Anatolia is a region which hosted various civilizations throughout its history. It can be observed that certain cities are highlighted during the reigns of the civilizations which ruled over Anatolia in various sections of its history. Antioch, which was an important settlement from Antiquity to our contemporary era and in which various civilizations and cultures located on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean, co-existed, was a symbolic city of Anatolia for many centuries with its mosaic-like ethnic structure as well as its religious diversity. Antioch which became an important settlement for Muslims and Arabs in the year of 636, the year it was besieged by the Islamic forces led by Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah, was ruled by Umayyads, Abbasids, Tulunids, Ikhshidids, Hamdanids, Seljuks and Mamluks respectively. The city located in the southernmost point of Anatolia, was able to become the centre of attention for Arabs and Muslims for many centuries, even though it was subjugated by the Crusaders for a certain period of time, before Mamluks.
Antioch which endured various periods throughout its history, was the subject of many various Arabic literary genres, primarily the poetry. With this study which aims to review the Arabic literary sources and to examine and analyse the poems identified from the said sources to be relevant for Antioch, it has been observed that a majority of the said poems describe various aspects of the city of Antioch whereas some of them praise or vilify the city for various reasons and motives. As a result of reviewing the Arabic literary sources based on their periods for the purpose of examining the poems regarding Antioch, it has been identified that these poems do not only belong to the periods after the city was captured by the Islamic Nations, also to various pre-Islamic poets such as Imru’al-Qais, Zuhary bin Abi Sulma. Additionally, it is observed that poets of the Islamic period such as Al-Buhturi, Ibn Hayyus, Abu’l A’la Al-Ma’arri, İbnu’l-Kayserânî, Ibn al-Wardi, Al-Qasem b. Dâvûd et-Tarsûsî, Abdurraheem Al-Buri as well as Nizar Qabbani in modern period reflected their descriptions of Antioch in poems with themes of praise, satire, elegy and depiction.
Poems mentioning Antioch which was handled in Arabic literature for its various aspects, while signifying the clear relationships the Arab poets had with the city, also emphasize the place and significance of this historic city in Arab-Islamic society since poets represent the feelings and opinions of their societies. Under the scope of the study, poems mentioning the name of Antioch are examined and it is understood that a large portion of these works do not directly focus on the city. It is observed that the poems of pre-Islamic Jahiliyyah poets such as Imru’ al-Qais and Zuhary bin Abi Sulma do not handle the city of Antioch itself but rather handle the clothes made in the city. However, the fact that these clothes are included in the poetry as subsidiary factors for praises, is evaluated as the reflection of a positive opinion about Antioch. It is observed that Antioch is generally mentioned with regards to warfare in the poems of poets such as Al-Buhturi, Ibn Hayyus, Al-Abiwardi. Poets, instead of directly focusing on the city in their poems, used the city as a subsidiary factor clarifying the main themes of their works, under the scope of the battles fought in the region. Fundamentally, the fact that Antioch is captured by many forces throughout its history, signifies that the city was a field for the clash of various powers. This condition explains why the city was used in Arabic poetry handling themes of warfare. It is observed that the population of the city was the main focus of the poems of Abu’l A’la Al-Ma’aari which satirizes the city and poems of İbnu’l-Kayserânî, known for his odes, which handle the city of Antioch. It is also observed that Ebû ‘Amr et-Tarsûsî emphasizes on the spiritual aspect of the city as well as regarding Antioch based on its population. Likewise, the fact that mystic poet Abduraheem Al-Bur’i, while praising Prophet Mohammad), mentioning the foreignness or not being Arab of the people of Antioch, is evaluated as a signifier for the demographic structure of the city and the perception of Antioch in the memory of Arabs. The fact that Nizar Qabbani, one of the important names of modern Arabic poetry, mentioning Antioch as one of the symbolic cities concerning the dissolution of Arab-Islamic civilizations, allows us to understand the importance of Antioch for the Arabs of the past. However, it must be specifically stated that the literary work which handles the city of Antioch most intensively in Arabic literature, is “el-Makâmetu’l-Antâkiyye” by Ibn Al-Wardi. This maqama which expresses the poet’s opinion about Antioch through a dialogue between a fictional narrator visiting the city and a fictional resident of the city, consists of couplets describing Antioch as a unique city.
