East-West Relations in the Islamic Mediterranean in the Early Eleventh Century: A Study in the Geniza Correspondence of the House of Ibn 'Awkal
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STILLMAN, Norman Arthur, 1945EAST-WEST RELATIONS IN THE ISLAMIC MEDITERRANEAN IN THE EARLY ELEVENTH CENTURY— A STUDY IN THE GENIZA CORRESPONDENCE OF THE HOUSE OF IBN CAWKAL. University of Pennsylvania, Ph.D., 1970 History, medieval
University Microfilms, A XEROX Com pany, Ann Arbor, Michigan
S COPYRIGHT
Norman Arthur Stillman
1970
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EAST-WEST RELATIONS IN THE ISLAMIC MEDITERRANEAN IN THE EARLY ELEVENTH CENTURY— A STUDY IN THE GENIZA CORRESPONDENCE OF THE HOUSE OF IBN CAWKAL Norman Arthur Stillman
A DISSERTATION in ORIENTAL STUDIES
Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of the University of Pennsylvania in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. 1970
Supervisor of Dissertation
Graduate Group Chairman
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This dissertation was prepared under the guidance of my master and teacher, Professor S. D. Goitein.
It was he who introduced me to the world of
Islamic Studies and the Geniza, and it was he who sug gested the topic of this dissertation when I was still a senior in college.
The photostats and microfilms of the
documents upon which this work is based were available to me from Professor Goitein*s private collection.
I
have consulted him at virtually every stage of my work, and he has continually upheld me with his Inspiration and wisdom when my own footsteps faltered.
Without his un
stinting aid this work would not have been possible. Needless to say, my profound indebtedness to my teacher should in no way be construed as relieving me of the sole responsibility for all errors, whether these be sins of omission or commission. I would like to express my gratitude to several other individuals who have aided me in my work. The following people provided me with certain source materials which were not available here in Phila delphia:
Mr. David King, Yale University; Mrs. Marc iii
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iv Pomeranc, University of Chicago; and Miss Susan Spectorsky, Columbia University* Miss Jacqueline de Weever and Miss Spectorsky were kind enough to read the final draft and final copy, respectively, of this dissertation* stylistic suggestions*
Both made helpful
My father took time from his busy
executive’s schedule to read the draft of Chapter V and to discuss some of the business problems with me* My mother typed most of the final draft, and Mrs. Susan Frank typed the final copy of this disser tation.
Both worked with the greatest perseverance at
this arduous task, despite other obligations, so that this study could be presented, in an attractive form, at the designated time.
I am particularly grateful to Mrs. Frank
for her painstaking work on the tables. Last, but by no means least, I wish to express my Indebtedness to my wife and help-mate, Yedida.
The
contents of this work have been enhanced more than once by her insights. help.
Most of the tables were set up with her
Because of her own accomplishments in Arabic and
Hebrew, she was able to check my references to the sources, and in some cases make corrections.
Above all, I know that
without her loving support, her tenderness, and her under standing, I would not have been able to complete this undertaking.
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INDEX Owing to the frequency of their occurrences, the following have not been indexed:
dinars, dirhems, Jews,
and Mediterranean. Aaron b« Ephraim b. Tar son (cantoi), 59 Abbasid(s), 22 °Abd al-cAziz, 20 °Abd b. Hisham (qadl), 324 °Abd al-Malik (Umayyad caliph)% 20 °Abd al-Malik al-Muzaffar, • 9 10 cAbd al-Rahman (founder of the Spanish Umayyads), 22 CAbd al-Rafcman Sanchuelo, lO °Abdun al-Nashsha, 413 Abraham (a workman), 364, 369 Abraham b. Joseph, 73» 78, 117t 392, 393» 394 Abraham b. Samljun, 266 Abramson, S., 64 Abu *l-ACla Samuel, 231-232 Abu °A1I b. al-Jaluza (shipowner), 412, 414 Abu cAlI gasan al-Tustarl, 55 Abu Bakr (Ibn Rustam's agent), 314, 316 Abu Bakr b. cAbd al-Rahman (Jurist), 26 v
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Vi Abu Brahlm Isftaq b. Dawud b. al-Fakhkhlr, 390 Abu •1-Fadl Salih al-Tahertl, 212 Abu *1-Fadl al-Dlmashqi, 6 8 , 6 9 , 8 3 , 9 8 , 99* 110-111, 167 Abu •1-Fadl Hakim, 381 Abu *1-Faraj (cousin of Joseph b» Berekhya), 204 Abu *1-Faraj b. Khalluf, 306 Abu Harun, 38 1 Abu •1-Hayy b« Khalila, 1 3 9 , 333 , 402, 404, 405 Abu Ibrahim Ishaq b. al-Sahl, 208, 218, 221-222, 231 Abu Ibrahim Isma°Il al-Taherti, 6 5 , 106, 108, 112, 113* 1 9 6 , 209 -2 1 2 , 249, 253 Abu clmran al-FasI (jurist), 26, 219 Abu Ishaq (associate of Ibn cAllan), 413 Abu Ishaq al-Hatib, 351 Abu Kathlr Ephraim, 344 Abu *1-Khayr b. Barakat, 316 Abu '1-Khayr Kusa al-Tahertl, 6 5 * 157* 198, 202, 210-212, 270, 383-364, 368 Abu *1-Macall, 59 Abu Nasr al-Tustarl, 4, 40, 51-52, 249 , 3 4 4 , 392 Abu Qalamun (precious fabric), 110, 144, 155* Abu Qir, 305 Abu Sa°d al-Tustarl, 4, 39-40, 45, 55, 249 Abu SacId Maymun b. Ephraim, 222 Abu ‘l-Surur Isaac al-Tahertl, 268 Abu Ya°qub Nahshon (?), 213
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vll Abu Yacqub Yusuf, 342 Abu Yusuf b. Yahya, 343 Abu ZlkrI Judah b. Joseph, 212, 238-239, 242, 243 Academies (Babylonian and Palestinian), 26, 31, 32, 33, 34, 40, 43, 45, 48, 5 6 , 6 0 , 6 1 , 6 2 , 6 3 , 6 5 , 66, 6 7 , 30, 192 , 194, 195, 197, 208-212, 226-228, 243, 249, 349* See also Pumbeditha and Sura cAdliyya dirhems, 113, 146 Aghlabid(s), 5, 22 Ahmad Qasandalas, 412 Aleppo, 11 Alexandria, 53, 71, 75, 78, 80, 8 5 , 94, 117, 118, 120, 121, 122, 128, 129, 142, 147, 148, 149, 150, 152, 153, 157, 159, 160,293, 303, 305, 314, 352, 356, 358-359, 404, 405, 410
103, 132, 154, 321,
115, 139, 155, 323,
116, 141, 156, 349-350,
Algeria, 5 n. 12 ®AlI b. Abi Talib, 22. cAlI al-Afrwal, 358 Allttf, 38, 6 1 , 6 2 , 6 3 , 64, 238 Almeria, 196 , 199 Alvaro, 24 Amalfi(tan, -s), 14, 15-16 Ambergris, 141 cA*airid(s), 9-10 °Ammar (a courier), 294, 2 9 6 , 356, 358 amsar, 23 °Amta, 90 cAmtanI indigo, 90, 113, 135, 334
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viil al-Andalus, 9-11.
See also Spain
Aoulia, 32 5 , 329 n. 26 Arabic language. 23-25* 29, 170, 173-188, 200. also Middle Arabic
See
Arabic poetry, 26-27* 101, 173 Arabic script, 5 8 , 74, 75, 173 n 6, 213, 275, 284, 3 09 , 326, 336, 370 Arabs, 1 5 , 20, 21, 23, 24, 29, 103, 118, 122 Arnolfinl, 166 Aromatics, 100-103, 141 ashab al-khllac , 39 Ashirians, 209 Ashmunayn, 326 , 386 Ashmuni flax, 8 3 , 129, 334 al-Ashqar (a courier), 316 Ashtor, E., 36 Asia Minor, 105, 106 Asphalt, 1 5 9 , 306 Assaf, S., 172, 238 Av Bet Din, 60, 228, 231, 232 cAziza (perhaps a cousin of Joseph b. cAwkal), 49 cAzIziyya dinars, 146, 268 Babylonian(s), 33, 37, 41, 42, 45, 56, 57, 60, 6 1 , 6 2 , 6 5 . 192, 194, 195, 197, 226, 195. See also Iraq(ians) Badis b. al-Mansur (Zirid sultan), 43, 194, 195, 201, 108. Baghdad, 3, 5, 37, 38, 40, 43, 50
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ix Bahiyya b. Joseph b. cAwkal, 52 Bale(s).
See °ldl
Baneth, D. Z., 185 Banu Hilal, 6, 8, 16, 42, 45, l66 Banu Sulaym, 16, 166 BaqI b. Makhlad al-Qurtubl (Jurist), 26 baraka, 3^2,
n. 3
Barhun al-Tahertl, 196, 250 Baron, Salo, 30 Barqa, 5 n. 12, 19 barqalo(s), 8 5 , 86, 1 1 6 , 128, 297, 298, 307 Basil II (Byzantine emperor), 11 Bedouin(s), 2, 6, 17, 45, 185 Ben Daniel, 228, 231 Belts, 125, 159 Benjamin of Tudela, 36 Berber(s), 6, 19, 21, 24, 25, 2 8 3 , 331 Bible, 33, 188, 199 Blau, Joshua, 174, 182, 185 Book of the Prefect, 13 Brazilwood, 7 6 , 91-93, 97, 98, 137, 2 6 7 , 270-271, 308, 33^ Bribes, 87, 130 Brocade, 125, 144, 155 , 298 Bulgaria, 12 Bu Mllh, 159
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z Bunana (a sailor), 159, 316 Busir, 70, 362, 365 , 366, 379 Bufirl flax, 8 3 , 128, 129, 308, 334 Byzantine(s), 2, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 30, l6l, 164, 2 6 0 , 293 Byzantine Empire,
See Byzantium
Byzantium, 2, 11-14, 16, 17, 30, 34, 70, 122 Cairo (Cairene), 4, 8, 27, 33, 47, 55, 57, 58, 59, 60, 7 0 , 72, 109, 112 , 388 Camphor, 101-102, 1^1, 334 Caravans, 6, 81, 146, 198, 205 nn, 1-2, 208, 209, 214 n, 2, 220, 252, 266, 2 6 8 , 288-289 Caraway loaves, 159, 359 Caraway seed, 140, 341, 344 Carmathians, 2 Case endings, 182 -183 , 186 Central Asia, 29, 107 Cheese, 324, 359 China, 101, 102, 107 Christlan(s), 9, 16, 24, 70, 331 Citarella, Armand, 16 Cloth.
See Textiles
Coins, 111, 112-114, 146-148, 390-392 Commercial Revolution, 1, 47, l6l Constantinople, 12, 13, 15 Copper, 78, 114-115, 149 Corals, 116, 159
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xi Cordova, 9, 281, 283 Costus, 103-104, 141, 334 Credit, 1 2 3 , 138, 307 Crusades, Crusaders, 2, l6 l Crystal, 108, 110, 144 Damascene paper, 160 Damsis, 124, 131, 156 , 158 Daniel b. al-Shama, 73 Dar al-Islam, 5* 16, 21, 30, 31 Dar al-Jawhar, 59* 71» 108 Dar Manak, 314, 316 , 404 Dar al-Sushun (warehouse), 129 Dar al-Zablb (funduq and warehouse), 130 Datini, 166 dayyan(s). 38 dhimmi(s), 3-4, 3 0 , 39, 45, 6 7 , 228. Dosa Gaon, 194, 198, 199 Dunash b. Tamlm, 41 Dyestuffs, 88-95, 122-123, 126, 137-138 Egypt(ian), 1, 2, 3, 37, 40, 43, 44, 70, 71, 8 3 , 84, 122, 129, 130, 1 5 0 , 151 , 156 , 260, 287, 303,
8, 7, 8, 13, 17, 20, 22, 25, 28, 33, 45, 47, 48, 5 0 , 51, 58, 6 0 , 6 2 , 6 9 , 95, 99, 101 , 103, 112 , 113, 115, 119, 138, 140, 141, 142, 146, 147, 149, 158 ,1 6 0 , 162 , I6 3 , 164, 165 ,228 , 315, 336, 344, 362, 387, 393
Elhanan b. Shemarya, 37, 38, 39, 58, 59 Emphatic consonants, 177-178
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xii
Ephraim b. Isma°Il al-Jawhari, 80, 94, 97» 108, 122, 123, 165 , 1 8 8 , 293-295, 3 00 , 3 03 , 309, 314, 318, 349, 351, 356 Ephraim b. Shemarya he-Haver, 62 Europe(an), 15, 1 6 , 41, 8 3 , 88, 92, 93, 95, 98, 100, 103, 118, 122, 164 Exilareh*
See Resh Galutha
Fair(s), 123, 125, 138, 149, 153, 155, 298, 307 Family firms, 71, 78, 111, 1 6 7 , 197 Farah al-FasI, 270-271 Farah• b. Abraham,w 106 Farafc b, Sulayman, 317 Faraj (the Freedman of Barhun), 250, 254, 287 , 290 Fasls, 2 6 3 , 283 Fatimld(s), 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 17, 18, 22, 28, 3 2 , 37, 39, 40, 4 7 , 6 0 , 6 9 , 115, 124, 163 ,293 fatwa(s), 32 Fayyum, 71 al-fltna, 10, 280 Flax, 70, 138, 331, 388,
83 -8 8 , 91, 96, 98, 105, 123, 124, 125, 128-134, 153, 155, 158, 162-163, 164, 296 -2 9 8 , 305 -3 0 8 , 332, 333-33**, 342-343, 3 62 , 265 -2 69 , 378, 38 7390-394, 402,404, 409-410, 412-414
Florence, 166 Formosa, 101 fraterne, 78 fugaha*, 26 Fustat (Old Cairo), 4, 5, 33, 35-40, 43, 44-46, 47, 49, 55, 57, 5 8 , 59, 6 0 , 6 2 , 7 0 , 71, 7 2 , 84, 100 , 10 $, 1 1 2 , 130, 132, 138, 139, 140, 142, 147, 149, 152, 159, 162,
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xiil 204, 275, 369,
210, 213, 227, 295, 3 0 0 , 3 1 4 , 403, 410, 411,
233, 242, 245, 421, 3 2 6 , 3 3 6 , 412, 413
250, 263, 268, 350, 356, 3 6 8 ,
futuh, 19 Gabes, 243 Gafsa, 227 n. 2 Gaon(ate, -ic), Geonim, 31-33, 35, 38, 40, 41, 57, 62, 64, 66, 6 9 , 168 , 194-195, 198 , 2 0 1 , 208 , 2 09 , 2 1 1 , 212, 2 2 6 , 229-233, 242, 2 5 3 , 349 Genlza, 8,13., 1 6 , 27, 33, 40, 48, 51, 53, 58, 72, 8 3 , 9 2 , 99, 10 ?, 124, 126 , 1 6 1 , 162 , 167 , 168 , 1 6 9 , 239, 294, 341, 349, 357, 409 Genoa, Genoese, 7, 14, 166 German(s), 14 al-Ghazal (b, cAwkal ?), 392 Glnzberg, Louis, 31 Goitein, s . D . , 27, 30, 3 6 , 57, 66, 8 7 , 9 6 , 124, 1 6 8 , 172, 332, 341, 389 Gold, 12, 112, 114, 116, 210, 211, 345, 357 Golden Horn, 13, 15 Government secret service, 239 Greece, 105, 106 Greek language, 106, 403 Grimaldi, 166 habba (1/72 dinar), 412, 413 HaJJ, 287, 322, 325 al-Hakim (Fatimid caliph), 3, 67, 228 Hananel b. Hushiel, 42
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xiv Harun b. Yusuf al-Ghazzal, 94, 96, 102, 103, 104, 108, 117, 118, 119, 149, 152, 294, 2 9 6 , 307, 331-332, 336, 342, 343, 349, 351 Harun al-GhazzIl's brother, 74, 337-338 Hassan b. Nu°man, 20 Havir, 3 8 , 63 Hay Gaon, 43, 52, 59, 6 0 . 1 6 9 , 195, 199, 200, 213, 226, 229, 231, 249, 253 Hayyim, 38 0 Heads of the Academies.
See Gaon
Hebraic Wharf, 13 Hebrew language, 41, 42, 62, 172, 187-188, 200 Hebrew script, 75, 173, 174, 175, 176, 188, 200, 370 HIba b. al-Khatib, 75 n. 18, 264, 265 , 266, 270 Hides, 120-122, 125, 151, 159, 221, 277 Hijaz, 28 hlml, 85 et passim Hisday b. Halabu, 281, 283 Hisham II (Spanish caliph), 280, 283 Honey, 120, 151 House of Ibn cAwkal, 47, 49, 58, 68-160, l6l, 162 , 1 6 7 , 171, 192, 303, 322, 364, 409. See also Ibn cAwkal Hushiel b. Elfcanan, 42, 45 Ibn cAbd al-Qudra (Muslim banker), 295, 298 Ibn cAbd Rabbih, 27 Ibn Abi °Uqba's nephew, 351-352 Ibn cAllan, Abu'1-Paraj Jacob, 413
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XV
Ibn °Allan, Isaac, 274 Ibn cAta*, Abu Ishaq Ibrahim, 43, 44, 73, 121, 169, 173* 1 §2 , 195, 19 o, 2 0 1 , 208-212, 218-219, 223, 2 2 6 , 228 , 238-244. Ibn °Awkal, Abu Blshr Jacob, 49, 50, 60-62, 6 3 , 64, 72, 73 n. 13, 108, 109, 113, 120 , 143, 160 , 172, 260-261, 263 Ibn cAwkal, Abu •1-Fadl Hillel, 51, 53, 71, 72-72, 172, 274, 289, 290, 335, 344, 3 69 , 377, 381, 392 Ibn cAwkal, Abu Sahl Manasseh, 5 1 , 71, 72-73, 172, 307, 335, 344, 369 , 392 Ibn cAwkal, Abu Sa°Id (Khalaf ?), 5 1 , 53, 73, 172, 299, 307, 335, 362 , 369 Ibn °Awkal, Abu •1-fayylb Benjamin, 51, 71, 72-73, 172, 274, 289, 290, 362 Ibn °Awkal, Abu Ya°qub Abu *1-Faraj Joseph, 8, 29, 47-67, 69-160, 163-169, 172, 192, 195-197, 204, 210, 213, 223, 227, 228 ,233, 245, 249-251, 255, 2 60 , 2 6 3 , 266 , 275, 280 -281 , 284, 287 , 2 9 0 ,293, 294, 299, 309, 314, 315, 318, 321, 322, 326 , 331-332, 336, 340, 341, 345, 349-350, 352, 359, 362-364, 370, 376-377, 381, 387-388, 395, 402-403, 404, 409, 411, 414 Ibn cAwkal, Jacob b. Hillel, 53, 56, 73 Ibn °Awkal, Yefet b, Khalaf, 5 3 , 172 Ibn Duqmaq, 100 Ibn Ghawbar (shipowner), 160 Ibn Ghawth (Muslim merchant), 322, 324 Ibn al-Ghazallyya, 363 , 367 Ibn Hawkal, 8 Ibn °IdharI, 20, 25 Ibn clmr5n, 323 Ibn Jacfar (shipowner), 324, 325
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XV1
Ibn Killis, Ya°qub, 3 Ibn al-KajJanl, Abu 0Imran Musa, 50, 6 3 , 79, 80-82, 9 4 , 97, 123 , 125, 165, 198, 203, 208, 221 -222 , 227, 231, 252, 253, 266 , 2 70 , 273, 280 -281 , 284, 287, 2 8 8 , 293, 295, 297, 298, 304, 3 0 8 , 343, 350, 351, 364 Ibn al-MaJJani, Abu ZlkrI Yafcya, 80, 295, 298 , 364, 3 67 , 381 Ibn al-Najl, cisa, 219 Ibn al-Qaddar (shipowner and merchant), 295, *H0, 413 Ibn Rustam (a Muslim merchant) 75 n. 18, 31^, 316, 317 Ibn al-Sabblgh, 268 Ibn Sara, 155 Ibn al-Waqqaf, 274 Ibn Yazdad, 2 6 9 , 272, 273 Ibrahim b* Aghlab, 22 °idl, 85 et passim Idris I (founder of independent Moroccan dynasty), 22 Idris, H. R., 7 Ifrlqiya, 5 n. 12 °llw, °llawa« 136, 402 India(n), 29, 90, 92, 95, 103, 104 Indian Ocean, 287 Indigo(tin), 77, 89-91, 98, 135-136, 284, 289, 402, 404 "Indigo flax" (Kill flax), 8 3 , 91, 133, 391 Iqbal (an assistant), 368-369 Iranians,
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xvii Iraq(ians), 26, 27, 32, 33, 3^, 40, 48, 50, 5 6 , 6lf 63 6 5 , 66, 6 7 , 6 9 , 8 5 , 105 , 16 9 , 210 , 2 1 2 , 227 , 228 , 249 Isaac b. Janun, 120, 188 Isaac Israeli, 41 Isma°Il al-AndalusI, 151, 159 Ismacil b. Abi cUqba, 7 8 , 8 7 , 116, 124, 139, 153, 317, 387 -3 8 8 , 395 IsmacIl b. Khalluf al-Itrabulsi, 351 Israel (b. Joseph b. Israel b. Banuqa ?), 405 Israel ha-Kohen b. Samuel b. HofnI, 195, 199, 203, 226 229 Italian(s), 1, 6, 17, 18, 97, l6l, 164 Italy, 2, 6, 14-16, 33, 34, 70 Jacob (an assistant), 368 , 377, 379 Jacob b» cAmram, 44, 45-46 Jacob b» Nisslm b. Shahln, 41, 42, 43, 60 Jacob b. Ukht gasan, 262 jama°a, 228 Japan, 101 Jawhar (Patimid general), 3 Jerusalem, 3 8 , 40, 43, 55, 227 Jewels.
