She is most well known as the author of the Kitab mujarrad al-aghani (Book of Choice Songs).[4]
References
edit- ^ Music in the World of Islam: A Socio-cultural Study
- ^ Hilary Kilpatrick:Making the Great Book of Songs: Compilation and the Author's Craft in Abū L
- ^ Music in the World of Islam: A Socio-cultural Study
- ^ a b c Haag, John (1999). "Dananir al Barmakiyya". Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia. Vol. 4. Waterford, CT: Yorkin Publications. pp. 294–295. ISBN 0787640611.