Three Swahili poems (MS 45022)
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Material Information

Title:
Three Swahili poems (MS 45022) Hirqal, Qatirifu and Ndiwa na Kozi
Series Title:
Objects of instruction : treasures of SOAS
Added title page title:
Hiraql : three Swahili poems
Added title page title:
Heraclius : three Swahili poems
Added title page title:
Kyuo kya Hereḳali
Added title page title:
Book of Heraclius
Added title page title:
Utend̠i wa Tambuka
Added title page title:
Utenzi wa Tambuka
Added title page title:
Story of Tambuka
Added title page title:
Story of Heraclius
Added title page title:
Utenzi wa Hirqal MS 45022a
Creator:
Bwana Mwengo wa Athman ( Author )
Kijuma, Muhammad ( Scribe )
Place of Publication:
Africa
Publication Date:
Language:
Swahili
Physical Description:
31 leaves
Materials:
Paper ( medium )
Measurements:
24.4 x 19 cm
Technique:
Handwritten manuscript in black and red ink on old thick papers

Notes

Content Advice:
Swahili is an Eastern African Bantu language with many Arabic elements acquired through contact with Arab traders since about 900 CE. The oldest transcriptions of oral Swahili poetry, written in Arabic script, are from the early eighteenth century. Poetry plays an important cultural role, encouraged by religious leaders whose Arabic verses may be paraphrased interlinearly in Swahili. Such poetry protects the individual and embodies patrician Swahili values of purity and piety, expressing pride in their Arab origins. Poems may render events in the life of the Prophet Muhammad or historical happenings in early Islam, as here, where the two longer poems deal with Muhammad’s victories against the Byzantine emperor Heraclius (Hiraql, reigned 610-641 CE) (Text by Tania Tribe, from the exhibition catalogue: Objects of instruction : treasures of the School of Oriental and African Studies, Anna Contadini, Editor. London : SOAS, University of London, 2007.) ( en,,, )
Scope and Content:
This section of MS 45022 contains a poem, utenzi, of 1150 stanzas, of one line in each stanza, that narrates of a war between Muslims and Romans. Because of its content, the poem can be considered an oral historical account. The poem was given to Ernest Dammann by Muhammed Kijumwa in 1937, in Lamu. Hirqal, known as Heraclius, was a Roman governor who fought against the Muslims. The poem contained here is not complete, and it misses the beginning. The pages are numbered by leaf. The utenzi starts by naming three soldiers (messengers), Jaafari Mwana Amuye Bashiri, Abdalla Shururi, and Zaidi, who have died in the war. The Prophet is said to have spent seven days commemorating the deaths. In Islam however the commemoration of the death does not last more that three days, except in the case of a widow commemorating her husband, in which case it lasts for four months and ten days. At page 1, Jibril comes to give him God's orders to the Prophet and to the 'Swahaba' (Prophet's followers). Jibril tells them to go to attack the city of Tabuk in Sham (Syria). At page 2, Ali is given the role of writer by the Prophet so that he can account for the events that are taking place at that time. A letter is then sent to Hirqal by the Prophet, written by Ali, is which the Prophet tells Hirqal that his religion/belief, of believing that Jesus is the son of God, is wrong. At page 4, there is the Muslim doctrinal formula 'laa ilaha illa llahu, Muhammadun rasulu llah', 'there is no God but Allah, and Muhammadun is his messenger'. Ibnu Omar is the one delivering the letter, which will entitle him to go to Paradise as promised by the Prophet. The poem narrates of Ibnu Omar preparation for the trip to deliver the letter. Ibnu Omar delivers the letter to the minister of Hirqal at Tabuk. The minister disagrees with the content of the letter and reply by saying that they will not stop believing in their religion because they were transmitted from the ancestors. At page 9, the letter is sent to Hirqal who is residing in Damascus. Hirqal replies to the Prophet with another letter in which he declines the recommendations. Both Hirqal and the Prophet, pages 11 to 14, tell their followers to be ready for war. The poem narrates the preparation for war and how thousands of Muslims came from many cities to Medina to support the Prophet. The battle, with sword and spear, between the two factions is vividly described from page 15 to 18. At the end, the utenzi narrates that the Muslims won over the Romans and took Hirqal minister and his friend as prisoners where they were told to be Islamised. They refused and they were thus killed by sword. Overall, the poem extensively and vividly narrates in a way in which the sequence of events is sometimes difficult to follow. The narrative of the war is from a Muslim perspective, and in many instances the enemies are called 'kafiri', non-believer in Islam, or infidels. The adaptation of Arabic scripts into Swahili is quite easy to follow thanks also to the good quality of scribing. The Swahili dialect used is mainly Kiamu with other northern expressions.
General Note:
VIAF (name authority) : Heraclius, Emperor of the East, approximately 575-641 : 268960974
General Note:
The 'Objects of instruction : the treasures of SOAS' exhibition was funded through a generous gift from the Foyle Foundation and with the support of the Arts & Humanities Research Council.
General Note:
Source: A. Contadini (ed.), Objects of Instruction : Treasures of the School of Oriental and African Studies. London : SOAS, University of London, 2007, p.115, no.90.
General Note:
Deals with Prophet Muhammad's victories against the Byzantine emperor Heraclius (Hiraqli, reigned 610-641 CE).
General Note:
Manuscript, written in Arabic script (Kiamu and other northern dialects), in leather case with rude ornamental designs
General Note:
The first of the three poems is 2 fragments of the Hirqāl-saga, on Muhammad’s victory over the Romans under Hirqāl (Heraclius): ff. 1-30
General Note:
First lines of manuscript: Wa kwanda ni Jaafari Mwana Amuye Bashiri, na Abdalla Shururi, naye Zaidi
General Note:
Heraclius (Swahili: Hirqāl; Latin: Flavius Heraclius Augustus) was Byzantine Emperor from 610 to 641.
Donation:
Forms part of the Taylor Papers
Biographical:
Knappert, J. 1958. Het Epos Van Heraklios. Druk: Fa N.J. Hofman-Alkmar, Netherland. Knappert, J. 1977. Het Epos van Heraklios. Meulenhoff, Amsterdam, Netherland. Abou Egl, Mohammad. 1983. The life and works of Muhamadi Kijuma. PhD thesis, SOAS, University of London. pp. 240-242

Record Information

Source Institution:
SOAS, University of London
Holding Location:
Archives and Special Collections
Rights Management:
All applicable rights reserved by the source institution and holding location.
Resource Identifier:
MS 45022 ( soas manuscript number )
b165534d-6957-4ba0-a562-e81f536b479a ( calm recordid )