See Precious stones
Jewish merchants, 8, 10, 13, 16, 70, 162, 165 , 322 Jihad, 9 .lizya (poll tax), 331, 334 John VIII (pope), 15
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xviii John Tzimlsces (Byzantine emperor), 11 Joseph b. Berekhya, 43, 45, 6 3 , 6 5 , 73, 80, 82, 1 69 , 188 1 9 2 , 195, 196 , 197* 204, 213, 226 -228 , 233, 238-239» 245 , 249, 50, 255 Joseph b. Labrat al-FasI, 260, 263 Joseph b. Yeshu°a, 118, 119, 120, 3 49 , 353, 356, 359 Jubba, 369 , 375 n. 39 Jujube, 141, 380 al-Kahina, 19, 20 kallot, 6 l Karaite(s), 33, 34, 37, 38, 39, 45, 5 2 , 53, 55, 5 6 , 57 Ketama Berbers, 22 Khalaf b. Farah, 393 Khalaf b. Yacqub al-AndalusI, 121, 125, 221-111, 294, 295, 297 Khalifat-Allah (Muslim merchant), 332, 333 Khalluf b. Zakariyya* al-Ashqar, 139, 165 , 315 , 3 1 6 , 3 17 , 321 - 3 2 2 . .326 . 3 6 3 , 365, 411, 412 Khariji coins, 114, 146, 391 Kharijite, 22 khazzan, 68 khlti, khltlyya, 305, 358, 359 khulta, 78 khums, 20 KirmanI indigo, 90, 94-95, 135, 308, 334 Kohl, 160 Koran, 101, 173
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xix kunya, 47-48 n. 2 , 51, 53, 59, 409 kuttab, 50 Lacquer, 93-95, 96, 102, 137, 308, 334 Lasin silk, 125, 156, 159 Lead, 115, 149-150, 298 Levant, 6 , 70, 89 Levi-Provencal, E., 10 Lewis, Archibald, 5 Libya, 5 n. 12, 19 Load(s).
See himl
Lombard, Maurice, 12 Lombards, 14 Low Countries, 88-89 Lucca, 166 Luxury items (aclaq), 52, 108-112, 114, 118, 144, 146, 167 Macedonian Dynasty, 11, 12 Madder, 88 -8 9 , 138, 362 -363 , 365-367, 376, 378-379 Maghreb, 5.6, 19, 20, 21, 43, 45, 6 9 , 88, 95, 97, 103, 141, 149, 194, 195, 208, 210, 23 0 ,243, 314, 317, 387, 403* See also North Africa Maghrebi(s), 8, 27, 43, 48, 6 5 , 66, 6 7 ,92, 113, 118, 120, 123, 164, 16 5 ,169, 173, 177, 1 78 ,180 , 181 , 266 , 2?0 , 363 al-Mahdlyya, 5 , 129, 130, 143, 144, 165, 212, 334, 341,
42, 46, 86. 8 7 , 97, U 8 , 123, 125, 128, 131, 135, 137, 138, 139, 140, 141, 142, 149, 150, 152, 153, 155, 157, 163, 164, 238, 294, 298, 305, 307, 308, 331, 332, 342, 343, 344, 410
al-Mahdiyyans, 202
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XX
najlls, 59, 72, 109 al-Kakhzuml, 314 Malabar, 95 Malal flax, 83, 128, 129, 308, 33^ Malik(ite), 25, 26, 166, 219 Mann, 102 n. 94, et passim Mann, Jacob, 3^» 37 al-Mansur b» Abl °Amir (Spanish viceroy), 9, 10 Manzikert, 17 Mar^ais, William, 23 Marina winds, 391, 398 n. 26 Marwan al-AndalusI, 344 Mas°udl, 107 mawall, 30 Mawhub ha-Kohen (Ibn Quray^a), 52 Maxims and proverbs, 77, 322 n. 3 Maymun, 160 Maymun b, Ephraim, 103 Mecca, 144, 28 7 , 288, 2 8 9 , 322 Medici, 166 MedicInals, 95, 100-107, 122, 141, 410, 412 Medina, 25 Mercury, 150, 3 1 6 , 317 Mez, Adam, 107, 162 Middle Arabic, 173-188,
See also Arabic language
Mlftah Maghallq al-Talmud, 42
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xxi "Minute spices" (saqat), 97-99, 140, 410 Mlsarl flax, 8 3 , 132-133, 412 Mishna(ic), 90 Morocco, Moroccan, 5 n. 12, 9, 11, 22, 35, 184 Mozarabs, 24 Msila (al-Muhammadiyya), 194, 201 mucamala, 7 5 , 7 8 , 388 Mudawwana, 26 Muhammad (an agent), 350, 352 Muhammad (prophet), 25, 357 al-Mu°izz b. Badis (Zirid sultan), 4 3 , 109, 219, 227, 293, 299 Mucizziyya dinars, 146 ffiujahhlz, 68 mukhattata coins, 114, 146 al-Muqaddasi, 5, 162 murld (supplier of the mint), 111 Musa b. Ishaq b. Hisda, 120-121, 151, 362 -3 64 , 370, 376 377, 382, 403, 405 Husk, 1 0 1 , 102, 141, 334 Muslim West, 19-28, 44, 5 1 , 6 9 , 9 1 , 9 5 , 9 9 , 100, 103, 105, 108 , 11 1 , 112 , 115, 1 16 , 120 , 140, 165 , 296 , 308, 349. See also Maghreb and North Africa al-Mustansir (Fatimid caliph), 4, 39 muthallath cloth, 364, 3 6 9 , 374-375 n. 37 muwalladun, 24 muwashshah, 26
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xzil Myrobalin, 104, 141, 308 Nahray b. Nlsslm, 57-58» 1^7 Naples, 15 Nagir-l-Xhosraw, 4, 110, 162 nas J (woven stuff), 158 , 381 Nathan b. Abraham, 349 Nicephorus Phocas (Byzantine emperor), 11 nlsba, I8 3 , 356 Nlsslm (cousin of Joseph b. Berekhya), 229 Nlsslm b. Berekhya, 6 3 , 73* 80, 82, 169 , 188, 197, 204, 213, 226 , 233, 245, 249, 255 Nlsslm b. Jacob b. Shahln, 41, 42 Nlsslm b. Babl°a, 387 , 392-393 Norman(s), 14, 17 North Africa, 2, 5 n. 12, 6, 16, 17, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 2 6 , 33, 57, 8 0 , 102 , 1 11 , 1 16 , 117, 1 6 3 , 226 , 227, 238 , 249, See also Maghreb al-Nuwayrl, 194 Odoriferous wood (aloeswood), 101, 102-103, 141 011ve(s), 21 Olive oil, 116-117, 118, 119, 123, 152, 308, 333, 358, 359 Palermo, 8, 86, 8 7 , 132, 324, 3^3, 387 Palestine, 22, ?8, 32, 34, 40, 57, 6 5 , 66, 6 7 , 6 9 , 80, 9 0 , 93, 12 i 1 1 6 9 , 218 , 231, 233 Palestinians), 32, 37, 38, 43, 48, 6 2 , 6 3 , 210, 212, 227, 230, 231, 3^9 Pantelleria, 7, 294
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xzili Partnerships, 72, 75-77, 78, 79> 121, 124, 149, 150, 151. 157, 158, 160 , 315, 3 32 , 333, 3 66 , 3 8 8 , 390-391, 394 "Party kings," 10 Pearls, 77, 109, 144-145, 2 6 9 , 287 , 288, 289 Pegolotti, Francesco di Balducclo, 8 3 , 93, 98 Pepper, 7 8 , 95-97, 98, 139, 140, 308, 334, 38 8 , 390-391, 394, 402, 404, 410, 412 Peppery cloth, 126 Persia, 88, 90 Persian, 4, 17, 45 Persian Gulf, 287 Phoenicians, 24 Pisa(ns), 7, 115 Pisani, 166 Pitch, 160, 359 Precious stones, 52, 59, 108, 109, 110, 144 Pumbeditha Academy, 31,44, 50. 60. 64 Purple cloth, 145 QablsI family, 80 qadah t 160 n. 1, 380 qaflz. 152, 308 al-Qal°a, 42 Qalus (bourse), 134, 393 qargba (type of ship), 341, 344 oarlb (barge), 117, 128, 133, 325, 413 Qasim b. Zay (shipowner), 390, 412
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XX lv
Qayrawan, 5* 2 2 , 2 5 , J6, 40-46, 60 , 6 3 , 6 5 , 7 0 , 79, 81 91* 93, 94, 97» 109, 111, 128 , 129, 135, 137, 139 140, 141,142, 143, 144, 147, 150, 1 5 2 , 153, 157, 1 63 , 1 64 ,192 , 219, 227, 2 28 ,230 , 239, 249, 2 5 4 , 2 6 8 , 271,2 8 0 , 293, 296 , 297, 298 , 299, 3 2 4 , 3 3 1 , 333, 341,345, 387, ^02 Qayrawanese (Qarawiyya) dirhems, 113, 146 Qaytun Zanlta, 227, 230 Qimat flax, 8 3 , 128, 129, 308 Qintar, 78, 79 n. 29, et passim qlrat, 108, 403, et passim Qullon, 95 gunbar (type of ship), 316 Rabbanite(s), 33, 3*, 3 6 , 38, 55, 57 Rachel (one of Joseph b*. cAwkal*s cousins), 49 Ra*is al-Yahud.
See Nagld
rakkad, 68 Rashid, 303, 306, 316, 404 Ra£l, 7 8 , 79 n. 29, et passim Rav Rosh, 37 Representative of the Academies, 35, ^3, 60 Representative of the Merchants (wakll al-»tuJ3ar), 294 Resh Galutha, 30-31, 37 Resh Kalla (Rosh Kalla), 5 6 , 61 Responsa, 3 2 , 35, 66, 168, 1 69 , 196, 199 Rhubarb, 98 rlda*. 3 52 , 355 n 14. rlzma, 115
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XXV
Romans, 24 Romanus Agyrus (Byzantine emperor), 293 Russia, 12 Sa°ada, 351 Sa°adya Gaon, 195 Saffron, 122-123, 138, 140, 298, 30? Sahara, 6 Sahib b. cAbbad, 27 Sahlan Alluf b. Abraham, 295 Sannun, • * 26 SacId (an assistant), 306 Salama, 295. 298, 299* 366 Salama, the son-in-law of FurayJ, 269 , 272, 273 Salama b. Abl Khalil, 297 Salama b. Baban, 305 Salama al-Mahdawi, 2 68 , 332, 335 Sal ammoniac, 107-108, 143, 308 , 33^ Salar al-ltrabulsl, 295 Salerno, 14 Salman b. Shablb, 341, 3 ^ Samaritans, 37 Samhun b. Dawud al-Slqllll, 76, 78-79* 92, 93, 109* 124 Samuel b. Hofni, 6 2 , 195, 200, 226, 232 SandanI indigo, 90, 91* 135 Santiago de Campostella, 9
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xxvi Sasanisn, 30 Sason, 358 sayala, 142 Sayyidat al-Mulk, 4 Scammony, 106, 142 Scribes, 73-75 scrlptlo plena, 174, 176 Sea loan, 260 Seljuqs, 17 Sefer Yeslra, 41 Sfai, 164 n. 8 shakhtur (a type of ship), 31? Sharab (linen), 157> 334 Shay°a, 227 Shemarya b. Elhanan, 37, 39, 45 Sherira Gaon, 41, 5 0 , 60 Shicite(s), 22, 166, 219 Ships, 77, 8 5 , 97, 115, 117, 119-120, 128, 133, 142, 147, 148, 149, 153, 156, 159, 160 , 220, 252, 280, 293-295, 296-299, 303, 305-307, 316, 317, 321, 323-325, 333, 335, 340-341, 343, 344, 349, 351, 356 , 358-359, 366 , 3 6 8 , 393-394, 405, 410, 412-413 shlqqa, 126 , 155 , 341, 344, 364 al-Shlrajl, 365 Shucayb (ship*s agent), 324 shu°ublyya, 25 Siblstan, 160, 380
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xxvli Sicily, Sicilian, 2, 5, 7, 8, 14, 17, 22, 50, 8 5 , 86, 87, 96, 107 , 114, 117, 124, 125, 128, 129, 132, 133, 139, 146, 151 , 15 6 , 15 8 , 1 6 3 , 293, 295, 303, 305, 3 2 2 , 324 , 325 , 343, 391 SidI °Uqba, 19 Sijilmass, 35, 1^6, 228, 232, 243, 268 Silk, 13, 78, 124-126, 157-158, 159, 268 , 272, 274, 3^1, 3 4 4 , 359, 388 , 394 Silver, 81, 111-112, 114, 1 50 , 280, 282, 357 al-§ina°a (port of Fustat), 60 Slavs, 283 Soap, 78, 117-118, 153, 358 Solomon t># Judah, 62, 63 Southeast Asia, 92, 101 Southern France, 2, 6, 34 Spain, 2, 6, 9-U, 20, 22, 24, 2 6 , 29, 51, 6 9 , 111, 116, 117, 122 , 124, 149, 1 96 , 2 1 2 , 2 67 , 2 69 , 270 , 2 8 0 , 284, 288 Spices, 8 3 , 95, 98, 101, 122, 140, 284, 33^ Starr, Joshua, 14 Sudan, 17 suftaja, 295, 298 Sugar, 99-100, 102, 140, 308 , 334 sukk, 104-105, 142, 410, 412, 4l4 Sulayman b. Shablb, 74 n. 15 Sumatra, 92 Suq al-Hammam, 369 , 375 n. 41 Sura Academy, 31, 62, 64, 194, 226
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xxviii Susa, 49, 1 6 3 , 164 suslyyat, 163 Syria, 27, 28, 105, 106, 293 Syria-Palestine, 2 tabl°un, 25 Tahert, 22, 201 Tahertis, 45, 6 5 , 70, 73, 77, 80-82, 111-112, 116, 126 141, 142, 144, 1 5 0 , 159, 1 60 , 1 6 5 , 195 - 1 9 6 , 227, 2 3 0 , 243, 280 , 281, 282 -283 , 287 Talmud(io), 2 6 , 3°» 31, 33, 42, 43, 62 Tamarind, 142, 38 O tanwln, 185-186 Tar, 160 Tariffs and tolls, 3, 86 -8 7 , 31^* 316 al-Tbala, 209 Textiles, 8 5 , 88, 108, 110, 114, 116, 123-126, 155-158 163-164, 288, 298, 34l, 344, 358, 364, 381 Tiberian vocalization, 174 Tiberias, 3 2 , 62 Tibet, 102 Tin, 78, 150 Tlnnis, 110 Tithes (fushr), 22?, 230 Tragacanth gum, 105-106, 142 Tripoli, 7 , 88, 134, 356, 390, 393 Tunis, 42
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xxix Tunisia(n), 5, 6 , 7, 81, 85, 9 0 , 91, 132, 135, 136, 148, 149, 151, 1 6 4 , 1 6 5 ,171, 3 2 1 , 410
8 , 16 , 22, 49, 51, 93, 94, 100 , 104, 137, 141, 143, 144, 1 5 2 ,153, 156, 1 5 8 , 1 9 6 ,22 ?, 239, 2 6 0 ,
76, 120, 145, 159, 2 94 ,
79, 80, 122 , 130 , 146, 147 1 6 0 , 163 303, 304
Tustarl(s), 4, 45, 52, 249 cUbayd Allah al-Mahdl, 22 cUlama*, 227, 230 cUraar b, cAbd al-cAzIz, 25 cUmar b. Jacfar, 308 cUmar b. Jawkal (shipowner), 412, 4l4 Umayyad(s), 9, 22, 32, 280 Vandals, 24 Venice, Venetians, 1, 14, 15, 78, 166 Vislgoth(lc, -s), 24 Vladimir (tsar), 12 Wadca , 295, 297 Warehouses (makhazin), 85 , 129-130, 412-414 Wax, 118-120, 153, 298, 359 wayba, 154 n. 1, 359 Western Germany, 34 Wheat, 154, 359, 405 Wool, 1 5 8 , 364, 369 Yamama, 67 0 ■» » Ya qub b. Banaya, 351 Ya°qub b. al-Sh5ma, 349, 351 Yaqut, 163
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XXX
Yasmln (a slave), 381 Yemen, 66 Yusuf b. IsmacIl b. Abl °Uqba, 3 8 8 , 392 Yusuf b. Ya°qub (al-)ltribulsl, 109, 110, 113* 115* 119* 1 2 0 , 125, 148 Yusuf Mudallal, 404 Yusuf al-Sabunl, 3 7 6 , 378 , 380, 38 I al-gahir (Patlmld caliph), 4 Zlrid(s), 5, 6 , 7 , 8, 4 3 , 144, 166 , 19^, 195* 294 Zlryab, 27 Zuhayr, 75 n, 18, 364, 3 6 5 * 3^6
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TABLE OP CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................
iii
I N D E X ..........................................
v
LIST OP T A B L E S .................................. xxxiv BIBLIOGRAPHY
..................................
xxxv
............................
lx
ABBREVIATIONS
LIST OF DOCUMENTS................................ lxiii P R EFACE...........................................
PART I Chapter I.
INTRODUCTIONS THE MEDITERRANEAN AT THE DAWN OF THE ELEVENTH CENTURY . . . . . . . . . A. B. C. D. E.
II.
Egypt, North Africa,and Sicily Muslim Spain Byzantium The Italian City-States Summary
1 3 9 11 14 16
THE MOVEMENT FROM EAST TO WEST AND WEST TO E A S T ................................
19
A. B.
The Westward Expansion of Islam The Easternizatlon of the Muslim West
19 23
III. THE JEWISH W O R L D ........................
29
A. Fustat B. Qayrawan
35 ^0 xxxi
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xxxii C. IV.
JOSEPH B. CA W K A L ........................ A. B.
V.
The Ties Between Fustat and Qayrawan
The Man and His Family Ibn cAwkal's Hole in the Jewish Community
THE HOUSE OF IBN CA W K A L ................ A. B.
The Organizationof the Ibn cAwkal Firm The Scope of theIbn ©Awkal Business; Exports 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.
C.
D. VI.
VII.
Flax Madder Indigo Brazilwood Lacquer pepper "Minute Spices" Sugar Aromatics andMedicinals Sal Ammoniac Luxury Items
47 47 60 68 71 82 83 88 89 91 93 95 97 99 100 107 108
Imports
112
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
Coin Metals Corals Olive Oil Soap Wax and Honey Hides Saffron Textiles
112 114 116 116 117 118 120 122 123
Conclusionand Tables
126
A GENERAL APPRECIATION* THE IMPORTANCE OF THE IBN CAWXAL CORRESPONDENCE..........
161
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE IBN CAWKAL DOCUMENTS
171
A.
174
Orthography and Phonology
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xxxiii B. C. D. E.
Morphology Syntax The Hebrew Element Conclusion
180 I83 18? 188
PAST II INTRODUCTION
..................................
192
A.
COMMUNAL CORRESPONDENCE ....................
193
B.
BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE ....................
259
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LIST OF TABLES
Table 1. FLAX
Page . . . . ................................. 128
2. I N D I G O ....................................... 135 3. DYESTUFFS (EXCLUDING INDIGO) AND VARNISH
. .
137
4. P E P P E R ....................................... 139 5. S P I C E S ..............
140
6. AROMATICS AND M E D I C I N A L S ..................... l4l 7. SAL A M M O N I A C ................................. 143 8. LUXURY ITEMS (ACL A Q ) ......................... 144 9. CONSIGNMENTS OF M O N E Y ......................... 146 10. M E T A L S ....................................... 149 11. AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS......................... 151 12. T E X T I L E S ..................................... 155 13» MISCELLANEOUS COMMODITIES ..................
159
14. JUDAEO-ARABIC ALPHABET
175
.....................
xxxlv
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BIBLIOGRAPHY Abrahams, Israels
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Abramson, S.: Ba*Merkazlm uva-Tefusot bltqufat ha-Ge*onIm Jerusalem:
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XXXV1
Adelson, H. L.:
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xxxvii Ashtor, Eli:
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xxxviii
Beaussler, Marcelin:
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xli
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The contri
butions of the Jews of Yemen. _________ .The exchange rate of gold and silver money in Fatimid and Ayyubid times.
JESHO. 8:1, Part
1, 1965. _______.The Qayrawan united appeal for the Babylonian Yeshivoth and the emergence of the Nagid Abraham Ben-cA$a*• 1962 .
viated:
Zion, 27:156, Nos. 3-^»
(Hebrew with English summary).
Abbre
Goitein, The Qayrawan united appeal.
R eproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
xlv Goitein* S. D.: The title and office of the Nagld: re-examination. 1962.
a
JQB. N.S., 53*93» October,
Abbreviated:
Goitein, Nagid.
.The tribulations of an overseer of the Sul t a n s ships.