Arabic Language Rhetoric Arabic Poetry Description Praise Satire Antioch
Anadolu, tarih boyunca çeşitli medeniyetlere ev sahipliği yapmış bir coğrafyadır. Tarihin çeşitli dönemlerinde Anadolu’da hüküm süren medeniyetlerde bazı şehirlerin ön plana çıktığı görülmüştür. Antikçağ’dan günümüze kadar Akdeniz’in Doğu kıyılarında yer alan ve farklı medeniyet ve kültürlerin bir arada yaşadığı önemli bir yerleşim birimi olan Antakya, gerek çeşitli inançların yaşandığı bir coğrafya olması gerekse âdeta bir mozaiği andıran etnik çeşitliliğiyle yüzyıllar boyunca Anadolu’nun sembol şehirlerinden biri olmuştur. Ebû ‘Ubeyde b. el-Cerrâh komutasındaki İslâm kuvvetleri tarafından kuşatıldığı 636 yılından itibaren Müslümanların ve Arapların dikkatlerini çeken bir yerleşim birimi haline gelen Antakya, sırasıyla Emevîler, Abbâsîler, Tolunoğulları, İhşîdîler, Hamdânîler, Selçuklular ve Memlüklerin hâkimiyeti altına girmiştir. Anadolu topraklarının en güneyinde yer alan şehir, Memlüklerden önce bir süre Haçlılara boyun eğse de tarih boyunca Arapların ve Müslümanların ilgi odağı olmayı başarmıştır. Tarihsel döngü içinde farklı güçler arasında el değiştiren Antakya, başta şiir olmak üzere Arap edebiyatının farklı türlerine konu olmuştur. Arap edebiyatı kaynaklarında yer alan söz konusu şiirlerin incelenmesi sonucunda bunların büyük bir bölümünün Antakya’nın muhtelif yönlerini tasvîr ettiği, bir kısmının da çeşitli gerekçe ve vesilelerle şehri övdüğü veya yerdiği görülmüştür. Ayrıca Antakya’dan bahseden beyitler içeren şiirlerin sadece şehrin İslâm Devleti hâkimiyeti altına girdikten sonraki sürece ait olmadığı, aksine İslâm öncesi dönemde yaşamış İmruu’l-Kays ve Züheyr b. Ebî Sülmâ gibi şairlerin şiirlerinde de yer aldığı anlaşılmıştır. İslâmî dönemde el-Buhturî, İbn Hayyûs, Ebu’l-‘Alâ’ el-Ma‘arrî, İbnu’l-Kayserânî, el-Kâsım b. Dâvûd et-Tarsûsî, Abdurrahîm el-Bur‘î ve Nizâr Kabbânî gibi şairler, Antakya’ya dair tasavvurlarını methiye, hiciv, mersiye veya tasvîr şiirlerine yansıtmışlardır. Ancak Arap edebiyatında Antakya’yı en yoğun biçimde ele alan edebî ürünün, İbnu’l-Verdî’nin “el-Makâmetu’l-Antâkiyye” adını verdiği eser olduğu özellikle belirtilmelidir. Şairin Antakya hakkındaki izlenimlerinin, şehri ziyaret eden hayalî bir hikâyeci karakterle şehirde yaşayan başka hayalî bir kahraman arasında geçen diyalog üzerinden aktarıldığı bu makâme, Antakya’yı eşsiz bir şehir olarak tasvîr eden beyitler içermektedir.
Birincil Dil | Türkçe |
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Konular | Din Araştırmaları |
Bölüm | Araştırma Makaleleri |
Yazarlar | |
Yayımlanma Tarihi | 20 Aralık 2021 |
Yayımlandığı Sayı | Yıl 2021 Cilt: 4 Sayı: 2 |