At a glance
- Roles
- Poet · writer
- Era
- The Buyid, Fatimid and Seljuk Era
- Region
- Levant & Iraq
- Review
- Draft Completeness 2/5 · Help complete it
Life in time
Summary
ʿAbd al-Wahid ibn Nasr ibn ʿAli, Abu al-Faraj al-Makhzumi, the poet known as al-Babbagha ("the Parrot"), was a cultivated man of letters and a skilled epistolary writer. He died in Shaʿban 398 AH. 1
Appeal from prison
One of his best-known verses is his poem addressed to ʿAmid al-Juyush when he was imprisoned: "I asked my time whom I should appeal to, and it said: appeal to ʿAmid al-Juyush." In it he says: "My house was seized, my slaves fled, my clothes wore out, and I sold my furnishings. I used to be nicknamed al-Babbagha, but time has torn my finery, and my food was pure rice; and now here I am, content with sāl al-shīsh." 2
Ibn Hilal al-Sabi's letter
Abu Ishaq Ibrahim ibn Hilal al-Sabi wrote to him from prison, after he had visited him in his confinement, complaining to him of his cage. Al-Babbagha replied in verse, saying: "Though I was once titled al-Babbagha, many have been given the title of injustice and not of justice." 3
Connections
- Corresponded with
- Ibrahim ibn Hilal al-Sabi'
People and things also explored
Ibrahim ibn Hilal al-Sabi'· al-Tanahmir: the Himyaritic speech remnant· Aljamia (aljamiado: Spanish written in Arabic script, and its literature)· Arab naming of children after plants· The wise sayings attributed to Ali· Poetry attributed to Ali ibn Abi Talib· The delegation of Banu Tamim and the boasting contest· Ka'b ibn Zuhayr's pardon and recitation of Banat Su'ad
Sources
- al-Muntazam fi Tarikh al-Muluk wa'l-Umam — Ibn al-Jawzi , j.7 p.241-243
- al-Muntazam fi Tarikh al-Muluk wa'l-Umam — Ibn al-Jawzi , j.7 p.242
- al-Muntazam fi Tarikh al-Muluk wa'l-Umam — Ibn al-Jawzi , j.7 p.242-243
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “Abu al-Faraj al-Makhzumi al-Babbagha”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/person/al-babbagha/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-23.