Arabic and Islamic Studies in
Honor of Hamilton A. B. Gibb.
Ed. George Makdisi.
E. J. Brill, 1965 , PP. 270-28^.
Leiden:
.Three letters from Qayrawan to Joseph b. Tarbiz, 3^:162, January, 196 ^,
°Awkal.
(Hebrew with English summary).
Abbreviated:
Goitein, Three letters. /
Goldziher, Ignaz:
Die Sucubijja unter den Muhammedanem
in Spanien. _________ .Istikhara. Golvin, L.:
ZDMG, 53:603, 1899* El1, 2:561.
Le Magrlb Central a l*epoque des Zlrldes:
Becherches d^rche^ologle et d^lstolre.
Paris:
Arts et Metiers Graphiques, 1957* Graetz, Heinrich:
History of the Jews.
delphia: Gras, N. S. B.:
III.
Phila
Jewish publication Society, 19^6.
Business and Capitalism:
to business History.
New York:
An Introduction P. S. Crofts
and Co., 1939 • Hamdani, Abbas:
Some considerations on the Fatimld
Caliphate as a Mediterranean power.
Attl Del
Terzo Congresso D1 Studl Arabl E Islamlcl. Naples:
1967 , pp. 385-396.
R eproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
xlvi Harrell, Richard S.:
A Short Reference Grammar of Moroc
can Arabic. Georgetown University Institute of Languages and Linguistics, Arabic Series No. 1. Washington, D.C.: 1962.
Abbreviated:
Georgetown University Press, Harrell, Moroccan Arabic.
Harrell, Richard S., Tewfik, Laila Y., and Selim, George D.: Lessons in Egyptian Colloquial Arabic. Georgetown University Institute of Languages and Linguistics, Arabic Series No. 2. ton, D.C.:
Washing
Georgetown University Press, 1963*
Abbreviated:
Harrell-Tewfik-Sellm, Egyptian
Arabic. Hazard, Harry W.:
3?he Numismatic History of Late
Medieval North Africa. No. 8.
New York:
Numismatic Studies
American Numismatic
Society, 1952. Hefes b. Yasliah:
A Volume of the Book of Precepts.
Edited and translated into Hebrew by B. Halper. Published Ph.D. dissertation.
Philadelphia:
Dropsie College, 1915* Heffening, W.: Heyd, w .:
Tidjara, El1, 5*7^7 A.
Hlstolre du commerce du Levant au Moyen Age. Amsterdam:
Adolf M. Hakkert, 1959.
Abbreviated
Heyd, Commerce du Levant. Hlnz, W.:
Islamlsche Masse und Gewlchte. J. Brill, 1955.
Abbreviated:
Leiden:
Hlnz, Masse
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E.
xlvii und Gewlohte. Hirschberg, H. Z.:
A History of the Jews In North Africa, MSsad Bialik, 1965 •
Jerusalem: Abbreviated:
(ln Hebrew).
Hirschberg, The Jews in North
Africa. Hodgson, F. C.:
The Early History of Venice.
London:
G. Allen, 1901. Ibn Baytar:
Tralte des simples (Kltab al-Jamlc 11-
Mufrldat al-Adwlya wa *1-Aghdhlya)• lated by N. L. Leclerc.
Trans
Notices et Extralts des
Manuscrits de la Bibliotheque Natlonale, XXIII, XXV, XXVI.
Paris:
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1877-1883. Ibn Daud, Abraham:
The Book of Tradition (Sefer Ha-
Qabbalah).
Edited and translated by Gerson D.
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1967. Ibn Duqmaq:
Kltab al-lntlsar 11-Wasltat °Iqd al-Amsar.
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Kltab Surat al-Ard. Bibliotheca Geograph-
orum Arablcorum.
Second edition.
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E. J. Brill, 1938*
Ibn cIdharI al-Marrakushl: Leiden:
Ed. J. H.
Kltab al-Bayan al-Kughrlb.
E. J. Brill, 19^8.
Abbreviated:
cIdhar£, al-Bayan al-Mughrlb.
Ibn
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R eproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
xlviil E. Fagnan.
Hlstolre de l*Afrlque et de
l»Espagne lntltul/e al~3ayanof1-Mogrlb. Algiers* Ibn Khaldun*
1901 and 1904.
Abbreviated*
trans.
Hlstolre des Berb&res et des dynasties
musulmanes d l*Afrlque Septentrlonale (Texte Arabe).
Algiers*
1847-1851.
Imprimerie du Gouvernement,
Abbreviated*
Ibn Khaldun, Hlstolre
des Berberes. _________ .Muqaddlmat Ibn Khaldun.
Reprint of Bulaq* 1274.
Translated by Franz Rosenthal. Three vols.
New York*
Ibn Khurradadhbih (Khordadhbeh)* Mamallk.
VI.
Ta*rlkh Ml^r.
Cairo*
Kltab al-Masallk w*al-
Leiden*
Llsan al-°Arab.
Ibn Muyassar*
Pantheon Books, 1958 .
Bibllotheca Geographorum Arabicorum.
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The Muqaddlmah.
Bulaq*
E. J. Brill, I8 89 . 1300-1308.
Edited by Henri Masse7.
Imprimerie de l ’Institut Fran^ais
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Ibn Muyassar, Ta»rlkh Mlsr. Ibn al-NajI*
Ma°allm al-Iman fl Ma°rlfat Ahl al-
Qayrawan. Ibn Qutayba*
Tunis*
1320.
Mukhtallf al-ffadlth.
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Cairo*
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Ed. Reuben Levy. Series, N.S., XII.
E. J. W. Glbb Memorial Londons
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xlix Idris, H. R.:
Commerce maritime et Kirad en Berberle • •
orientale. 1961
JESHO, 4:225, part 3» December,
.
A / _________ .Deux maltres de l'ecole Juridlque kairouanaise sous les Zirldes (XIe siecle):
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Italy Mediaeval and Modern:
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A
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1917. Julien, Ch.-Andrei
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Le Tourneau, L*Afrlque du Nord. Kobler, Franz, ed.: London:
A Treasury of Jewish Letters. Farrar, Straus and Young, 1952.
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I.
Kramers, J. H.:
Geography and bommeree.
Islam.
Eds. Thomas Arnold and Alfred Guillaume.
London:
Oxford University Press, i960 .
Lacour-Gayet, Jaques, et al.: and II, Paris: La Mantla, G.:
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I
Editions SPID, 1950.
La Sicilia ed 11 suo dominlo nell’Africa
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London:
Percy Lund, Humphries
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Lane, Frederic C.:
Family partnerships and joint ven
tures in the Venetian Republic.
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li Lewin, Benjamin Manassehj
Prom the Gaonlo Period.
2
The Epistle of R. Sherlra Gaon, arranged in two versions, originating from Spain and France, with varlae lectlones from all the Mss. and Genlza fragments In the world* (in Hebrew).
Haifa:
1921.
Abbreviated, Lewtnj Iggeret.
.Mlkhtav me-Rabbl Shemu*el b. §ofni ha-Ga'on. Glnze Qedem, 2:19* 1923. _________ .Three fragments from a letter of R. Samuel b. HofnI, Glnze Qedem. 3*76, 1915* Lewis, Archibald R.: terranean:
Naval Power and Trade In the Medi A.D. 500-1100.
Princeton:
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Lewis, Naval Power. Lewis, Bernard:
The Arabs In History.
New York: Lombard, Maurice:
Harper Torchbooks.
Harrer and Brothers, i9 60 . L*0r musulman du VIIe au x i e siecle:
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Economles-Socletes-Clvl-
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lit Lopez, Robert S.:
Silk industry in the Byzantine Empire,
Speculum, 20:1, No* 1, January, 19^5 • _________.Still another Renaissance?
Ihe American His
torical Review, 57*1* No. 1, October, 1951 _________.The trade of medieval Europe:
The South.
Cam.
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Lopez-
Raymond, Medieval Trade. Low, Immanuel:
Die Flora der Juden.
Hildesheim:
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Handbuch der judlschen Chronologle.
Leipzig: Maimonides:
Georg
Buchhandlung Gustav Fock, 1916.
Responsa.
Ed. Jehoshua Blau.
Jerusalem:
Socletas Mekize Nirdamim, 1957* _________.Sharh Asma* al-°Uqqar (Un glossaire de matiere medicale compose^ par Maimonides). hof.
Ed. M. Meyer
Cairo:
Imprimerie de l'Institut Francais d d*Archeologie Orientale, 19^0. Abbreviated: Maimonldes-Meyerhof. Maimuni, Abraham:
Responsa.
Ed. A. H. Freimann,
S. D. Goitein, Jerusalem:
Trans.
Societas Mekize
Nirdamim, 1937 .
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liii Mann, Jacob:
A second supplement to 'the Jews in Egypt
and In Palestine under the Fatimid Caliphs,' HUCA, 3:257, 1926. _________,The responsa of the Babylonian Geonim as a source of Jewish history,
Jewish Quarterly
Review. 7:457, 1916-17; 8 :339 , 1917-18; 9:139, 1918-19*
Abbreviated:
Mann, Responsa.
_________.The Jews In Egypt and In Palestine Under the Fatimid Caliphs.
London:
Oxford University
Press, 1920-1922, Abbreviated:
Mann, Jews.
_________.Texts and Studies in Jewish History and Literature.
I.
Cincinnati:
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Hebrew Union
Abbreviated:
Mann,
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Maqbul Ahmad, S.:
Djughrafiya.
Marcais, Georges:
La Berberie musulmane et 1'Orient
au Moyen Age. ated:
Paris:
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Abbrevi
G. Marcais, Berbe'rle musulmane.
_________.Les Arabes en Berberie du XI® au XlVe slecle. Constantine and Paris:
D. Braham and Ernest
Leroux, 1913* /
Marcais, William: arablse^e.
/
Comment l'Afrique du Nord a ete AIEO, 4:1, 1938 and 14:5, 1957*
Marcais, William, and Guiga, Abderrahman: arabes de Takrouna#
Paris:
Textes
Imprimerie
Natlonale, 1925-1961.
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liv Marcus, Jacob R.s
The Jew In the Medieval World:
Source Book. Margoliouth, George:
Cincinnati:
A
Sinai Press, 1938.
rSorne British Museum Genizah texts.
JQR, 1^:303, 1902. Marx, Alexander:
Studies in gaonic history.
1910*
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Masslgnon, Louis:
JQR, l:6l,
Marx, Gaonic history.
L*Influence de 1*Islam au Moyen Age
sur la fondatlon et l’essor des banques Juives.
Bulletin de l*Instltut Francais de b Damas. 1:3, 1931. Mayer, L. A.:
Bibliography of Moslem Numismatics (India
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London:
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195^. Mez, Adam:
The Renaissance of Islam.
Trans, by Sala-
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Jubilee Printing and Publishing Abbreviated:
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La geographic humalne du monde musulman
jusqu»au milieu du lle slecle. et Societes 7»
Civilisations
Paris and the Hague:
Mouton
and Co., 19&7* Motzkin, Aryeh Leo:
The Arabic Correspondence of Judge
Elijah and His Family (Papers from the Cairo Genlza):
A Chapter in the Social History of
Thirteenth Century Egypt.
Unpublished Ph.D.
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lv dissertation.
Philadelphia:
University of
Pennsylvania, 1965 . al-Mubarrad:
Kltab al-Kamil.
Ed. V/. Wright.
Leipzig:
G. Kreysing, 1864. al-MuqaddasI:
Ahsan al-TaqasIm f1 Ma°rlfat al-Aqallm.
Edited by M. J. de Goeje.
Bibliotheca
Geographorum Arabicorum, III. Bfcill, 1906.
Abbreviated:
Leiden:
E. J.
al-MuqaddasI,
Ma°rlfat al-Aqallm. Nasir-l-Khosraw: Nicholson, R. A.:
Safar Name.
Berlin:
KavyanI, 1341.
A Literary History of the Arabs.
Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1962 .
Obermann, J.: Studies in Islam and Judaism:
The Arabic
Original of Ibn Shahln*s Book of Comfort. Haven:
Yale University Press, 1933*
Pegolotti, Francesco Balducci: catura.
New
La Practlca Della Mer-
Ed. Allen Evans.
Cambridge, Mass.:
The Medieval Academy of America, 1936. breviated:
Ab
Pegolotti, Practlca della mercatura.
Peres, Henri: La Poesle andalouse en Arabe classlque au XIe slecle.
Second edit' n.
Paris:
Librairie d*Am/rique et d*Orient AdrienMaisonneuve, 1953* Peretz, Don:
The Middle East Today.
New York:
Holt,
Rinehart, and Winston, 1964.
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lvl
Pirene, Henri:
Economic and Social History of Medieval
Europe.
Harvest Books.
New York:
Harcourt,
Brace and World, 1937* _________ .Mohammed and Charlemagne. York:
New
The World Publishing Co., 1965 *
Poznanskl, Samuel A.:
Anshe Qayrawan.
Ehren des Dr. A. Harkavy. 1908.
Meridian Book.
Abbreviated:
Festschrift zu
St. Petersburg:
Poznanskl, The men of
Qayrawan. Rabinowitz, L.s
Jewish Merchant Adventurers.
London:
Edward Goldston, 19^-8. Rice, Frank A., and Sa°ld, Majed F.:
Eastern Arabic(an
Introduction to the spoken Arabic of Palestine. Syria and Lebanon). Ritter, Eellmut:
Khayat*s, i960 .
Ein arabische Handbuch der Handels-
wlssenschaft. Runciman, Steven: Book.
Beirut:
Der Islam, 7:1, 1919#
Byzantine Civilization. Cleveland and New York:
Meridian
The World
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Cam. Econ. Hist.,
II, pp. 86-118. Samuelson, Paul A.:
Economics:
Fourth edition. Sapori, Armando: Paris:
An Introductory Analysis.
New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1958.
Le Marohand ltallen au Moyen ige. Librairie Armand Colin, 1952.
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lvll
Sauvaget, Jean:
Introduction to the History of the
Muslim East:
A Bibliographical Guide.
cast by Claude Cahen.
Re
Berkeley and Los Angeles:
University of California Press, 1965 . Sayous, A. E.:
Un manuel arabe du parfalt commer^ant
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AHES,
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An Introduction to Islamic Law. Oxford University Press, 1964.
Schecnter, Solomon: Chushiel. Shaked, Shaul:
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Geniza rpecimens:
a letter of
JQR, 11:643, 1899 .
A Tentative Bibliography of Geniza Docu
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Paris and the Hague:
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1964 Singer, Charles, et II.
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A History of Technology, Vol.
London: Oxford University Press, 1956.
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Singer et al.. History of
Technology, II. Starr, Joshua: 1204.
The Jews In the Byzantine Empire:
64l-
Athens:
Verlag der Byzantlnisohtt Neugrleohlschen Jahrbucher, 1939. Abbreviated: Starr, Jews in the Byzantine Empire. Steingass, P.: ary.
A Comprehensive Perslan-Engllsh DlctlonLondon:
Stelnschneider, Moritz:
Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1963 . Die arablscheLltteratur der Juden.
Frankfurt a. K.t
J. Kauffmann, 1902
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lvlll
Sturtevant, E. H.:
An Introduction to Linguistic
Science* 1966 al-Tabari:
New Haven:
Yale University Press,
.
Ta*rlkh al-Rusul wa 11-Muluk, (Annales). Ed. M. J. de Goeje et al.
Leiden:
E. J.
Brill, 1879-1901. Talbl, Mohamed:
L fEmlrat Aghlablde.
Paris:
Librairie
d'Am^rique et d'Orient Adrien-Maisonneuve, 1966.
Abbreviated:
Tapi/ro, Norbert:
Talbl, L*Emlrat Aghlablde.
Manuel d*Arabe Algerlen.
Paris:
Librairie C. Klincksieck, 1957 • Vajda, Georges: Age. Vasillev, A. A.: 2.
Introduction a la pens^e julve du Moyen Paris:
J. Vrin, 19^7*
Byzance et les Arabes, I and II, Part
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Translated by Ernst Honigmann (in Ger
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Institut de Phllologle et
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Wahrmund, Adolf:
University of Wisconsin Press,
Abbreviated:
Vasiliev, Byzantine Empire.
Handworterbuch der neu-arablschen und
deutschen Sprache.
Giessen:
Verlags-Buehhandlung, I89 8 .
J. Riscker*sche Abbreviated:
Wahrmund, Handworterbuch.
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Watt, W. Montgomery, and Cachla, Pierre: Islamic Spain*
Anchor Books.
A History of New York:
Doubleday and Co., 1967 . Wehr, Hans:
A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic.
Edited by J. Milton Cowan,
Ithaca, New York
Cornell University Press, 1966.
Abbreviated
Wehr, Modern Written Arabic. Westermarck, Edward:
Ritual and Belief In Morocco.
New Hyde Park, New York: 1968
University Books,
.
Wlet, Gaston:
Cairo:
City of Art and Commerce.
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Nor
University of Oklahoma Press
1964. Yaqut:
Mu°.1am al-Buldan. Worterbuoh). 1866-1870.
(Jaout»s Geographlsches
Ed. P. Wustenfeld.
Abbreviated:
Leipzig:
Yaqut, Mu°jam al-
Buldan. al-Zabldl:
Taj al-°Arus mln Jawahlr al-Qamus.
Bulaq:
1306- 1310.
Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
ABBREVIATIONS The abbreviations of books and articles, with the author's name, are given in the Bibligraphy. AESC
Annales:
Economies-Societes-
Civllisatlons. AIEO
✓ Annales de l'Institut d*Etudes Orlentales d'Alger.
Antonin
Antonin Collection, SaltykovShchedrin State Public Library, Leningrad.
Ar. Aram. Assaf-Epstein A-C
Arabic. Aramaic« Geniza documents edited by Assaf in J. N. Ep3tein Jubilee Volume. Jerusalem:
b.
1950*
son or daughter of (Arabic and Hebrew).
BGA BM Bodl. DK
Bibllotheca Geographorum Arabicorum British Museum, London. Bodleian Library, Oxford, England. David Kaufmann Collection, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Budapest. lx
R eproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
lxl EI]
Encyclopaedia of Islam.
1st edition.
El
Encyclopaedia of Islam.
2nd edition.
ENA
Elkan N. Adler Collection, Jewish Theological Seminary of America, New York,
f. Firkovltch
folio. Firkovltch Collection, SaltykovShchedrin State Public Library, Leningrad.
Heb.
Hebrew.
HUCA
Hebrew Union College Annual.
JEH
Journal of Economic History.
JESHO
Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient.
£22 Mosseri
Jewish Quarterly Review. A private collection of Geniza material in the name of Jack Mosseri.
para.
paragraph.
R.
Rabbi, Rabbenu (our Rabbi).
SI
Studla Islamica.
Tarbiz
Tarblz.
A Quarterly for Jewish
Studies (Hebrew articles, with sum maries in English)• Three Letters A-C
Geniza documents edited by S. D. Goitein, in Tarblz, 34:162^.January, 1964.
R eproduced with permission o f the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
lxii TS
Taylor-Schechter Collection, University Library, Cambridge, England.
ULC
University Library, Cambridge, England.
Collections of Geniza
material other than TS. v ZDMG
verso. Zeltschrlft der Deutsohen Morgenlandlschen Gesellschaft.
Zloa
Zion.
A Quarterly for Research in
Jewish History (Hebrew articles, with summaries in English).
R eproduced with permission o f the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
LIST OP GENIZA DOCUMENTS CITED IN THIS DISSERTATION The symbol # In parentheses following the shelf mark of a manuscript indicates the number of the document in Goiteln, Jewish trade, and idem., Additional material from the Ibn cAwkal archive, Tarblz, 36 -3 8 *
A plus sign
following a cited document indicates that the document is translated in Part II below* Antonin 904
(Assaf-Epstein B)+
BM Or 5542, f. 15
(#10)
BM Or 5552
(Margoliouth, JQR, 14:308, 1902) C 27, f. 82 (Cat. 2835* no. W
(#1*0
d 47, f. 62 (Cat. 2699* no. 25)
(# 5 )+
d 65, f. 5 (Cat. 2877)
(#9)
d 65, f. 9
(Assaf-Epstein A)+
d 65, f. 10 d 65, f .
(Mann. Texts, I, 142-145)
18 (Cat. 2877)
(# 3 4 )+
d 80, f. 43v MS Chapira 4
(Lewin, Iggeret, p. 135)
DK 13 ENA 2556
(#16)+ (Goltein, Zion, 27:156, Nos. 3-4,1962)
2727, f. 19
(#24) lxill
R eproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
lxiv ENA 2727, f.
41
(#27)
2738, f.
10
(#32)
2738, f.
19
(#33)
3793, f.
7
(#31)+
MS Firkovltch 1
(Marx, JQB, N.S., 1:101, 1910)
Mosseri L 52
(#12)+
TS 8.12
(#26)+
12.124
(#15) (#2 3)
12.171 12. 175
(Three Letters B)+
12.218
(#1 8 )+
12.223
(#8 )
12.227
(#13)+
1 2 .2 8 2
(#2 2 )
12.291
(#19)
12.367
(#17)
12.383
(#29)
12.391
(#34a)+
1 2 .5 6 6
12.829 TS 16.42
(Mann, Texts. I, 123-126) (#36a)+
1 6 .1 7 9
(Golteln. Mediterranean People)
16.248
(Mann, Jews, II, 193)
1 6 .2 6 6
(#25)
TS 20. 180
(N 172)
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lxv TS 8 J 18, f. 14
(#H)+
8 J 28, f. 12
(Mann, Texts, I, 140-141) (Mann, Jews, II, 48)
8 J 33, f* 1 8 J 3 6 , f. 2
(Three Letters A)+
10 J 9, f. 26
(#4)
10 J 19, f. 19 13 J 8 , f. 14 13 J 1 6 , f. 23
(#2 )
13 J 17, f. 3
(#d +
13 J 17, f. 11
(#7)+
13 J 19, f. 29
(Assaf-Epstein C/#3)+
13 J 2 6 , f. 15
(#6)+
13 J 29, f. 2
(Mann, Jews, II, 3^9-350)
13 J 34, f. 1
(Three Letters C)+
13 J 36, f. 1 18 J 1, f. 5 TS Arabic Box 5,
(28 and 36 a)+
1
53, f. 11
(#30)
53, f. 51
(#35)+
TS Box J 2
(Assaf, Zion, 5*273, 1940)
K 15, f« 14 and 66 TS Misc. Box 20, f. 74 TS NS 308, f. 119+ 312 Rabbinical (Abramson), f. 79 ULC Or 1080 J 104 1080 J 154
(#20)
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lxvl ULC Or 1080 J 248
(#21)
1080 Box 5, f. 14
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PREFACE The documentary material upon which most of this dissertation is based comes from the so-called Cairo Geniza.
The Cairo Geniza was an enormous storeroom
attached to the Synagogue of the Palestinians in Fustat (Old Cairo), Egypt.
From the tenth to the nineteenth
century, the Geniza served the Jews of Fustat (and later Cairo) as a repository for discarded writings, both sacred and profane.
With the discovery of the Geniza in
the late nineteenth century by European scholars, its Jumbled contents were transferred to numerous libraries and private collections in Europe and the United States. The great value of the literary Geniza material was immediately recognized.
It has been only more recently,
however, that the tremendous socio-historical value of the documentary material has been appreciated. A number of scholars, notably the late Jacob Mann and Slmha Assaf, made great use of the documentary Geniza for Jewish history; but it was Professor Goltein who has shown the scholarly world through many articles and books the tremendous significance of the documentary
lxvii
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lxviii Geniza for medieval Islamic and Mediterranean history.1 Since this study comprises Islamic, Jewish, and general Mediterranean socio-economic history. I have tried to relegate most of the technical, linguistic material, as well as citations in Oriental languages to the notes or to Chap. VII.
For the sake of simplicity,
place names are all spelled without diacritical marks and in some cases the article is also dropped:
Fustat,
Qayrawan, Busir, Damsis, for al-Fustat, al-Qayrawan, Busir, Damsis.
Several Hebrew titles which are common
to students of Jewish history and which are employed frequently in this work, are also written without dia critical marks: Ge’onlm.
Nagid, Gaon, Geonim, for Nagid, Ga*on,
Frequently repeated Arabic units of weight and
measure are written with diacritical marks but are not underlined:
qin£ar, rati, mann.
These words are ex
plained in the notes at their first occurrence. The transcription of Arabic names and words follows the system adopted in the Encyclopaedia of Islam, second edition, except that 8; trans. I, p. 44.
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26 name of Sahnun (d. 856 ), the author of the Mudawwana, the great corpus of Malikite doctrine for North Africa and Spain*
Even in the following centuries when the
Islamic West had become the center for the study of Malikite law, many of the leading scholars spent years sojourning in the East,as, e.g., Abu Bakr b. cAbd alRahman (d. 10^0 or 10*0) and Abu °Imran al-FasI (d* IO3 8 ), two of the great fuqaha* (jurists) of Qayrawan,1^ or BaqI b. Makhlad al-Qurtubi (d. 889 ) in Spain, who spent a total of thirty-four years in the East.1^ Similarly, from the very beginning of the Middle Ages, Jewish scholars would come from the furthermost West to study at the great academies of talmudic learning in Iraq (more of this in the following chapter). The Islamic West was nourished by the East not only in its scholarship, but in its humanistic-cultural aspects as well.
The glorious flowering of Spanish belles-
lettres in the eleventh century which developed refresh ingly new forms in Arabic poetry (most notably the muwashshah) drew upon a previous century devoted entirely to the study of Eastern literature for the major part of
Oidris, Deux maitres de l*ecole juridique kairouanaise sous les Zlrldes (XI® siecle), AIEO. 1 3 0 2 and (1955)* i^Brockelmann,
OAL, Supplementband I, p.
271.
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27 its elements.■*■7 In the ninth and tenth centuries Easter ners, as for example, the renowned Persian singer Ziryab (d. 852), brought Oriental canons of taste to cultivated Western c i r c l e s . a very telling anecdote on the cul tural situation in the West during these formative cen turies relates the keen disappointment of the Buwayhid vizier, the Sahib Ibn CAbbad (d. 995)» in reading the °Iqd al-Farld ("The Unique Necklace") of the Spanish poet Ibn cAbd Rabbih (d. 9^0).
The Sahib had expected to find
the cream of Spanish poetry, but with the exception of Ibn cAbd Rabbih*s own verses, he found only Eastern material in LG;;* famous anthology.*9 Turning aside now from the more elevated cul tural circles, we come to one final element of Western Islamic civilization which had its roots in the East, namely, the new bourgeoisie.
Goitein has shown that many
of the North African businessmen who appear in the records of the Cairo Geniza bore family names which indicated origins in the great commercial centers of Syria, Iraq,
l^Henri Peres, La Poesle andalouse en arabe classlque au XIe slecle (Paris: Li'bralrie d'Am^rlque et d'Orient Adrien-Maisonneuve, 1953)» P» l8Ibld.. p. 41; R. A. Nicholson, A Literary History of the Arabs (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1962), pp. 4l8f. ^Brockelmann, GAL. Supplementband I, p. 251.
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28 and
P e r s i a . 20
This group developed and expanded through
out the tenth century.
By the end of the century this
influx from the East had come to an end. At this same time the Muslim West, which had— as we have just seen— drawn so much from the East, began to assert itself politically, culturally, and economically. The Fatimid conquest of Egypt in 969» followed by that of Syria, Palestine, and the Hijaz marked the beginning of the eastward thrust.
In the eleventh century there
ensued a cultural flowering which manifested itself in art, literature, and the commercial arts. The remainder of this study will deal primarily with the socio-economic aspect as seen amongst one seg ment of this newly assertive civilization.
20Goitein, Med. Soc., I, p. 30. of these names is given on p. 400, n. 2.
A random list
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Ill THE JEWISH WORLD
Since the primary source materials for this study come from the Jewish community in the eleventh century Islamic world, it is necessary to have some general picture of that community.
Furthermore, in order
to fully appreciate the significance of Joseph b. cAwkal, the man to whose business and communal activities the following chapters are dedicated, one must first have some idea of the specific social and historical context to which he belonged. The Arab conquests which had spread the religion of Islam as far as India and Central Asia in the East and Spain in the West established a new order whose most important unifying factor was the universal diffusion of the Arabic language.
That political unity was short
lived is of secondary importance.
In fact, cultural
unity came after the loss of political unity. For the first two centuries of the Islamic era there is a woeful paucity of Jewish historical sources. It would appear, however, that these centuries were ones of tremendous upheaval for the Jewish communities of the 29
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30 old Sasanian and Byzantine empires who were now absorbed into the Dar al-Islam.
During these two centuries Jewish
productivity in the cultural and spiritual field was at a seemingly low ebb.
Apparently it was during this time
that the Jews of the Islamic East began to change over from the agrarian way of life depicted in the Talmud to a more cosmopolitan one.
1
The hardship and oppression
endured by the people who worked the land and their sub sequent flight to the cities are amply documented in Islamic
sources.^
By the third Islamic century Jews were
taking part, along with the masses of mawall (non-Arab Muslims) and dhlmmls in shaping what Prof. Goitein has designated the "bourgeois revolution," and by the fol lowing century they were playing an outstanding
role.3
The cultural— and at first political— unification of the Islamic Emoire brought about a greater degree of unification in the world-wide Jewish community.
Baron
believes that the Resh Galutha, or Exilarch, who prior to the advent of Islam had been the governor of the Jews living within the Sasanian Empire, became the temporal
^-Goitein, Jews and Arabs, p. 99» 2E.g., al-Mubarrad, al-Kltab al-Kamil. I, ed. Wright (Leipzig: G. Kreysing), p. 2d6; al-fabarl, Ta*rlkh al-Rusul wa *1-Muluk, II, ed. de Goeje (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1879ff.)» P. 1^53. 3pischel, Jews. Chap. A, pp. 1-44.
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31 head of all the Jews in the much more extensive Dar alIslam.
Although his actual administrative function was
quite limited, the Resh Galutha represented his people's interests at the callphal court and served "as a sort of minister for Jewish affairs."^
However, there is
very little concrete evidence either to confirm or deny this view. An institution of far greater importance, as far as Jewish history is concerned, was the Gaonate. Prom the third century A.D., the Intellectual and spir itual centers of Jewry were the Babylonian Academies (Heb. yeshlvot, Aram, methlvatha) of Sura and Pumbeditha. At the end of the sixth century the respective heads of these academies took on the title of Gaon.5
Throughout
the eighth and ninth centuries the prestige and influence of the Geonim grew to the point that they were recognized by their co-religionists the world over as the highest authorities on Jewish law, which encompassed all aspects of Jewish life.
As the great rabbinic scholar Louis
Ginzberg put it:
"The Babylonian Amoraim created a
Talmud; the Geonim made of it 'The Talmud'.
^Baron, History of the Jews, V, p. 7. A contraction of resh methlvath geon Yacaq5v: the head of the academy, the pride of Jacob. ^Ginzberg, Geonica, I, p. 73*
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32 The Jewish communities of the Diaspora sent donations, as well as queries on law, ritual, and textual exegesis, to the academies.
The great influence of the
Geonim was exerted through their responsa (Heb. teahuvot), or authoritative legal opinions.
The responsa were
copied and collected for the edification of Jews other than the individuals or communities who had originally sought the opinions— a practice which has its parallel 7 in the collection of fatwas in Islam.' Besides the two Babylonian Academies there existed the ancient and venerable academy of Tiberias in Palestine.
Very little is known about the Palestinian
Academy before the tenth century.
In Palestine there
was no division between temporal and spiritual authority as in Iraq (Babylonia).
The heads of the Palestinian
Academy served both functions.
It is not known exactly
when they assumed the title of Gaon in imitation of their Iraqian counterparts.®
However, it would seem that this
took place when Palestine became part of the Patimid realm (after 969).
"Just as the Fatlmid rulers for the
first time set up a rival 'caliphate' (even the Spanish cUmayyads were, until that time, satisfied with the title
(London:
?Cf. Schacht, An Introduction to Islamic Law Oxford University Press, 1964), pp. 7^f» ®Assaf, Tequfat ha->
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which bears the Jewish month and year according to the Seleucid reckoning at the end of the letter. The reason for this is obvious from the contents of the letter. There had obviously been a long break in correspondence between the writer and Ibn cAwkal.
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75 reckoning.
Therefore, a business statement for one of
Ibn cAwkal*s agents in Alexandria is dated according to the Muslim calendar.*7
what is particularly inter
esting is the fact that these notations indicating the receipt of letters are in Arabic and not in Hebrew script.
From several letters it is clear that Ibn
cAwkal had Muslim, as well as Jewish agents in other c i t i e s . P e r h a p s he kept Muslim secretaries, too. This possibility is further strengthened oy the fact that Ibn cAwkal corresponded with his Muslim agents in Arabic script.
Unfortunately, none of these letters
have survived.^9 The relationship between Joseph b. °Awkal and his many business associates was based mostly— as
was
common in those days— upon informal cooperation or mucamala.20
Most of Ibn cAwkal's agents were not
1^TS Arabic Box 53. f. 51 (#35), PP* 2 and 3, 11. 19 and 1+ : Shacban 19, 429 A. H. (May 9, 1038). ■^Ibn Rust urn in Alexandria— Bodl. MS Heb. d 4?, f. 62 (Cat. 2699, no. 25) (#5), 11. 10f.+ j Muhammad in Alexandria— TS 8 J, f. 14 (#11), 11. 9 and 11+ ; Zuhayr and Hiba b. al-Kha$Ib in Central Egypt— TS 12.22? (#13), 11. 6 and 11+. l^Such letters are indicated in the surviving correspondence. At the end of TS 12.227 (#13)+ » the writer mentions: "The account statement will reach you— God willing— either in Hebrew letters in my own hand writing or in Arabic script in the handwriting of I Qbn a 3 1- • • • •" 20cf. Goitein, Med. Soc., I, pp. 164-186.
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76 employees, but rather smaller, and not so small, mer chants who provided services to the House of Ibn cAwkal not for any commission, but in order to request similar, reciprocal services from such an influential and wellconnected business house.
In a long letter, Samhun b.
Dawud al-Siqill, a Tunisian merchant, protests— apparently after receiving a complaint from Ibn cAwkal— that he did not make any personal profit on a shipment of brazilwood sent to him by Ibn cAwkal, but on the contrary, took a loss.
Samhun bitterly laments:
"I did this because of
your patronage and because you aid me with your high position (jlh) with regard to that which I send you at my expense."2^Another correspondent asks Ibn °Awkal to write him and to include in his letter "his needs and his re quests."
"Nothing which he (i.e. you) requests is too
difficult for me— with God*s grace."22 Ibn cAwkal*s associates performed a variety of services for him.
These included:
receiving and dis
posing of goods sent to them; converting profits from sales into other merchandise sought by Ibn °Awkal; trans ferring sums of money, and sometimes, laying out money
21DK 13 (#16), 1. 6+ . 22TS 18 J 1, f. 5, 11. 1 and 3 (the top half of the letter is torn away).
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77 for various purchases and payments.
One of the most
important services which they rendered was that of supplying Ibn cAwkal with information on current market prices, rates of currency exchange, the demand for various commodities, and other business intelligence, such as departures and arrivals of ships.
Several letters
from the Ibn cAwkal archives end with lists of such statistics and read much like the financial pages of a modern day newspaper.23 As mentioned above, Ibn cAwkal’s agents re quested similar gratis services from him.
One corre
spondent, a mawla or freedman of the Tahertl family, writes that he is sending Ibn cAwkal a purse of 100 dinars and asks that the latter purchase pearls for him if they are available.
Should pearls be unavailable,
he asks Ibn cAwkal to buy whatever he can with half the sum, and with the other half to buy him indigo.2^
It is
entirely typical for a merchant to leave so much to his correspondents discretion considering that one of the business maxims of the day was that "one who is present sees what one who is absent cannot."23
23t s 13 J 19, f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3)+ . Mosseri L 52 (#12)+ , TS 13 J 17, f. 11 (#7)+ . 2^TS 8.12 (#26)+ . 25al-hadlr yara ma la yarah al-gha*lb.
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78 In some respects the House of Ibn cAwkal is reminiscent of the fraterne which later were to dominate in Venetian business life.
Most business undertakings
were done entirely with the family's capital.
However,
as in Venice, some business ventures were undertaken on the basis of short-term partnerships with others.28 Abraham b. Joseph in a letter from Alexandria mentions a number of commodities, including copper, tin, and soap, which he, Ibn cAwkal, and others held fi *1khulta, in partnership (literally, "mixing,,).27
Joseph's
nephew, Isma il
b. Abi Uqba, mentions a partnership
between himself
and his uncle (here:
for 520 quarter
dinars worth of pepper. There can be
not a shadow of
a doubt as to who was the senior partner
in the venture.
Ibn cAwkal's share of the profit was
fl 'l-mu°amala)
over forty times that of his nephew.28 In the long angry letter from Samhun b. Dawud, mentioned above, is a reference to a consignment of silk weighing four qintars and 20 ra£ls (approximately 420 pounds) in which Joseph b. cAwkal, Samhun, and SamhOn's
26por temporary partnerships among the Venetian fraterne. cf. Frederic C. Lane, Family partnerships and joint ventures in the Venetian Republic, JEH, 4:186-194 (November, 1944). 27t s 12.291 (#19), 11. 7-15» Concerning the term khulta, cf. Goitein, Med. Soc.. I, p. 170. 28TS 13 J 29, f. 9 (#39), 11. 3-12+.
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79 brother
each had a one-third interest.
This consign
ment was another point of contention in the strained relations between Ibn cAwkal and Samhun.
Relations be
tween the two men were strained still further by an accusation that Samhun had sought to encroach upon the prerogatives of Ibn cAwkal's chief agent in the Tunisian capital, Abu °Imran Musa b. al-Majjanl.^9 Among all of Joseph b. cAwkal*s associates,
Musa b. al-Majjanl stands out for his particularly close personal relationship with Joseph.
He had as a youth
been Joseph*s apprentice (see above, Chap. IV, pp. 50f.)» and even years later sometime in the 1030*s, when the two had decided to dissolve their longstanding partner ship, MttsS in a letter to a friend refers to Joseph b. cAwkal as his mu°alllm or teacher.30 Abu cImran was Joseph's chief representative in Qayrawan, and he is mentioned frequently in more than onefifth of the correspondence sent to Ibn cAwkal.
Unfor
tunately, only one badly damaged letter from him to Joseph has been found so far (#18).
He was in his own
29d k 13 (#16), 11. 9ff*. A qin£ar or cwt. (also from the Latin centarion) was composed of 100 ra£ls which in eleventh century Fatimld Egypt, equalled 437.5 gr. Cf. Hinz, Masse und Gewlchte, pp. 24-27 and 28-32. Samhfln protests at great length the accusation against him--DK 13, 11. 29-35 and v, 11. 20-22+. 30ts 12.566, 11. l4f.
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80 right a very prominent man of affairs.
He had the re
sponsibility for transferring donations from North Africa to the Jewish Academy of Palestine.31
He and his son,
Abu Zikri Yahya, headed a business house which flourished throughout the first half of the eleventh century.
The
MajjanI family was linked by marital ties to other impor tant business families of the period.
The Berekhya
brothers in one letter call Musa "our in-law and friend."^ The exact connection between them, however, is still not known.
Musa's sister was the mother of Ephraim b.
IsmacIl al-Jawhari, who acted as Ibn cAwkal's chief agent in Alexandria.
Musa's son and successor, Yahyl, was
married into the QabisI family, a business clan with many branches, which was active in Tunisia and the Eastern Mediterranean.-^
xhe Majjanls were in strong competition
with other Tunisian business houses, and had such powerful rivals as the Tahertis. The rivalry between Musa b. al-MajjanI and the
31ts 16.6^- (#3?), 11. 25-30+ . He was removed from this position, sometime between 1015 and 1017, due to some internal strife at the Academy. The Nagid and all the elders of Qayrawan, however, wrote letters on his behalf to try and obtain his reinstatement. 32Ibid., l. 26t 33cf. the family trees in Goitein, La Tunisie du XIe slecle, p. 568, where there are, however, some printing errors. In one case Professor Goitein has been able to Identify a kunya.
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81 Tahertis is apparent from an incident which occurred during the spring of the year 1011.
Ibn cAwkal sent a
consignment of silver (whether coin, bullion, or vessels is not clear) to Tunisia but had neglected to inform Musa beforehand.
Later he wrote Musa asking whether the
shipment had arrived.
Upon inquiring, Musa learned that
the silver had been turned over by the caravaneers, acting upon Ibn cAwkal's instructions, to the Tahertis.
The
latter were supposed to repack the silver and "send it on with trustworthy merchants."
However, the Tahertis,
who were in need of silver for some business deal, melted it down and sold it with a resulting loss for Ibn cAwkal— and for Musa, who could have sold it for a better price.3^ "Cut-throat" business practices were certainly no less common in those days than today.
Nonetheless,
when so much of East-West Mediterranean commerce was based upon informal agreements and mutual trust, it seems almost incredible that such prominent members of the community as the Tahertis would be so unethical.
It should be
borne in mind that Ibn al-Majjanl was extremely anxious about his position as Ibn cAwkal*s representative, and perhaps he was exaggerating the incident somewhat.
The
Tahertis may have assumed that melting the silver down and selling it in Qayrawan was a safer and more profitable
3^TS 12.218 (#18), 11. 4-12+.
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82 procedure than shipping it on.
In any case, four years
later there was a complete break between Ibn cAwkal and the Tahertls, and indeed, open hostility.
The Berekhya
brothers, who were related by marriage to the Tahertls as well as to Ibn al-Majjanl, tried to bring about a reconciliation, but to no
a v a i l . 35
Finally the Nagid,
himself, had to step in since the handing over of communal money was involved.36
B.
The Scope of the Ibn cAwkal Business:
Exports
Diversification was one of the hallmarks of resident merchants in the later kiddle
A g e s . 37
The
vicissitudes of medieval commerce called for great flex ibility on the part of merchants and merchant houses. Ibn cAwkal, like many other merchants of the period, both great and small, handled a tremendous variety of commodities,
Many of these commodities were extremely
variagated as to kinds and grades.
The medieval merchant
had to be a veritable connoisseur of the endless varieties
35t s 13 J 36, f. 1 (Three Letters C), 11.
39-42+. ^Bodl. MS Heb. d CJ, f. 3 (Assaf-Eostein A), 11 . 14-34+. 37n . S. B. Gras, Business and Capitalism, An Introduction to Business History (Mew York: F. S. Crofts and Co., 1939)» P« 67 .
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83 of commodities which he handled. Abu '1-Fad.l al-Dimashqi*s handbook on commerce discusses over sixty categories of merchandise.
The
fourteenth-century handbook of the Italian Francesco di Balduccio Pegolotti contains no less than two hundred and eighty-eight
"spices.
"38
The House of Ibn cAwkal
handled eighty-three commodities and their varieties.
1.
Flax Flax (Ar. kattan) was above all the principal
export item of the House of Ibn cAwkal.
Twenty-four
varieties of Egyptian flax appear in the Geniza records.39 Of these, eight are mentioned in the Ibn cAwkal corre spondence, viz.:
AshmunI, Buslri, MS1S1, Mlsarl, Qimat,
and '’indigo flax." Although flax was cultivated throughout Europe during the kiddle Ages, the finest flax was imported from Egypt as in the days of Classical Antiquity.
The
38cf. index-glossary to Pegolotti, Practlca della mercatura. The term "spices" in the kiddle Ages included much more than condiments. Perfumes, mediclnals, dyestuffs, and a variety of other high priced-iterns, such as gems, were loosely included under this general heading. Cf. Lopez-Raymond, Medieval Trade, p. 108. 39Goitein, Med. Soc., I, p. 10^, and p. ^ 65 , n. 6l, where twenty-two are enumerated. Prof. Goiteln has found two more since then (oral communication).
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84 high-grade Egyptian flax remained supreme until ca, 1300.^0 Flax was grown in Middle and Upper Egypt.
The
big merchants dealing in flax purchased the raw product at the time of the harvest and oversaw its processing and packing for shipment.
After being retted or soaked for
some time the flax plants were hatcheled or beaten (a process also referred to as scutching) in order to remove the fibers.^
The processing involved many people, and
at the height of the season workers were scarce.
Labor
ho
problems were not unknown. ^ As mentioned above, Joseph b. cAwkal never went himself to the rural flax centers, but had a whole army of Jewish and Muslim agents, as well as assistants (slaves and freedmen) who represented his interests there.
In
all, the name of at least twelve of these men appear in the archives of the House of Ibn cAwkal. From the flax regions the bales of flax wrapped in canvas*^ were sent by boat usually to Fustat first
^°Singer et al., History of Technology, II, p. 195. ^ Ibld., pp. 195ff» and The Columbia Encyolopedia, 2nd ed., s.v. •'flax,* p. 68'5T al-Dlmashql, MahSsln al-Tl.lara, p. 4, gives the various steps in flax processing all the way to the finished product. ^2TS 12.227 (#13)+ » and TS NS 308, f. 119+ .
^3ts
12.22?
(#13 ), 1 . 8+.
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85 and thence to Alexandria, or directly to Alexandria. Since merchant ships usually sailed to the West in con voys in either the spring or autumn, the flax often had to be stored in warehouses (makhazin, cf. the English word "magazine") until a convoy was outfitted.
Two of
Ibn cAwkal*s correspondents describe the confusion which accompanied delays in the outfitting of the convoys.
In
one case a backlog of 5,000 loads had built up in the port.^ The flax was shipped from the port of Alexandria to Tunisia and Sicily where the great textile industries were located.
The standard bale, or °ldl, weighed at
this time approximately 600 ratls (ranging from as low as ^50).
This °ldl was apparently equal to the classical
Iraqi himl or load.^5 The hlml is referred to in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence where it refers to a larger bale, some two or three times greater than the cldl. In a single year, the House of Ibn cAwkal ex ported 179 bales and two barqalos, which were smaller bales averaging about 200 ratls, to the Tunisian port of
^Mosserl L 52 (#12), 1. 9+ * account is TS 13 J 17, f. 3 (#1)+ .
The other
^5cf. Hlnz, Masse und Gewlchte, p. 13. ^6TS Arabic Box 53, f. 51 (#25)+ .
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86 al-Mahdiyya^?— i.e., almost 5^ tons.
Although the con
tents of the bales are not specified, they no doubt were flax, which as the export item par excellence was often referred to only by such-and-such a number of bales. Since the average price of flax in the first third of the eleventh century was 4.5 dinars per qintar, it may be estimated that in one year the House of Ibn cAwkal shioped approximately 4,860 dinars worth of flax to alKahdiyya.
Allowing for the obvious difficulties of com
paring medieval currency in present-day terms, such a sum would be worth somewhere around 486,000 dollars. And this was but one of eighty-three commodities handled by the House of Ibn cAwkal in a single year for a single port.
Large quantities of flax were also shipped by the
House of Ibn °Awkal to Sicily.
One shipment sent to
Palermo equaled approximately 600
qintars.^9
There were a number of complications and dif ficulties involved in the shipping of flax.
Like any
commodity, it had to run the gauntlet of toll houses and
^?TS 13 J 17, f. 3 (#1)» 11* 25f.+ . (brqlw) was a smaller bale than the standard word is not found in any dictionary. Goitein the word to be of Italian origin (from barca, Med. Soc., I, pp. 335f*
The barqalo °ldl. The believes boat). Cf.
^8For a dinar as approximately 100 dollars, cf. Goitein, Med. Soc., I, App. B, p. 359* 13 J 29, f. 9 (#39)+ »
Cf. the accompany
ing comments.
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87 customs stations which has been described in detail by G o i t e i n . T w o account statements containing the freight costs for shipments of flax are translated in Part II below.
The numerous petty tolls, officials’ fees, and
bribes complicated matters, but did not offer, as a rule, any special difficulties.
The major problem involved in
shipping was the danger of water damage. two different types.
This was of
One type of damage resulted from
the flax being packed while still wet from the original processing. water.
The other resulted from being stained by sea
In a number of letters we read complaints of flax
arriving wet.
Joseph b. cAwkal's nephew, IsmacIl b. Abi
cUqba writes from Sicily that more than twenty-five qintars (a ton and a quarter) had to be thrown
a w a y.^l
of
the two types of damage, that by sea water was the more ruinous.
Flax packed wet could sometimes be spread out
to dry, as is reported in one instance.32 The letters and accounts dealing with the flax trade of the House of Ibn cAwkal pose a questions which have yet to be solved.
massive
number of
The flax was
always shipped to al-Kahdiyya and Palermo (once via
^ G o i t e i n , Med. Soc., I, pp. 339-3^6.
51-TS 13 J 29, f. 9 (#39), 1. 17+• Cf. also Bodl. MS Heb. c 27, f. 82 (Cat. 2835, no. 44) (#14-), 11. 9f. 52TS 12.124- (#15), 11. 4f.
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88 Tripoli).
Never are any other important textile centers
mentioned, as e.g., Susa, where Ibn cAwkal had relatives living.53
Furthermore, all of the documents bearing on
the Ibn °Awkal flax business are from a late period— the 1020*s and the 1030*s. incidence.
It may be that this is mere co
On the other hand, it may be that at this
time there was a rise in the consumption and demand for flax in the Maghreb spurred by increased trade relations with Europe. For a complete survey of the Ibn cAwkal flax business, cf. Table 1.
2.
Madder Concommitant with the trade in flax was the
trade in the dye plant rubla tlnctorum or madder (Ar. fuwwa).
This grew in the same region as the flax and was
harvested at the same time. duced a bright red dye.
The roots of the plant pro
Two letters mention the process
ing of the madder plants which involved beating or hatcheling as vrith flax.
Although the plant was cultivated
in places as far away as Persia in the East and the Low
53cf. above, Chap. IV, n. 6. 5 ^ s 12.227 (#13)+ ; and TS NS 308, f.
119+ .
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89 Countries in the West, it was in the Near East that there developed a famous process which produced a vivid red known in the later Middle Ages as "Turkey red."55 Not only was the madder harvested and hatcheled at the same time as the flax, but it was even packed in the same bales.
It is not certain, however, whether this
dye was exported since it was never mentioned in any of the letters from abroad dealing with flax shipments.
3.
Indigo Another dyestuff of far greater importance which
was definitely exported by the House of Ibn °Awkal was indigo (Ar. nil), or more precisely indigotin, the blue dye compound derived from either the indigo (Indlgofera tlnctorla L ) or woad (Isatls tinctorla L ) plants.56
un
like the case with flax or madder, the documents bearing on Indigo cover a period of some fifty years (cf. Table 2 ). There were numerous varieties of indigotin, and from the wide range of prices they were clearly of very
55singer et al., History of Technology, II, p. 366. According to Singer: "The full secret of this process is still obscure." For a complete historical and philological treatment of the subject, cf. l 8w , Flora, III, pp. 270-277. 56()n the difference in the two plants and their processing, cf. Singer et al., History of Technology, II, pp. 364f.
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90 different qualities.
Three specific varieties are men
tioned in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence, viz., cAmtanI, KirmanI, and Sandanl.
cAmtani indigotin no doubt came
from the region around cAmta in Palestine where the woad plant had been cultivated since Mishnaic times.5?
The
price of cAmtanI was rather stable, selling in Tunisia at the end of the tenth century or beginning of the eleventh for 30 dinars per qintar and in 1030 for 20-25.-^ The KirmanI indigotin, which came from Southeastern Persia, was far more expensive.
In a market quotation
sent to Ibn cAwkal in the Spring of 1030, we find KirmanI which was unavailable on the market (ma°dum) listed at the incredible price of 75 dinars per qintar.59
Sandanl
indigotin, which probably came from India,^0 is mentioned
57cAmta: Yaqut, Mu°.1am al-Buldan, Ill, p. 722. On the cultivation of indigotin in Palestine, cf. L$w, Flora. I, pp. 493-505, especially pp. 497ff.» where the writer emphasizes that this was not the indigo plant. 58sodl. MS Heb. a 2 (Cat. 2805), f. 11, 1. 32 (not part of the Ibn cAwkal archives). For 1030: TS 13 J 29, f. 2 (#6)+ .
59t s 13 J 19, f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3)v, 1. 7+ « I have checked the manuscript used by Assaf and found the reading to be perfectly clear. ^According to Yaqut, Mu°jam al-Buldan, III, p. 165* Sandan is a provincial capital somewhere in India and about which he knows no particulars. Ibn Khurradadhbih, Kit§b al-MasSlik wa *1-Mam§lik, ed. De Goeje, BGA, VI (Leiden; E. J. Brill, 1889), P« 62, has SindSa.
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91 only once and no price is given.
The writer only notes
that it was not selling well at the time in However, in the very early account
Q ayrawan.^l
from Tunisia, men
tioned above (which is not from the Ibn cAwkal archives), Sandanl is listed at 33 dinars per qintSr.^ In the section dealing with flax above, it was mentioned that among the varieties of flax handled by the House of Ibn cAwkal there appears a type called "indigo flax."
These were flax fibers that were dyed
with indigotin after processing, but before being woven into linen.^
Brazilwood Brazilwood (Ar. baqqam) was another dyestuff which was exported by the House of Ibn cAwkal to the Muslim West in considerable volume.
In fact it is one of
6lTS Arabic Box 53, U (#30)v, 1. 4. The letter is from lsmScIl al-Tahertl to the senior Jacob b. cAwkal and is full of information concerning indigo (cf. Table 2). 62Bodl. MS Heb. a 2 (Cat. 2805), f. 11, 1. 18. In the twelfth century Indian indigo sold in Egypt for approximately 28 dinars: Maimonides, Responsa, I, ed. Blau (Jerusalem: Societas Mekize Nirdamlm, 1957), P* 153, no. 93, where 1.3 qintars costs 37 dinars. 6 3 c f . TS 13 J 29, f . 9 (#39)+ and Table 1.
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92 the most commonly mentioned commodities in the G e n i z a . ^ \
The intense red color of the wood of the Coesalplnia Sappan was compared by the Europeans to glow ing coals (bragla, brascla, brasa, etc.), hence the name lignum
b r a s l l e .^5
Brazilwood was imported into the Arab
world from India and Southeat Asia, in particular from the island of Sumatra.^ Brazilwood, it would seem, was a very profitable item.
Samhun b. Dawud, whose angry letter has been cited
several times before, mentions selling a consignment of brazilwood for Ibn cAwkal at a profit of 300 per cent.^? In a letter from the year IO85, a Maghrebi merchant is
^Goitein, Med. Soc., I, p.
Cf. Table
3. ^%eyd, Commerce du Levant, II, p. 587. The country of Brazil was supposedly so named because of the redwoods along its coast which resemble the Oriental brazilwood. 6^Ibn Khurradadhbih, Kltab al-Masallk wa *1Mamalik, ed. De Goeje, BGA, VI (Leiden: E. J. Brill, I889), p. 65, mentions the isle of al-Raml beyond Ceylon as being particularly rich in brazilwood. Abu *1-Fida', Taqwlm al-Buldan, ed. Reinaud and de Slane (Paris: L ’Imprimerie Royale, 18^0), p. 375* mentions the same thing for the isle of Lamrl also beyond Ceylon. Both islands are thought to be either Sumatra or some other islands nearby. 6?dk 13 (#16), 11. 39f«+ » However, there is very possibly a lapsus calami here. The extremely low purchase price of 265 dirhems is clearly written in the manuscript (q-q-s-h). But even if the clerk had meant to write 565 (t-q^s-h), such a profit is extraordinary. Cf. also Table 3.
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93 reported to have sold his brazilwood to Europeans in Palestine at a 150 per cent profit.^8 Samhun*s letter written in the early years of the eleventh century mentions a consignment of brazil wood being appraised in Qayrawan at 12 dinars per qintar* Whereas, in a letter received at the Ibn cAwkal office in April 1030, brazilwood is quoted as selling at 35 dinars per qintar on the Tunisian market (cf. Table 3)« Nowhere in our sources are different varieties of brazilwood indicated. only to baqqam.
The references throughout are
Pegolotti, however, mentions seven dif
ferent varieties.59
5»
Lacquer Nowhere is a consignment of lacquer (Ar. lakk)
mentioned in our documents, but there can be no doubt that it was among the Oriental dyestuffs and varnishes exported by the House of Ibn cAwkal to the Maghreb.
In
three different letters, each written by a different agent, Ibn cAwkal is given quotations on the price of
68Bodl. MS Heb. c 28 (Cat. 2876), f. 11. Cited by Goitein, Ked. Soc., I, p. ^5* ^9prancesco Pegolotti, Practlca della meroatura. Cf. the index and glossary of commodities, p. 433. s.v. "verzino." —
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94
-
lacquer in Tunisia.
Two of the letters were written
twenty-six days apart hut were received in Fustat within eight days of each other.
The former was sent directly
from Qayrawan on March 7, 1030, by Harun al-Ghazzal, a merchant whose name appears frequently in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence.
The latter, dated April 2, is from
Ephraim al-Jawharl, Ibn cAwkal’s chief agent in Alex andria, who had just received a list of quotations from his uncle Musa b. al-Kajjanl in Qayrawan.
What is in
teresting is the discrepancy in their respective reports. According to Hardn:
"Lacquer is not on the market and
has no price worth writing to you."7^
Al-Jawhari, on
the other hand, reports that lacquer is selling at 50 dinars per qintar, a very good p r i c e . T h e explanation for this great discrepancy must be that in the week or so between Harun’s letter and Ibn al-Majjanl's to his nephew, a ship had arrived in al-Mahdiyya, the port of Qayrawan, carrying good-quality lacquer which sold well. The market was extremely fickle when an item was scarce. Prices could "sky-rocket" as in the case of the KirmanI
?°TS 13 J 29, f. 2 (#6), 1. 1^+ . ^ T S 13 J 19, 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3)v, 1. 6+ . One report from the archives of Nahray b. Nisslm (cf. above, Chap. IV, n. 26) mentions a consignment of lacquer weighing one quarter qlntjar selling in Tunisia for 8 dinars, i.e., 32 dinars per qintar— TS 8.18 (N 131).
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95 indigo discussed above, or they could simply become nonexistant depending on the demand.
In this case before
us, it would seem that a sudden supply generated a demand that was lacking previously. Lacquer was one of the staple Egyptian exports to the West in this period. shellac varnish.
It was not used only as
A very important red pigment and dye-
stuff was obtained from it which became known in Europe as
l a c . 72
6.
was also used in medicine.73
Pepper Pepper (Ar. fulful) was the leading Oriental
spice exported from Egypt to the West.
In most of the
medieval geographers, the Malabar coast of India— particularly the port of Quilon— was synonymous with the cultivation and production of pepper.7^ The House of Ibn cAwkal exported pepper in large volume (cf. Table 4).
Although quantities and/or
prices are often cited in the letters, it is often dif-
72Singer et al., History of Technology, II, pp. 362 and 367. ^Heyd, Commerce du Levant, II, p. 626. 7^-According to Yaqut, Mu°.1am al-Buldan, IV, p. 639: "Pepper is brought from there (i.e., Malabar) to all the world.rt Cf. also Benjamin of Tudela, Itinerary, p. 91» trans. p. 64.
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96 ficult to synthesize all the information and to know precisely how much is being discussed.
A single ship
ment of pepper to Sicily in the late 1020's or 1030's grossed 130
d i n a r s .
is not mentioned.
The size of the shipment, however,
In other cases where the size of
shipments are mentioned (cf. Table ^), precise weights are not given, but only the number of bales and loads. Goitein has already pointed out this difficulty, viz., "Even at the time the letters in our hands were written, an uncertainty as to the exact weight of a standard camel load or ship's bale must have p r e v a i l e d . I n the case of flax, as we have seen, the standard volumes were rather constant with bales averaging 600 ratls and himls two or three times that amount.
It would seem that both
bales and loads of pepper in the second half of the eleventh century were approximately 500 ratls, and in the early twelfth century 375* ^ Once again in the two letters received by the Ibn cAwkal office in April 1030, there is a discrepancy in the prices quoted, albeit not so startling as in the case of lacquer.
Harun al-Ghazzal reports pepper at 82 dinars
75ts 13 J 2 9 , f . 9 ( # 3 9 ) » 1- 8+ , where the price is given as 520 quarter dinars. Cf. also Table 4.
76Goitein, Med. Soc., I, p. 220. 77ibld. . p. 221.
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97 (probably per bale).?8
Ephraim al-Jawharl, citing a letter
just received from his uncle Ibn al-Majjanl, gives 105«?^ The first price is the average price for a bale of pepper in the Maghreb during this period.®® The second is a very goodprice.
This
repeated difference in the two letters
(there is also a big discrepancy in the price quotations on brazilwood) would indicate that the general Qayrawanal-Mahdiyya market was suddenly stimulated by the arrival of merchant ships from the East, or perhaps by the arrival of Italian traders eager to buy.
7.
"Minute Spices" The term saqat in most of the classical Arabic
dictionaries Indicates "things of which the sale is held in mean estimation; such as seeds that are used in cook ing, for seasoning food; and the like."8^
Today the word
78?s 13
J 29, f. 2 (#6), 1. 12+ .
?9TS 13
J 19, f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3)v,
5+ . 80Bodl. MS Heb. c 27 (Cat. 2835), 82 (#14), top of the page, inverted, 1. is The writer Musa b. Hisda gives the price of pepper in al-Mahdiyya as 83 dinars per hlml. 81e. W. Lane, An Arablc-Engllsh Lexicon, IV (London: Williams and Norgate, I863-I886), p. i38lc. Ibn Manzur, Llsan al-cArab, IX (Bulaq: 13®1), adds "sugar, seasonings and the like."
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98 means simply "junk” or "worthless rubbish."82
Abu '1-
Fadl al-Dimashqi, however, uses the word in the same way that the Europeans used "spices" in the Middle
Ages.83
Al-Dimashqi differentiates between "great spices" (al-saqat al-kabir), such as flax, indigo, brazil wood, and black pepper and the "minute spices" (al-saqat al-saghlr), such as rhubarb and white p e p p e r . A l Dlmashqi's use of "great spices" corresponds to Pegolotti's "spezlerle grosse."8^
Whereas, the use of "al-saqat al-
saghlr" and "spezlerle minute"8^ by the two writers respectively do not seem quite the same thing.
To
Pegolotti "minute spices" are commodities which are sold in small quantities but at high prices.
To al-Dimashqi
"minute spices" are commodities handled in lesser volume and which command lesser prices.
82Hans Wehr, A Dictionary of Modern Written Arabic, ed. Cowan (2nd ed.; Ithaca, New York: Cornell University Press, 1966), P« ^15a. 83cf. above, n. 38. 82+al-DimashqI, Mahasln al-Tljara, for al-saqat al-kabir: pp. 21ff.; al-saqat al-saghlr: pp. 21 and 22. H. Hitter, Eln arabisches handbuch der handelswissenschaft, Per Islam, 7:17 (1917): "Die kleinen Spezereien sollen, da sie fflr den Handel nicht so wichtig sind, ttbergangen werden." 83pegolotti, Practlca della mercatura, pp. 2^ and 293ff. Cf. also index. 86Ibid.
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99 The House of Ibn cAwkal included, ’’minute spices" (called merely saqat ) among its exports to the West. "Minute spices" are only mentioned twice in the family archives, but one of the documents, an account sheet from the year IO38, indicates that "minute spices" were handled in large quantities.
A single consignment of seventeen
bales is reported. There is a third instance where the word saqat appears in the Ibn cAwkal archives.
In this case the
word is used to introduce a list of market prices.
Most
of the eleven items in this list would come under alDimashql's heading of "great spices."
In this context
the word seems to be used merely to indicate spices in general.®®
This usage is exceptional in the Geniza and
is, therefore, particularly interesting.
8.
Sugar Egypt was a major producer and exporter of
sugar (Ar. sukkar) in the Middle Ages.
The geographer
®?TS Arabic Box, f. 51 (#35), P* 3, 1- l+ » The other reference to "minute spices" is in a damaged portion of the letter written to Joseph b. cAwkal in 1011 by his friend and associate Ibn al-MajJanl— TS 12.218 (#18)+ . Cf. also Table 5» ®®TS 13 J 29, f. 2 (#6), 11. llff.+ : min as°ar al-saqat : fulful 82, gust 25, baqqam .......
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100 Ibn Duqmaq lists the names of fifty-eight sugar factories just for the city of Fustat.^9 in this industry.
Many Jews were involved
Egyptian sugar was popular in both
the Muslim West and in
E u r o p e . 9®
There can be little doubt that the House of Ibn cAwkal exported sugar.
Three different agents sent
Joseph b. cAwkal quotations on the price of sugar on the Tunisian market (cf. Table 5)»
Unfortunately, no refer
ences to any shipments have been preserved, and there fore, one cannot even conjecture the volume of business handled by the House of Ibn cAwkal for this commodity.
9«
Aromatlcs and Mediclnals Aromatic substances and medicinals figured
very prominently in medieval commerce.
Many aromatics
were also employed in medieval medicine.
®9ibn Duqmaq, Kitab al-Intlsgr 11-Wasitat °Iqd al-Amgar, ed. Vollers (BOl'Sq: I893, reprint Beirut, 1968), pp. Abu cUbayd al-Bakrl, al-Kughrib fl Dhlkr Bllad Ifrlqlya wa ’l-Kaghrlb, ed. De Slane (Algiers: Imprimerle du Gouvernement, 1857)j P* 2, mentions presses for sugar cane as one of the outstanding features of the Egyptian town of Tarnut between Fustat and Alex andria. Thus, too, Yaqtlt, Mug jam al-BuldSn, I, p. 8^5, 9°TS 13 J 29, f. 2 (#6), 1. 12+ , specifically mentions sukkar mlgrl. Pegolotti, Practlca della mercatura, discusses zucchero dl Bambillonia (Cairene sugar) several times, cf. pp. 308ff. and index.
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101 In an age when pollution is a fact of life, it may seem surprising that aromatics were so important in an era long before the industrial revolution.
Due to the
lack of modern methods of food preservation— not to mention hygiene and sanitation— aromatics, like spices, made life more pleasant.
The latter were absolute necessities,
whereas the former were luxuries not to be enjoyed by all.
The leading aromatic substances of medieval trade
are mentioned in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence (cf. Table 6).
Of these, three appear as exports, viz., camphor,
musk, and oderiferous wood. According to the Koran (Sura 76:5f) the righteous in Paradise quaff water scented with camphor (Ar. kafur). Camphor and musk (Ar. mlsk) are frequently paired in Arabic poetry. 91
Both were brought into Egypt from the Far
East. Camphor was obtained from the distilled sap of either the Clnnamomum camphora Nees or Dryobalanops aromatlca Goertn which grew in Japan, Formosa, China, and Southeast
Asia.
92
jn
addition to being an aromatic,
93-The Spanish poet Ibn Sahl depicts an idyllic landscape where the fragrance of the flowers seemed like camphor and the soil like musk— included in Arberry, Arabic Poetry (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965), P. 135. 92neyd, Commerce du Levant, II, p. 592. Flora, II, p. 116.
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Low,
102 it was also used in medieval pharmacology.93 In the price list sent by Harun al-Ghazzal to Joseph b. °Awkal in 1030, which has already been cited several times, camphor is quoted at 62 dinars (per mann).9^ As in the case with sugar, lacquer, and indeed, many other commodities, no records concerning shipments of camphor have reached us.
The numerous market quotations sent to
Joseph b. cAwkal by his agents in North Africa bear ample witness to the fact that these Oriental commodities were exported by the House of Ibn cAwkal. No shipments of musk have appeared so far in the Ibn cAwkal archives either.
This rare substance which
is obtained from the umbilical sac of the male musk deer of Tibet and China, is to this day one of the most highly prized perfume fixatives.95
jt is listed next to camphor
in Harun al-Ghazzal*s letter, where its price is given as ^
dinars (per flask96), Oderiferous wood or aloeswood (Ar. cPd) was
93Maimonides-Meyerhof, p« 2^-, no. 206. 9^TS 13 J 29, f. 2 (#6), 1. 13+ . A mann was approximately equal to 2 ra£ls. Cf. Hinz, Masse und Gewichte, p. 16. Cf. also above, n. 29. 95Heyd, Commerce du Levant, II, pp. 636-640. 96-t s 13 J 29, f. 2 (#6), 1. 13+.
Flask:
QQ.n3lno.•
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Ar.
103 another staple Oriental product which was exported from Egypt to the West.
Oderiferous wood was obtained from
the Aquilarla agallocha Boxb., which flourished in parts of India and the Further E a s t . T h e Arabs used it for incense, perfume, and in m e d i c i n e . T h e Europeans also used the wood in cabinet-making since it had a beautiful grain which took a high polish.^ The single reference to oderiferous wood occurs in a letter to Joseph b. cAwkal from Maymun b. Ephraim, The writer informs Ibn cAwkal that he first tried to sell the wood in Alexandria, and only when this failed he decided to send it on to the
M a g h r e b .
^90
Harun al-Ghazzal*s price list also contains costus (Ar. oust), another substance which was used both as an aromatic and medicinal.
The root of the Aucklandla
Costus Falconer was imported into the Islamic world from 1 01
India. ^
Costus was used by the Arab physicians as an
97Heyd, Commerce du Levant, II, pp. 582ff. 98Kaimonides-Meyerhof, p. 32, no. 296. Ducros, Droguier populaire arabe, p. 96, no. 167. Low, Flora, III, pp. 411-414, especially 4l4.
Cf.
99Heyd, Commerce du Levant, II, p. 582. 100TS Box 28, f. 250 (#38), 11. 13-15. 10*l 8w , Flora, I, pp. 391ff. du Levant, II, pp. 610f.
fieyd, Commerce
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104 expectorant and antiasmatic.102
According to al-Ghazzal,
costus was selling on the Tunisian market at 25 dinars. In the price list which arrived a week before Harun al-Ghazzal’s, myrobalan (Ar. halllaj) is quoted at nine dinars per qintar.
The yellow variety (myrobalin
citrin, Ar. halllaj asfar) is specifically cited.1^4 This Indian fruit was highly regarded in Arab pharmacology for its digestive p r o p e r t i e s . A s i d e from its use as an intestinal astringent, the yellow variety was important also in the tanning and dyeing industries.^ One pharmaceutical product containing Indian drugs which was exported by the House of Ibn cAwkal was sukk.
This medication was perhaps some sort of
intestinal astringent as it contained, among other things,
102i)UcroSj Droguier populalre arabe, p. 106, no. 185. Some confusion was created by the fact that the word gust also designated another drug made from a Mediterranean herb. 103ts 13 J 19, f. 2 (#6), 1. 12+ . The volume is not indicated and we do not have enough parallels to determine the quantities by which this item was sold.
10^TS 13 J 19, f. 20 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3)v, 1. 7+ . There are several other varieties, e.g., black, k§bull (from Afghanistan), Indian, etc. Cf. al-Dimashqi, Mahasln al-Tljara, p. 24, where the various types are described. l°5Cf. Ducros, Droguier populaire arabe, p. 8, nos. 13-15. iO^Golteln, Med. S o c . , I, p. 337. Commerce du Levant, II, p. 643.
Heyd,
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105 gallnuts.^-O? Two palm baskets of sukk are listed in a de tailed account statement and set of Instructions sent by someone in Ibn cAwkal's service to an agent in Alex andria.
One of the baskets is listed as belonging to
the sender, the other to the Elder Abu Yacaqov (i.e., Joseph b. cAwkal) no. 290: "a medication composed of date juice (m5* al-balaft), gallnuts (cafg) and Indian drugs (°aqaqlr hlndlyya) which have con strictive powers and a good fragrance." 108Ts Arabic Box 53» **• 51 (#35)» !• 7 and page 2, 11. 10f.+ . 109l o w , Flora, II, pp. 4l9ff. ll^Ducros, Droguier populalre arabe, p. 82,
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106 The only reference to tragacanth comes from a letter sent Ibn cAwkal in the first decade of the eleventh century by a certain Farah b. Abraham in Tunisia. The writer Informs Ibn cAwkal that there is no demand for tragacanth at the present. Another non-Oriental drug exported by the House of Ibn cAwkal was scammony (Ar. saqamunlya).
This root
also came from Greece, Asia Linor, and Syria (the name, in fact, is merely an arabicization of the Greek skamonla).
The powder made from this root was pre
scribed by medieval physicians as a strong purgative and vermifuge. In a letter from the late tenth century, Isma°il al-Taherti informs Joseph b. cAwkal that he has a small leather bottle of scammony belonging to the latter.
The
container could not have been too small since the writer states that he took out of it one mann (two pounds) for
no. 144. Cf. also I-.-aimonides-heyerhof, p. 32, no. 191, where the word is spelled kathlra, and Ibn Bay^ar, Tralte des simples. III, pp. I46f., no. 1889 , where it is spelled kathfra1 . 111TS 12.367 (#17), 11. 15f.: wa 'l-kathlra laysa laha tallb. (The manuscript is very badly effaced.). 112l o w , Flora, pp. 451f. The drug is usually referred to in the Geniza as al-mabmuda ("the praised one"). 11 3Ducros, Droguier populalre arabe, pp. 122f., no. 213. Cf. also, Ibn BayfrSr, Traltd' des "simples, II, pp. 256 -260 , no. 1193 .
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107 some expenses. I1**
10,
Sal Ammoniac Sal ammoniac (Ar, nushadlr) was a staple commod
ity in medieval commerce and appears several times in our documents.
These crystals of ammonium chloride came
mainly from Transoxania and China.
Mez brings numerous
reports by Mascudl and others, of the flaming valleys from which the chemical was obtained.^ 5
Although sal ammoniac
was reported to have been mined from Sicily*s volcano, in the Geniza documents the references are always to the Central Asian v a r i e t y , - j h e substance was of great importance in medieval chemistry, metallurgy, and medi cine, I*? There are several references to sal ammoniac
ll4TS Arabic Box 53t f. H al-batta al-saghlra.
(#30), 11. I8f.s
Renaissance, pp. 438ff. ^^Yaqut, Mu°jam al-BuldSn, III, p. 408; "Sal ammoniac is found in the volcano an& large amounts are brought from there to Spain and other places." Apparently Sicilian sal ammoniac was shipped westwards to Spain and north to Christian Europe. This may explain why the Central Asian variety always appears as an export from Egypt to North Africa. ^ A c c o r d i n g to Ibn Bayfcar, Trait e*-des simples. Ill, pp. 380f., no. 2241, sal ammoniac is useful in pre parations for the treatment of such diverse maladies as eye ailments, sore throats, and white leprosy.
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108 in the Ibn °Awkal correspondence (cf, Table 7)*
It
appears in Harun al-Ghazzal*s price list where 3-1/8 mann cost one d i n a r , I n
the letter from Ephraim al-Jawharl
which seems to show an over-all rise in prices over Harun*s quotations, the same dinar purchased only 2^ mann.^9 More than forty years earlier, lsmacIl alTahertl writes to Jacob b, cAwkal that he had sold 9^ mann of sal ammoniac for him (approximately 188 pounds) at 2-3/^ mann for a dinar which came to 29 dinars and 2 qlrats after deductions,*2®
11*
Luxury items A very important and very lucrative category
of Ibn cAwkal*s exports to the Muslim West has yet to be mentioned, namely, luxury items (Ar. aclaq) such as precious metal, gems, crystal, and costly fabrics.
It
has already been noted more than once that Joseph b, cAwkal
had an office in the Dar al-Jawhar, in addition
H 8 t s 13 j
29, f. 2 ( # 6 ) , 1 . 12+ .
**9t S 13 J
19, f* 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3)v,
1. 7+ . 12®TS Arabic Box 53, *“• H » H * 10-13* A de tailed list of sal ammoniac prices and transactions covering the entire eleventh century and part of the twelfth is found in Goitein, Med, Soc,« I, pp, 228f, The qlrat was a money of account, Cf, below, p, 403*
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109 to his ma.1lls In Fustat and his home In Cairo. Pearls (Ar. lu'lu') are the most frequently mentioned items (cf. Table 8).
A particularly profitable
consignment is mentioned in Samhun b. Dawud's angry letter. Samhun complains that after selling the pearls for Ibn cAwkal at a 125 per cent profit— "What would have been had I taken a quarter of the profit?"121
very oppo
site set of cire tunstances is reported concerning an un specified quantity of pearls belonging to Joseph's father. His correspondent writes: price at this time.
"The pearls cannot fetch any
I hope God will cause the situation
to ease."122 Only a very scant bit of information has been preserved concerning the House of Ibn cAwkal's trade in gems.
In one very fragmentary letter from Yusuf b. YacqCb
ItrabulsI, one of Ibn cAwkal*s agents in Qayrawan, there is the highly interesting remark:
"I displayed all of
the gems to the Sultan's mother."123
^he writer goes on
to say that the Sultan's mother (i.e., the mother of the Zirid al-Mucizz b. Badls) bought only one purse of gems.
121DK 13 (#16), 11. 20f+. 122t s Arabic Box 53* f. H
(#30), 11. 20f.
123Bodl. MS Heb. d 65 (Cat. 2877)t f. 5 (#9)* 1. 13s walldat al-sulfran wa-°aradtu °alayh5 kull Jawhar . . . . . lahS mlnhu siwS surra wLfibljda . . . .
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110 Apparently, the House of Ibn °Awkal had a very distin guished clientele for its specialty items.
In another
letter the same agent writes that government officials had opened for inspection a consignment of the precious fabric, Abu Qalamun, and crystal (Ar. ballur) According to the Persian traveller, Nasir-i-Khosraw, Abu QalamHn was a unique fabric produced in Tinnis, exported to both the East and the West, and which changed its color according to the different hours of the day.*2-5 Al-ItrabulsI reports, however, that the government agents were not overly impressed by the merchandise. Abu »1-Fadl al-Dimashql, in the chapter of his fascinating book dealing with the preservation of wealth, advises against investment in luxury items "such as gems
12lfTS 12.223 (#8), 11. 14-16. Fatimid crystal ware was highly prized in Europe, too. A superb example of this work Is the carved rock crystal ewer from the treasury of St. Mark*s in Venice. A picture of this stunning piece is in A. H. Christie, Islamic minor arts and their influence upon European work, The Legacy of Islam, ed. Arnold and Guillaume (London: Oxford University Press, i9 6 0 ), fig. 6 5 * 125Nasir-i-Khosraw, Safar Name, p. 52. va bedln shahr-e Tlnnls bfl qalamtm bafand ke dar hame~51em jg-ye dfgar nebgshad Sn Jame-ye zarfn ast ke behar vaqtl az rdz belawnl dlgar nemiyad va beMaghreb va Mashreq Sn Jgme az Tlnnls barandJ al-MuqaddaslT Macrlfat al-Aqailm, p. 240, confuses it with sea wool, another oostly fabric. For other descriptions of this textile, cf. Serjeant, Islamic textiles, index 3* P* 290, s.v. "BdfcalamOn."
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Ill
which are required only by great people and kings. "126 Al-Dlmashql*s book, however, was addressed to the smaller fry and not to merchant princes such as Joseph b. cAwkal. The last of the costly export items to be dis cussed here is silver which in the form of bullion, old vessels, and old coins no longer in circulation was shipped by the House of Ibn cAwkal to the West on a very large scale.
In the West the silver was melted down and sold
by suppliers known as murlds to the mints where it was recast into fresh dirhems.
(Unfortunately, none of the
silver coinage struck in North Africa during this period has come down to us.
On the other hand, a great deal
from the Spanish mints has been preserved.127) In his earlier years as head of the family firm, Joseph b. cAwkal carried on very sizeable transactions in silver with the Tahertls, who, it would seem, acted as murlds in Qayraiwan.128
In one very fragmentary letter
from one of the Tahertls to Joseph, a shipment of silver worth the enormous sum of 1 ,2 3 0 dinars Is mentioned.
126al-Dimashql, Mahasln al-Tl.15ra. p. 5 8 . 12?Cf. Hazard, The Numismatic History of Late Medieval North Africa, Numismatic studies No. o (New York, The American Numismatic Society, 1952), pp. 232f. 128cf, above, n. 34. 129TS 12.282 (#22), 1. 6.
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112 In another letter from the TahertI business house, the writer, IsmacIl b. Barhun al-Tahertl, expresses his sur prise that in recent letters sent from the House of Ibn cAwkal no mention is made whether or not 150 dinars sent by the Tahertls in payment for a consignment had been received.
C.
Imports The commodities imported by the House of Ibn
°Awkal were by no means less diversified than those ex ported.
On the other hand, mueh of the information on
Import items is less detailed than that for exports. reason for this is obvious.
The
The sale of the imported
goods took place in Egypt and was handled by the FustatCalro offices, whose main records were probably kept in the Ibn cAwkal home.
Nonetheless, a good deal of the
import business of the House of Ibn cAwkal can be recon structed.
1.
Coin First and foremost among the imports from the
Muslim West was ooln— gold dinars and silver dirhems (cf.
130rs 1 6 .2 2 6 ( # 2 5 ) , 11. 1*2 .
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113 Table 9)*
In addition to being a means of exchange,
coins were considered a commodity much like any other handled by a merchant.
Purses of coins were valued by
weight, fineness of issue, etc.
(e.g., a purse is men
tioned containing 120 dinars but worth only 118£ and 2 qlrafcs^l).
coins were bought and sold not altogether
unlike on today's currency markets.
Thus lsmacIl al-
Tahertl writes to Jacob b. cAwkal requesting that the latter purchase for him cAdllyya and Qayrawanese dir hems.1^
The importation of Maghrebi coins must have
been on a tremendous scale if Qayrawanese businessmen had to buy Qayrawanese coins from Egypt. Coins are often mentioned as an alternative to some other article of merchandise.
For example, in
the instande just cited, Ism5°ll al-Tahertl asks Joseph b. °Awkal to buy the coins if he cannot get him high grade cAmt5nI indigo.
In another case Ibn cAwkal's
agent, Yusuf b. Ya°qub I^rabulsI, writes his master asking
131t s 8.12 (#26), 1. 7+ . were quarter dinars.
Twenty of the coins
132ts Arabic Box 52, f. 11 (#30)v, 1. 2. cAdliyya dirhems appear elsewhere in the Geniza, but they have not yet been identified. Cf. Goitein, Jewish trade, p. 79. Most likely these dirhems were related to the °Adliyya dinars, which were "special deluxe issues which were not supposed to be circulated." (Goitein, Med«iJ3oc_., X, p. 231 *)*
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114 whether he should use the money from the sale of luxury Items to buy cloth or mukhattata coins (I.e., coins whose Inscriptions are arranged in parallel lines or khutut).*33 There was a particularly great need in the Islamic East for Western gold at this time for the trade with the Orient.'1^ b. Abi
Joseph b. cAwkal,s nephew, Isma°Il
Uqba, writing from Sicily informs his uncle:
"I
payed out a lot of silver and Kharljl coins for the quar ters (i.e., Sicilian gold quarter dinars)."135
2.
Metals The West was an important source of other
metals needed in Egypt.
Copper was imported by the House
of Ibn °Awkal in a variety of forms. find listed:
In one letter we
one bale of melted-down copper (nahas
sablka), one basket of copper pellets (fajar), and one
1 33ts 1 2 .2 2 3 (#8 ), 1 1 . 19 f•: wa-ln ra«ayta an nashtarl bl-thamanlhl ruzaymat bazz wa-nunfldhuh5~ llaykum aw surra mukhattata fl awwal markab. (ruzayma, literally, a small bundle. It was probably pronounced rzlma, which is a usual Maghrebi diminutive form. Cf. e.g., Wright, Grammar. I, p. 167, para. 269B).
1^(joitein, Mediterranean trade preceding the Crusades, p. 5 6 . 135Ts 13 j 29, f. 9 (#39), 11. I4f+.
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115 rlzma, or bundle, of beaten copper (nahas madrub).136 Copper was a very important element in Islamic metalwork, both as copper and as a component of bronze and brass.
The great bronze griffin in the Campo Santo
at Pisa is a striking example of Fatimid craftmanship from this period.*37 Another metal imported to Egypt from the West was lead.
This metal Is mentioned in letters from four
different agents, but never is the size of any shipment involved specifically mentioned.
One of the agents,
Yusuf b. Yacqub Itrabulsi, reports the arrival of the ship al-Jadid in the port of Alexandria with a cargo of lead.
For some reason the unloading was delayed, but
Itrabulsi assures Ibn °Awkal that he will diligently attend to its dispatch as soon as it was unloaded.1^®
^ T S 12.291 (#19), 11. 8 and 16. Fa Jar was a term used in the medieval Islamic West and Is not found in the classical dictionaries. Dozy, Supplement. II, p. 242b, citing Schiaparelli, Vocabullsta in arabico (Florence: 1871), has fajara: morceau; pi. fajat*lr: morceau de plomb. 137a. H. Christie, Islamic minor arts and their influence upon European work, in The Legacy of Islam, ed. Arnold and Guillaume (London! Oxford University Press, i9 60 ), p. 117 and fig. 18. 138BM Or 55^2, f. 15 (#10), 1. 13 and margins: wa *l-ras5s alladhl fl *l-jadld lam yufarragh rasas 11ahad wa-ldha furrlgha nahnu nahrig fl hamllhl.
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116 3*
Corals One of the more important products of the
medieval Muslim West was corals (Ar. marjan) which were obtained off the coasts of Spain and North Africa,
There
are only two references to this very important commodity in all of the Ibn °Awkal correspondence.
In one Instance
mention is made of a bale of corals belonging to IsmacIl b. Abl cUqba arriving in Alexandria and with it, perhaps, two barqalos of corals for his uncle (the text is dam aged) .*39
in the other letter, a consignment of corals
sent by the Tahertls is mentioned several times; but the text is badly damaged and no details can be salvaged.
4.
Olive Oil The economy of the Muslim West was predominantly
agrarian (with the notable exception of the textile industry), and many agricultural products, as well as the by-products of husbandry formed Important exports to the East (cf. Table 10).
1-39t s 12.291 (#19)v, 11. 16f. (each line in a different handwriting): wa-llsmScIl (t) ibn Abl cUqba cldl marJan ma°a Bunana »l-nutl. wa-laka ya sayyidl ma°a *bn GhubSr aydan barqaluwwat . . . . . . For barqalo, cf. n. 47 atx>ve. lZf0TS 12.282 (#22), 11. 9 and 11, and margins.
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117 As today, North Africa, Sicily, and Spain were famous olive-growing regions, and olive oil was in deed the prime export,
Olive oil (Ar, zayt) appears
frequently in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence, usually in market quotations. 1**1
In several letters the size of
shipments are mentioned,
Harun al-Ghazzal, sometime
agent, sometime associate of the Ibn cAwkal family, asks Joseph in one letter to receive and sell for him twentyone skins of olive oil arriving on the qarlb (a type of lk? sea-going barge) of Ben al-^deb, Abraham b, Joseph, one of Ibn °Awkal,s agents in Alexandria mentions a shipment of four light containers (azyar lltaf) of olive oil. 1**3
5,
Soap Along with olive oil, soap (Ar, §5b3n) con-
1/flTS NS J 388 (#^2)v, 11. 2f,: 8 or 9 qaflz per dinar; TS 13 J 19, f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3)v» 1. 8+s 12 qaflz per dinar. The Qayrawanese qafTz equalled 201.877 liters. Cf. Hinz, Masse und Gewlchte, p. 50* ik2 TS NS j 388 (#k2 ), 1 . 17 and v, 1 1 . 2 f. For qarlb. cf. Goitein, Med. Soc.. I, pp. 305f. The name Ben al-§deb (Son of the Hunchback) is a typical Maghrebi form for what would be in Classical Arabics Ibn al-Afctdab. Cf. Harrell, Moroccan Arabic, p. 8 6 , para. 5 . l2*3TS 12.291 (#19), 1. 12.
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118 stituted a staple export of the Maghreb.
It was the Arabs
who first discovered that soap could be made from olive oil instead of foul-smelling animal fats.
The Arabs
often perfumed their soap, and in Europe soap from the Arab countries was considered an article of luxury.1^ Harun al-Ghazzal, in the letter just cited above, mentions a shipment of an unspecified quantity of soap held in partnership by himself and Ibn °Awkal which did not bring them any profit.*^5
Another shipment of
unspecified quantity is mentioned by another of Ibn cAwk9 l*s agents in Alexandria, Joseph b. Yeshuca.
However,
he does give the going price of soap as being 24 ratls for from 22 qlrats to one dinar.
6.
Wax and Honey Wax was a very important commodity Imported
from the Muslim West and is mentioned in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence very frequently (cf. Table 10).
One
agent, in a letter from al-Mahdiyya, writes to Joseph b.
1^Singer et al., History of Technology. II, P. 356. l24^TS NS J 388 (#42), 11. I8f•: yg sayyldl mln qlgsat al-gabun alladhl kan lana ma°a b[n al-Shaldld lam yahsul lana flh shay* 1115 . . . . . l46Mosseri L 52 (#12), 1. 11 and margins’1".
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119 cAwkal that he had already purchased ten qintars of wax and Intends to purchase still more*^ 7 Since wax candles and oil lamps were the only sources of artificial light, wax was an extremely impor tant commodity and commanded rather high prices*
Joseph
b. Yeshuca, writing from Alexandria, gives a quotation of 17-18 dinars per qintar as the going price for wax in the Egyptian port.1**®
Another agent in Alexandria, Yusuf
b. Yacqub Itrabulsi, whom we have met before, writes that the government had taken a consignment of wax that had come in for Ibn cAwkal, reimbursing him at the rate of between
19 and 21 dinars per qintSr.1^
itrabulsi writes
that a consignment of wax belonging to himself and Harun al-Ghazzal was still aboard ship and that he had not un loaded it in hopes of saving it.
This sort of government
interference with free trade occurred only when the State had a particular need for something.
It should be noted
that this was not a case of outright sequestration, and
W B o d l . MS Heb. c 27, f. 82 (Cat. 2835, no. (#1*0, margins, 1. 3. The writer is MusS b. Ishaq b. Hisda, a travelling merchant, whom we find writing to Ibn*°Awkal on two other occasions from the flax growing region near Busir (cf. below, Part II). 1^8$osserl ^
52 (#12 ), top of the page+ .
1^ B M Or 55^2, f. 15 (#10)v, 11. lf.s wa-.1aml° ma wasal mln al-sham° akhadhahu '1-sultan wa-dafa° °alayhlm mln 21 ila 19 al-qlnt*
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120 Indeed, the rate paid by the government was higher than the prices reported above by Joseph b. Yeshu°a.
(How
ever, the government must have been paying less than the going rate at the time since Itrabulsi purposely left his wax on board ship in order to avoid the govern ment inspectors•) Concomitant with the Importation of wax was that of honey.
Unfortunately, no specific volume of any
shipment is mentioned.
Apparently during one season in
the late tenth century several shipments of honey not of full volume were received by the House of Ibn cAwkal from Tunisia.
The agent, Isaac b. Janun, In a concerned
letter to the senior Jacob and his son Joseph, writes: You wrote that the shipment of honey was lacking . . . but you did not Indicate whether they (i.e., the vessels) were filled to the brim or, like the last batch, only to the necks.*51
7.
Hides Hides and leather were leading by-products of
Maghrebi animal husbandry.
In one letter, Musa b. Ishaq
b. gisda mentions a consignment of three bales of hides
^^Regarding government controls in commerce, cf. Goitein, Med. Soc.. I, pp. 266-272. 1^1t s 12.383 (#29)» 11. 10f.
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121 in which Ibn cAwkal had a one-third interest and another consignment of ninety-five hides, half of which he held in partnership with Ibn °Awkal, and half of which were Ibn cAwkal's alone.
Ibn Hlsda goes on to mention that he
had also purchased another seven hundred partially pre pared hides and was taking with him yet another hundred.1^2 Another correspondent writing from Alexandria announces the arrival of a load of hides (hlml nat°) sent by Khalaf b. YaCqub al-AndalusI, a merchant who is com monly mentioned in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence.*53 In his important letter to Joseph b. cAwkal, the Nagid Ibrahim b. °Ata' mentions ten dinars worth of hides which had to be retrieval from the heirs of "the Spaniard" — probably the afore-mentioned Khalaf b. Ya°qub.
The hides,
it would seem, were to be used to cover part of the burial expenses of the Nagid's grandfather whose remains were being transferred to the Holy Land.
How the hides
came into the possession of al-AndalusI's heirs is not known.
The letter gives the Impression that al-Andalusi
was still alive, but no details on the background of this
152Bodl. MS Heb. c 27, f. 82 (Cat. 2835, no. 44) (#14), 11. 4-9. 153ts 13 J 16, f. 23 (#2), 1. 8.
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122 Interesting affair are given.
8.
Saffron There are but two references to saffron (Ar.
za°faran— whence the English is ultimately derived) in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence (cf. Table 3), both in letters from Ephraim al-Jawhari, Ibn °Awkal's chief agent in Alexandria. Saffron was an extremely Important article of medieval commerce and had a variety of uses. use was as a dye and coloring agent.
Its primary
In Europe it had
been used from the very early Middle Ages for gold letter ing in
manuscripts.^^?
ing in
cooking.
&stoday,
it was used asa season
The Arabs also used it in medicine.
Most of the saffron in Egypt at this time was Imported from Tunisia.
The Europeans got much of their
saffron from Spain and the
Byzantine Empire.*57
15zh?s 10 J 9, f. 26 (Three Letters A), 11. 1823+ . The term used here for the hides is jalSbfb ("cov ers'* or "wrapping"), which should not be confused with the m o d e m Egyptian galabiyyas. *55Heyd, Commerce du Levant, II, p. 668. ^^Maimonldes-Meyerhof, p. 17, no. 135. Accord ing to Ibn Baytar, Trait^ des simples. II, pp. 208ff., no. 1110, it might be used, among other things, as a digestive, a fortifier of weak organs, an aid to clearing one's vision, and an aid in respiration. *57neyd, Commerce du Levant, II, p. 668.
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123 Because It takes the stigmas of some four thousand flowers to produce an ounce of saffron, Its price then, as now, was dear*
Ephraim al-Jawhari refers
in one letter to three baskets of saffron which he had left with Ibn cAwkal.
He asks Ibn cAwkal to try and
find him a buyer who would be willing to pay 5 dinars per mann on two months credit.*58
The granting of a two
month waiting period for payment was considered normal business procedure as far as most commodities were con cerned. *59 In another letter al-Jawhari explains that he had written to his uncle, Musa b. al-MajJanl, to use the proceeds from the sale of flax at the al-Mahdiyya fair to buy various commodities, among them saffron, as Ibn °Awkal had instructed.1^
9.
Textiles The last of the commodities to be discussed in
this section are by no means the least important.
Along
with olive oil, textiles constituted a prime Maghrebi export to the East.
15&TS 13 J 19. f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3), margins, 11. 6-16*. 159Goitein, M6d«^^oCj^, I, pp. 19?ff• l6oTS 13 J 17. f. 3 (#!). 11. 26-30+.
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12k
Spain and Sicily were the two leading silk pro ducing countries in the world of the Geniza.161
The
special role of silk as a form of capital Investment in the Fatimid period in a way somewhat parallel to securities in our own day has been amply set forth by Professor Goitein.162 Silk (Ar. harlr) shipments and quotation on silk prices are mentioned in nearly 20 per cent of the Ibn cAwkal correspondence.
Only in two letters, however, has
the size of the consignments been preserved. is the
k20
One instance
pounds of silk already mentioned which was
held in a three-way partnership between Joseph b. cAwkal, Samhun b. Dawud, and the latter's brother.l63
In the
second instance we find IsmacIl b. Abl °Uqba in Damsis on assignment for his uncle, and with him 50 ratls of silk to cover expenses for shipping flax.
Assuming the
silk to be of normal quality, such a consignment was worth approximately 100 dinars.16^
IsmacIl, however, had
underestimated his expenses and now found himself in a
l6lGoitein, Med. Soc.. I, p. 102. l62Ibld.. pp. 222f. l63cf. above, n. 29•
Cf. also Table 11.
l62fENA 272?, f. ^1 (#27), 11. 12-19. For silk prices in the eleventh century, of. Goitein, Med. Soc.. I, p. 223.
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125 state of •'trepidation and bewilderment•"
He asks his
uncle to send him some lasin silk (a cheaper grade Sicilian
silk),
*^5
Due to the delicate nature of silk, it was very common to ship it within bales of hides which offered some protection against sea water.
One such consignment
is reDorted inside a load of hides sent by Khalaf alAndalusl.*^
In another instance, Yusuf b. Yacqub
Itrabulsi writes that he is forwarding a bale containing hides, lasin, standard silk, and belts.^ 7
The fabrics
were no doubt wrapped in the hides in this case, too. In addition to regular and ISsin silk, the House of Ibn cAwkal Imported fine brocade (dibaj).
Brocade
was among the commodities that Ephraim al-Jawhari had asked Ibn al-MaJjanl to purchase for Ibn cAwkal with proceeds from the sale of flax at the al-Mahdiyya fair*
i65ena 2727, f. 41, 11. 13-19; 1. 13s baqltu fra*lr f r a * l m .
168
wa-
l66TS 13 J 16, f. 23 (#2), 1. 9. l6?BM Or 5542, f. 15 (#10), 1. 6s wa-flh antac wa-lasln wa-harlr wa-mayazlr. The mlzar was not an inex pensive item! In a trousseau list from the year 1040, two are valued at 1 dinar, 10 qlrats (TS 8 J, f. 21, 1. 10). I owe this information to my wife, Yedida, who is prepar ing a dissertation entitled, Female Attire in Medieval Egypt— According to the Trousseau Lists and. Cognate Material from the Cairo Geniza. 168ts 13 j 17, f. 3 (#l), 11. 26-30+._ On the qualities of good brocade, cf. al-Dimashql, Mahasln al-TlJara, p. 20. this passage is translated into English in Ser geant, Islamic textiles, Chap. XXII, pp. 65f. Cf. also index.
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126 There is one reference in a letter from one of the Tahertls to a fabric colored with the grey dye known - 169 as "peppery" (Ar. fulfull). Silk was bought by the pound, but most of the textiles came as standard "pieces" (Ar. shlqaq, sing. shlqqa).
The shlqqa occurs very frequently not only In
the Geniza records but In Arabic literature as well.1?®
D.
Conclusion This chapter has attempted to show, as far as
can be gleaned from the admittedly limited sources, the greatly ramified business operations of the great medieval Import-export firm, the House of Ibn cAwkal.
The follow
ing pages contain tables In which are listed all the commodities mentioned in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence. Not every commodity which appears in these papers is specifically mentioned as being handled by the House of Ibn °Awkal.
Some, as we have seen, appear only in mar
ket quotations, while others appear in consignments which Ibn cAwkal handled for other merchants.
However, in both
instances— certainly the former— it is reasonable to
16.266 (#25). 1. 21. p. 118, lists pepper as a dyestuff.
Low, Flora. IV,
170por references to the shlqqa in the literary sources, cf. R. B. Serjeant, Islamic textiles, index, s.v. "shlkka." Cf. also Table 11.
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127 assume that these Items were also handled by the House of Ibn cAwkal.
These tables give a good general picture
of the highly diversified business operation which we have examined in this chapter.
Because the Ibn cAwkal
correspondence is perhaps the oldest collection of private business documents from the medieval Mediterranean, the information presented here in tabular form is important for comparative study by economic historians despite the obvious deficiencies due to the Incomplete preservation af our sources.
The tables will also
enable the reader to appreciate to a greater degree the selected texts in Part II in their proper perspective.
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TABLE 1 FLAX
Variety
Quantity
Price
70 b a l e s a n d 1 barqalo; one y e a r ' s total sent: 17 2 b a l e s a nd 2 b a r q a l o s
Reported data: Ships, Quality,
Destination, etc.
Document
A l e x a n d r i a to al-i'ahdlyya on: 1. a l - B a c s h u s h I , 2. a l A n d a l u s i , J, Ibn a l - Q a d d a r , 4. unnamed ship
25 b a l e s In
R e c e i v e d In A l e x a n d r i a In good c o n d i t i o n for shlpDlng to t h e West.
total
#1, 11. 14-20+
#3,
23 b a l e s g o to a l - h a h d l y y a , 20 o n q a r l b a l - M q r u s and three on al-Rasul.
Buslri
Qlmat
fralal
8+
11. 9-11
1.
T h o b 9 l e s g o to S i c i l y on al-Andalusi
In Q a yr a w a n an d al-J.ahdlyya: 6-1/2 and 8 dinars oe r q i n t a r
1.
v,
11
11.
3-4
6-8 dinars oer qint a r
1. 4
5-6 dinars per qint a r
1.5
Kalaldoes not
sell.
11.
5 & 11
Date
e i t h e r 10251 0 2 7 o r 10301035
Apr. 2, 1030 (Apr. 8 **)
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a
176 the Arabic writing system where the letters allf, waw, and ya* indicate long vowels only.
In these texts it
is not unusual to find waw and yod as matres lectiones u and JL, respectively. Q
Examples:
a)
b*l-kwlyh for bll-kulllyya
b)
hys»bk for hlsablk^
Although it is admittedly difficult to ascertain the precise phonology of individual words and the qualities of the vowels, in some cases this can be inferred by the matres lectiones. Example:
hon and hona for huna as in many dialects today.10
4.
Frequently, long vowels in nonfinal
syllables are shortened.1* Example: 5#
al-baql for al-baql
There is a marked tendency for glottal
®Blau, Grammar, p. 21, para. 8 Ca, 9ibid., p. 21, para. 8 Cb. 10Ibid., pp. 22f., para. 8 H. 11Ibid., p. 19» para, 6 B.
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177 stops to be elided. ^ Example:
takhudh for ta»khudh13
In some cases this produces clusters typical of Maghrebi dlalets. Example:
wa-khra for wa-ukhra
6.
There is a frequent confusion in these texts
of emphatic and nonemphatic consonants, particularly s > s and s ^ s . 1^Examples:
a)
wa-awwal safarlh for wasafarlh
b)
surra for surra
Often nonemphatics take on the emphatic pronunciation under the influence of emphatic consonants in close proximity.^ Example:
al-gultan for al-sultan
12uhis is more a feature of Maghrebi dialects than Eastern ones. Cf. Mary Catherine Bateson, Arabic Language Handbook (Washington: Center for Applied Linguistics, 1967)» pp. 103f. 13a very common phenomenon in colloquial Arabic— but not mentioned in Blau, Grammar, in the section on Initial hamza verbs! l^Blau, Grammar, p. 36 , para. 18 A and B. 15ibid., pp. 37f.» para. 20 A.
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178 As in most present-day dialects there is a common con fusion of the emphatics ss is fairly common.1? • •• Example: 7.
nuss for nlsf Though not a very frequent phenomenon,
the lam of the article is sometimes omitted before huruf al-shams. Example:
»s°h for al-sa°a1^
Occasionally both the allf and the lam are dropped, re flecting more faithfully the pronunciation.19
^ l6cf., e.g., L. Brunot and E. Malka, Glossaire judeo-arabe de P&s. Publications de l'Institut des Hautes Etudes Marocaines, XXXVII (Rabat: Ecole du Llvre, 19^0), p. 77, or M. Cohen, Le Parler arabe des Julfs d»Alger, Collection Linguistique, IV (Paris: La Soci€t6 de Lingulstique, 1912), p. viii, table. ^Blau, Grammar, p. 38* para. 20 C. 1®Por the vulgar Maghrebi adverb of time, cf. ibid., pp. 23f, para. 9 A. 19ibid., p. 53, para. 39*
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179 Example: 8.
hadhl ssana for hSdhl ♦1-sana
The allf al-wigaya is never written even
in letters that reflect a more literary influence.2® 9.
A very frequent feature of these texts is
combining of two or more words into a single unit.
The
vocative particle is usually attached to the munada, often losing its long vowel.2* Example;
yasayyldl for ya sayyldl
A similar phenomenon occurs in the phrase "God willing." Example:
in shallah or in shallah for in sha*a «llah22
10.
The writers of these letters were busy
merchants, and it is, therefore, not surprising that they were given to using abbreviations for commonly repeated words.
The writers indicate the abbreviations by a
20 otiose allf does appear often in letters from a later period. Cf. A. Motzkin, The Arabic Correspondence of Judge Elijah and his Family (un published Ph.D. dissertation, University of Pennsylvania, 19^5)> P« 98. 21 Blau, Grammar, p. 55* para. W] D.
22This reflects the pronunciation as in many dialects today.
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180 slanted stroke or slash on the top of the last Examples:
B»
a)
din. for dinar
b)
dana. for dananlr
c)
nls. for nlsf
d)
al-qint. for al-qintar
letter.23
Morphology 1.
As stated above, the most outstanding
Maghrebi feature In these texts Is the use of nfcl/nf°lu for the first persons of the Imperfect verb. Examples:
a)
wa-nakhdlmak ana for waakhdlmuka ana
b)
wa-naktubu lak for wanaktubu lak
One feature common to the morphology of all dialects Is the use of yfcltt for yf°lun.2^ Examples
yapulu for yaqulun
Another Maghrebi feature is the use of the
23ihese abbreviations occur so frequently as to not warrant their being cited in the notes to the texts.
2^These features are so regular in these texts as to not warrant their being cited in the accompanying notes.
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181 termination -lyu as a morpheme to indicate the third person masculine (and in these texts feminine as well) plural of final yg* verbs.2-5 Example:
yarmlyuh for yarmuh
2.
Prothetic allf is frequently prefixed to
verbs of forms V and VI in the perfect.
This is also a
typical Maghrebi form (although it is found in other dialects),2^ Example: 3*
ltbaqqa for tabaqqa
Medially and finally weak verbs normally
retain their long vowels after the negative particle lam. This is due to the loss of the moods in spoken Arabic.2? Examples:
a)
lam nabl
for lam nabl°
b)
lam yatabaqqa for lam yatabaqqa
However, there are numerous instances where lam is fol lowed by the apocopated form,
25Blau, Grammar, p. 91* para. 109 A and B. 2 ^N. Tapiero, Manuel d »arabe algerl«n (Paris: Librairie C. Klincksieck, 1957)* P» i07» M. Cohen, op. cit.. n. 16 above, pp. 228ff. 2 ?Blau, Grammar, p. 87, para. 102 A and p. 91, para*Hl A.
