Voices from the Frontline
Nostalgia in Arabic Poetry of the Umayyad-Era Islamic Conquests
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 8969764 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Pamela Klasova (0000-0002-2177-7543, University of Chicago, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 57 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 472-493 |
| Publication date | 2025-08-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Journal Middle East Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0020-7438 • E-ISSN: 1471-6380 |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1017/s0020743825100871 |
| OpenAlex | W4417190892 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 11 |
How did Arab poets experience the rise of the Islamic empire? How can Umayyad poetry help us understand this formative moment in human history? In this article, I explore the potential of Umayyad poetry for writing the history of the period, focusing on poetry of the soldiers in the Umayyad armies—men distant from political power yet serving as its instruments and deeply affected by the empire’s expansion and consolidation. Their verses complicate the traditional celebratory narratives of the Islamic conquests by giving voice to loss, grievance, and dislocation, revealing the human costs behind imperial triumph. Through its shared tone of nostalgia, this poetry not only preserves perspectives rarely heard in the historical record but also contributes to the emerging history of emotions in the early Islamic world
Arabic · History of Islam · Islam · Narrative · Poetry · Politics · Power (physics · Tone (literature · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Historical Studies of Medieval Iberia · Islamic Studies and History
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |