Byzantium and the Arabs in the sixth century Vol. 2, part 2

418 Pages·2009·3.98 MB·English

by  Irfan Shahid

BY ZANTIUM
AND THE
ARABS IN
THE SIXTH
CENTURY
Volume 2 | Part 2
IRFAN SHAHÎD

BYZANTIUM AND THE ARABS
IN THE
SIXTH CENTURY
A mosaic in the floor of the southern sacristy of the Church of St. George at Mt. Nebo. It is dated
536 and so its Arabic term, bi-salām, illustrates the calligraphic expression of the Arabic script in
pre-Islamic times, as discussed in the chapter on Calligraphy in this volume.
BYZANTIUM AND THE ARABS
IN THE
SIXTH CENTURY
IRFAN SHAHÎD
Volume II
Part 2: Economic, Social, and Cultural History
PUBLISHED BY
DUMBARTON OAKS RESEARCH LIBRARY AND COLLECTION
Washington, D.C.
Copyright © 2009 by Dumbarton Oaks
Trustees for Harvard University, Washington, D.C.
All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America.
All maps by K. Rasmussen (archeographics.com), © 2009 by Dumbarton Oaks,
Trustees for Harvard University
Library of Congress cataloging-in-publication data available
ISBN 978-0-88402-347-0
IN MEMORIAM
P. MICHELE PICCIRILLO
1944–2008
P. FRANCIS DEMARET
1927–2009

Contents
Abbreviations x
Preface xiii
Acknowledgements xxi
I
Economic History
I The Role of the Ghassānids 3
II The Ghassānids and the Security of Oriens 6
III The Ghassānids and International Trade Routes 10
IV The Fairs 33
V The Ghassānids as Tax Collectors 41
VI A Ghassānid Dyarchy in Oriens 43
VII Other Contributions 45
VIII The Wealth of Arabia 47
IX Economic Rivalry in Arabia: Byzantium and Persia 52
Appendix Al-Nuʿmān ibn al-Mundir:
Ghassānid or Lakhmid? 57
II
Social History
A Background
I Ghassānid Federate Society 61
II The Women of Ghassān 81
Appendices
I Elizabeth of Najrān 110
II Yawm al-Khurūj: The Day of the Exodus 111
IIi Palm Sunday 112
Iv The Education of a Ghassānid Princess 113
v Al-Jūdī, Layla’s Father at Dūma 115
vi Yawm al-Furāt, “the Battle-day of the Euphrates” 116
Contents
III Prose Accounts on the Ghassānids 118
Appendix Reynold Nicholson
on the Ghassānid Royal Court 125
B Daily Life
IV Food 127
Appendix Paradise in the Koran 135
V Drink 138
Appendix Garisaean Bacchus 157
VI Clothes 159
Appendix The Vestimentary System:
Further Observations 173
VII Medicine 176
C Rituals, Entertainment, and Leisure Activities
VIII Music and Song 182
Appendix Μῖμος and μιμάς in Arabic 201
IX Dance 204
X Victory Celebrations 207
XI Votive and Victory Offerings 220
Appendix The Ghassānids and the
Old Testament: Job/Ayyūb 228
XII The Horse 230
XIII The Hunt 238
Appendix Traps and Snares 246
XIV Ghassānid Banquets 250
XV Recreation in the Countryside: Tabaddi 255