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182 4.
There seem to be none of the deviations of
the independent personal pronouns from those in Classical Arabic described by Blau.^S
However, there is a rather
frequent use of the dual pronominal suffix in place of the third person plural. Examples
sallamahuma '115h for sallamahum allSh
5*
There is a great deal of inconsistency in
the use of the demonstrative and relative pronouns with a tendency for the masculine to replace the feminine. Examples:
a)
fl hadha 11-sana for fl hadhlhl *l-sana29
b)
al-kutub alladhl for alkutub allatl^
Where the feminine demonstrative is used, haahl seems to be more common than hadhlhl. 6.
As in present-day dialects, the oblique
case is used almost exclusively in place of the sound
2®Blau, Grammar, pp. 57?. 29ibld., p. 62, para, 51 Aa. This may merely represent the pronunciation of hffdhl or the inconsistentenoy in writing.
3°ibld.. p. 235.
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183 masculine plural and the dual•31 Examples:
a)
wagala markabayn for wasala markaban
b)
fa-qad °abarat al-slnln calayha for fa-qad cabarat al-slnun °alayha
7.
In the nlsba the ending is usually -In
for -lyyln.32 Example: 8,
al-fasln for al-faslyyln
The non-Classical interrogative particle
ayyu shay* appears in these texts in the Maghrebi form ash.
According to Blau, the Eastern Arabic form aysh
is more commonly found in medieval
C,
Judaeo-Arabic.33
Syntax 1,
The language of these texts has overall
a more analytical structure, as opposed to the synthetic structure of Classical Arabic.
The marked tendency is
3!since this is the rule rather than the exception in these texts, its occurrences will not be cited in the notes. 32Blau, Grammar, p. 109, para. 135• 33Blau, Judaeo-Arablc, Chap. V, passim.
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184 toward a subject-verb-predicate word order.3** Examples:
a)
wa-kull lnsan yushannl0 ma clndahu for wa-yushannl° kull lnsan ma °lndahu
b)
al-shaykh Abu Harfln yu°arrlfuk hal Yusuf for yu°arrlfuk alshaykh Abfl Harfln bal Yusuf
2.
Asyndetic clauses are a far more common
phenomenon in these texts than in Classical Example:
A r a b i c . 35
akhra.1t al-hlsSb wajjaht llayk nuskhatahu
3. languageof
One of the outstanding features of the thesedocuments is the
kan as anauxiliary
to the
use of unconjugated
v e r b . 3^
in some cases the use
of this kan seems to foreshadow the particle ka- in modern colloquial Moroccan.37 Examples:
a)
lama kan tafcal
b)
ma kan yakun
3^Blau, Grammar, pp. 132-133* paras. 185-186. 35ibid., p. 208, para. 327. 36jbid., p. 186 , para. 287, explains this as a "fossillzation'* of the auxiliary verb. 37cf. Harrell, Moroccan Arabic, pp. d.
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sec.
185 4.
It is equally common to find pious wishes
expressed in the imperfect with the subject preceding the verb as in the optative (or precative) perfect with the verb preceding the subject.38 Examples:
5.
a)
allah yuhylh wa-yuhyl wuldahu
b)
atSla *115h baQa*ak
One element which is rather peculiar to
these texts is the particle an which Baneth has shown - 39 to be a vestigial remnant of the tanwln. Blau further developed Baneth*s work by showing that a similar phenomenon exists in certain m o d e m Bedouin dialects.^0 Perhaps the most common occurrence of this particle in these texts involves its use after an Indefinite noun to Indicate that it is followed by an attribute. Examples:
a)
dirham an wShid
b)#
taht— hSl » ■ an ■cazlm —
The particle also occurs before attribute clauses as a relative pronoun. Example:
•C
mln sa at an waqaftu
38cf. Blau, Grammar, pp. 26lf. 39d . Z. Baneth, The nunatlon (Tanwln) in Judaeo-Arablc texts, Bulletin of the Jewish Palestine Exploration Society. 12:141-1^3 (194&) (in Hebrew). ^Blau, Judaeo-Arablc. app. lii.
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186 6,
One pseudo-Classical element is the hyper
correction of the predicates of some nominal sentences —
iti
by analogy with khabar kana. Examples
fa-ana khadlman lak
On the other hand, khabar kana is usually written with out the allf of the tanwin as one would expect in texts reflecting a dialect where the case endings have been lost. 7.
Another very characteristic feature of these
texts is the use of abu and abl in all three cases, with abu being the predominant form.
The aoousative form aba
is almost never found with the exception of the letters from Majmun b. Ephraim (neither of which are included in Part II) where abl is used throughout.^2 Examples:
a)
mln Abu * 1 - K h a y r ^3
^ T h l s phenomenon is dealt with at length by Goitein in his grammatical introduction to Abraham Maimuni Responsa. ed. A. H. Frelmann, trans. S. D. Goitein (Jerusalem: Mekize Nirdamim, 1937)> PP» xxxf., para. 27• ^2TS Bo x 28, f. 250 (#38). ^ 0 n abu for abl, cf. Blau, Grammar, pp. l48f., para. 217 Aa.
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187 b) 8,
wa-carrafanl Abl Bakr**'**'
There are numerous Instances where the
definite article Is added to the mudSf of a construct which is contrary to the rules of Classical Arabic grammar.
In these instances the mudaf llayh is found
both with and without the article,^ Examples:
9«
a)
al-°ashra dananlr
b)
al-4 a°dal al-fulful
One last syntactical feature which occurs
so commonly as not to warrant its Inclusion in the notes to the texts is the use of aydan to introduce a clause.^ Example:
wa-aydan fa »ttafaq jarnl0 al-nas an , . ,
D.
The Hebrew Element The Hebrew element in these texts is entirely
minimal.
Withthe exception of
three or four words
scattered throughout the letters, most of the Hebrew is
^ O n abl for abu, cf. Blau, Grammar, p, 149, para, 21? Ab. This is not as rare as Indicated by Blau, ^Ibid., p. 167, para. 243 B and p. 157, para, 226 D-P. ^Ibld., p. 263, para. 418 B.
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188 found In the letters from the Berekhya brothers which deal primarily with Jetylsh communal affairs, and in these it is always— save one passage written in Hebrew for security reasons— in the form of biblical quotations. Quite a number of letters end with the Hebrew phrase we-ceqev shalom which may be translated figuratively: "may everything work out in the end for the best." Hebrew and Arabic names are found at times to be interchangeable, thus Abu Ya°aqov and Abu Yacqub for the same
Individual. Names like Ephraim b. IsmacIl and
Isaac b.Janun are common.
The name of the Hebrew month
usually appears at the beginning of each letter, as well as the occasional mention of a Jewish holiday.
These
elements, however, do not alter the basic structure of the texts.
The language of the texts is Middle Arabic—
Judaeo-Arabio only because it is written in Hebrew characters by Jews.
E.
Conclusion It should be borne in mind that all of the
linguistic features of these texts which have been mentioned ever so briefly in this chapter are merely tendencies of "drifts" of the language.
Perhaps the
single most consistent feature of the language of these documents is their inconsistency.
The same word may be
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189 spelled several different ways.
Indeed, in one letter
the word rubaclyya (quarter dinar) is spelled no less than six different
w
a
y
s
.
There is a frequent tendency
to alternate between the second and third persons which at times is particularly vexing.
I have, for this reason,
at times translated the third person into the second per son in order to avoid confusion— especially in the ac count statements where "I have transferred to be received by so-and-so from him" means "I have transferred payment of the debt to you to be received by so-and-so." Despite their lack of elegance and their in numerable difficulties (not least among these the often slovenly script), these letters have a certain spontaneity and vibrancy fresh from the market place which cannot be found in literary texts.
The uninitiated Western reader
might find the Oriental formality and piety a bit cumber some at first; but once immersed in the cultural context, he will find that they breathe with the immediacy of everyday life.
In these discarded scraps of paper and
parchment one hears not the elegant phrases of poets and litterateurs, the learned dissertations of scholars and philosophers, nor the momentous words of princes and generals, but rather the voices of the hitherto "silent
^?TS 13 J 29, f. 9 (#39)+ .
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190 majority" (to use the currently popular phrase), the common people of the medieval Islamic world.
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PART II
191
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INTRODUCTION The following section is divided into two parts. Part A comprises six letters, all of which are connected with Joseph b. cAwkal's role as intermediary between the Babylonian Academies and the Maghrebi Jewish communities. Each of the letters was sent from Qayrawan, and each was written by Joseph b. Berekhya, with the exception of TS 13 J 36, f. 1 (Three Letters A) which was written by the Nagid Ibrahim b. °Ata*•
These letters cover only a
relatively short span of time— approximately five to ten years. Part B contains sixteen items (two Gf these are on one piece of paper) all of which come from the business correspondence and records of the House of Ibn cAwkal.
These letters and accounts are by numerous
writers in widely separated places and cover a span of some fifty years.
192
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PART II A COMMUNAL CORRESPONDENCE
193
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COMMENT TS 13 J 36, f. 1 (Three Letter C) Bodl. MS Heb. d. 65, f. 9 (Assaf-Epstein A) The following two letters were written one after the other:
the first in either August or September
and the second in December of the year 1015*
Although
neither letter bears the year (the second does bear the month), there can be no doubt as to the dating.
The
victorious return of the Zirid sultan Badls from the Maghreb to Msila (al-Mutyammadiyya), mentioned in both letters, is reported by the historian al-Nuwayrl as occurring in Rablc I 406/August 1015*1 The two letters contain a great deal of valuable historical information.
The first letter notes
the arrival of a package of letters and treatises from the Babylonian Academies.
At this time only one letter had
been opened, copied, and read, namely, a letter from Dosa Gaon of the Sura Academy (1013-1017).
The reason for the
writer’s concern and prayers for the Gaon’s health (11 . 6, 14, 15) is that Dosa came to occupy the seat of his
^Clted by Idris, zlrldes, I, p. 112, n. 351* 194
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195 illustrious father Sacadya Gaon only at the advanced age of eighty-three, and at this time he was already eighty-five*
The writer, Joseph b. Berekhya, who was
the representative of the Babylonian Academies in the Maghreb, expresses deep concern also for the controversy which was smoldering in Iraq between Hay Gaon and Israel, the son of the late Gaon Samuel b. gofnl (Hay’s fatherin-law).
Hay had kept his brother-in-law from receiving
any of the funds sent to the academies (11. 10-12). Of very great importance is:the fact that Abu Ishaq Ibrahim b. cAta* had gone out with the sultan to •
•
the Maghreb.
Apparently Ibn °Ata* had served as per
sonal physician to the Zirld Badis, as well as to his son al-Mucizz, even though the Arab sources mention only his service to the latter.2
In the first letter Ibn cAta*
is referred to only as "the noble elder" (al-shaykh alJalll).
By the time the second letter was written the
epistles from the Academy had been read, and it was learned that Hay had bestowed upon Ibn cAta' the illustrious title of "Prince of the Diaspora. The two letters also document a progressive falling-out between Ibn cAwkal and the TahertI brothers
2Ibn al-Najl, Ma°alim al-Iman fl Ma°rlfat Ahl al-Qayrawan. Ill (Tunis: 1326), p. 201^. 3cf. above, Chap. Ill, B, pp. *K3f.
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196 Abu Ibrahim IsmacIl and Abu *1-Khayr Musa*
Their father,
Barhun, had written to Ibn cAwkal some years before con cerning funds collected for the academies (a fund drive in which Ibn °Ata* played a leading part).**
In the in
stance before us now the two brothers were dissatisfied with Ibn cAwkal*s handling of donations sent by the Qayrawan community.
Abu *1-Khayr took it upon himself to
withhold a sum of money which he was supposed to turn over to Ibn cAwkal.
Joseph b. Berekhya is quite dis
turbed and asks Ibn cAwkal to show patience, hoping for a reconciliation (since the Tahertis were Ben Berekhyit's brothers-in-law)->•
The situation had worsened by the
second letter despite Ben Berekhya*s good offices, and a letter from the Nagid had to be sent ordering Abu *1Khayr to turn the money over to Ibn cAwkal without further ado.
In addition to this a letter of authorization was
being sent reaffirming Ibn cAwkal*s "powers-of-attorney" in matters concerning the academies. Perhaps the Tahertis8 dissatisfaction was not entirely unjustified.
The first letter mentions the loss
of responsa sent to Tunisia via Almeria, Spain, of all places!
The writer goes on to say that other delayed
^ENA 2556 (Hay), ed. by Goitein, in Zion. 27:156-165. ^Cf. above, Chap. V, A, p. 8 2 .
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197 material which Ibn °Awkal had assured them that he had sent out had still not arrived (11. l?-2^). These two letters, like all the rest of the letters from the Ben Berekhyas, are signed by Joseph, the representative of the Babylonian Academies, as well as his younger brother, Nisslm.
The language of the
letters alternates between first person singular and first person plural.
The reason for this is that the
real writer of these letters is Joseph b. Berekhya.
It
was customary to include in the signature of a letter the name of a younger brother or son who was being initiated into the family*s business affairs or communal responsibilities.
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198 TS 13 J 36, f 1 (Three Letters C) May God lengthen your days, 0 our Elder, our great and exalted one, and may He preserve you and grant you lasting happiness.
(2 ) May He protect you in His
mercy from that which is feared.
May He ordain success
for you. We are writing at the time of the summer caravan and are in good health— God Almighty and Exalted (3) be thanked continually for the goodness of His protection and the blessing of His graciousness.
We have already
sent to my Master a letter (4 ) a month ago with Abu cImr5n b. al-Majjanl— may God preserve him— who is making the journey in a small company of
travellers.
I have
informed my Master in it— may GodJ give him (5 ) strength— of the arrival of the letters which were sent by our Masters, the Heads of the Academies— may God increase their strength.
Amongst them was a letter from our Master,
(6) Dosa— may God make his health increase.
I also in
formed our Master that we had read his friendly and esteemed letter, and we extend to him our abundant thanks — may we not be cut off from him.
(7 ) We explained to
him the unpleasant business which we encountered at their arrival.
The letters were held up for three days
(8) after their arrival and were copied, and thus were
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199 sent to us.
We regretted . . . .
to us and the loss of
men of faith, (9 ) as the ^Salnt] has saidj
"Help 0
Lord; for the pious have ceased to be; for the truthful have failed [from among the children of men.”
May God
Almighty and Exalted in His compajssion be favorably disposed toward us, and may He better (10) the condition of us all in His loving-kindness.
My Master has informed
me— may God strengthen him— -that he learned [from the letters of our MastJ er Hay— may the All-Merciful protect him— that he (Hay) continues to (11) withhold from Israel, the son of our Master Samuel— may he rest in peace— and that there is a fi[erce controversy} and dispute between them up till now.
(12) This affair grieves and pains me,
but there is nothing to be done except to resign oneself and to wait until [God] in His mercy ^ordains] good. How my Master has mentioned(13)-— may God bestow honor upon him— that the responsa to our questions were lost at the time when they were sent via Almeria, and that he would have other copies made and would hasten (14) to send them.
I do hope that with God's graciousness,
blessing, and providence, that it will be so. I was exceedingly glad to learn of our Master Dosa's good health and well-being— may the All-Merciful protect him— (15) and give him continued good health.
I
was indeed surprised at not having received any letter from my Master Isra[el— may the All-MerclfulJ protect him—
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200 for we have not seen any letter nor any Instructions from him.
(16) I sought some word about him in your exalted
letter, but you did not even mention him once, nor did you mention whether or not [you receivedany letter from him, nor what is the matter with him.
(17) You had
informed us, my Master, that you had forwarded to him our questions in Hebrew to his father— may his soul find rest— along with a letter and thereafter (18) a packet of questions in Hebrew script but in the Arabic language • • . (and the shipment was delayed) in being sent to him until after word reached us of his father’s death— may his soul find rest.
(1 9 ) And he . • . also . . . .
Then
your exalted letter arrived in which you assure us (2>) that you sent it all . . .
did not . . .
and we do not have
any news, neither from him nor from you.
If you could
see your way, (21) Master— may God cause you to see your expectations (fulfilled)— to clarify for us exactly what happened to all of them and whether they had a successful outeome, please do let me know.
(22) And if it were • •
• • or there were no answer to them . . . . . heart would be quieted.
then my
Likewise, all that which you
have been so kind as to send of the epistles of our Master (2 3 ) Hay— may the All-Merciful preserve him— and that which . . . . . . . o r
in the days . . . . . . .
My
heart has become heavy from the abundance of (2*f) reminders in this matter.
You know that "hope deferred maketh th^
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201 heart sick."
Therefore, I hope that, in God*s gracious
ness and in your own, this matter will be completed and will not be delayed any further. (25)
I had informed you, 0 my Master, in my
previous letter of our state of agitation and anxiety at the absence of (26) our Sultan— may God grant him victory and strength— and at his distance from us, as well as at the absence of the noble Elder, Abu Ishaq b. cAta*— may God shield him— who was with him.
We felt (27) utterly
abandoned and were filled with anxiety until God graciously granted the Sultan victory over his enemy, and he has returned victorious (2 8 ) from Tahert to Msila, where he is now, while the enemy is routed and beleagured.
He is
now close to us once again, and letters from him (29) arrive every day bearing good tidings.
Also the letters
of the Elder Abu Ishaq— may God strengthen him— reached us telling of the rise in his position with our Sultan several times that (30) which it was.
I have sent to him the
bundles (of letters) which (31) you had sent— may God shield you— from our Masters, the Heads of the Academies with Abu cImran b. al-Majjanl.
He gave them to the Elder,
his father, and the latter passed them on to me, and I received them.
(32) This is because he (Ibn cAt§*)
ordered at the time of his departure that any letters which should come for him from any place should be passed on to me and that (33) I should send whatever I deemed
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202 important, and that I should leave aside whatever I deemed best left aside.
Thus when the bundle (of let
ters) [arrived} I sent it to him as he had ordered.
I
asked him for (3*0 his answers and exhorted him not to delay issuing his orders in the matter so that he might quickly instruct me (35) as to what I should do for him. I expect that his answer will arrive quickly— God willing— with his instructions.
I shall then write to you
about lt--God willing. (3 6 )
Likewise, Master, I urged him with regard
to your affair and its execution.
By the Rabbis!
I have
not been negligent, nor have I ceased urging him (37) in every letter concerning . . . .
and concerning the
matter of the debt which the al-Mahdiyyans still owe you. His letter is coming in which there is assurance that nothing will be lost from it, and t h a t ............... (3 8 ) .......... God willing— Regarding whatever addi tional answers of his there will be after he receives these last letters, I shall hasten (39) to inform you of their contents.............. I informed you in my pre vious letter of my chagrin at what you mentioned (^0 ) to me about the estrangement and change (of relations) with our brother Abu *1-Khayr— may God protect him— after knowing of his strong affeotlon (for you) and of his former (**1) friendship . . .
with you.
I shall write him
about it, and I shall put the matter aright.
I am anxious
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203 to learn of a reconciliation in this affair (**2) because I know your noble disposition and your patience with your brethren.
A sincere friend is rare indeed, Master#
A man such as yourself is
patient and graciously disposed.
(margin) May God Almighty and Exalted cause us to hear good news (2) and that the situation has improved so that my heart may be stilled— if God wills.
(3 ) I have re
quested of you that if there is anything . . .
(4 ) arrives
for me from anywhere • . • (5) that it be sent (6) via [Abu clmran b.^(7 ) ai-MajJanl . . .
(8) I have received
from him (9-12)............ . (13) acted in a way which (14) I cannot even describe . . . . • • • • (17)
(15) By God . . .
(16)
concerning its execution. And by God . •
• . (Id) X ask that . . . .
(verso) You already know, Master letter.
.......... your
If any additional nows occurs, please do not
keep me uninformed.
( 2 ) ............... the explanation
I have requested from you clarifying all the aspects of the situation (3 ) involving my Master Israel— may God restore him— and the reason for the delay of his letters, and whether or not the queries I sent him arrived . . . .
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204 (4 ) .......... Please accept my very best greetings.
Your friend Abu »1-Faraj, (5 ) my cousin • .
..........
in the best of health and sends his greet
ings to you and your sons— may God grant them long life and (6) preserve them.
And to all who are under your
protection, our very best greetings.
(address) [To our great and chosen Elder, Abu '1-Faraj]— may God shield and preserve hirn— [Yosef b. Yacaqov b. cAwkal (may his soul find rest)] May God be his Protector and Shepherd From Joseph and Nissim the sons of Berekhya (may his soul find rest) [Destined for Fustat— God willing]
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205 Notes TS 13 J 36, f. 1 (Three Letters
C)
1.
(2)
"at the time of the
summer caravan"— fl
2.
(4 )
"a small company of travellers"— rifga: Cf. Goitein, Med... Soc.. I, p. 277*
3.
(5 )
"our Masters, the Heads of the Academies"~ sadatlna al-matha»lb:
Literally "our Mas
ters, the Academies."
The word for the in
stitution also indicated the head, as e.g., with bSt din which was used for the court and the chief Judge.
Matha*lb is the Arabic
broken plural for the Aramaic word methlva or methlvta.
Cf. above, Chap. Ill, n. 5 *
4.
(9 )
"the saint"— al-wally. i.e., David.
5.
(9 )
Ps. 12:2 .
6.
(9f)
[allah °azz wa-jall bl-rahjnatlhl .jya°tlf °alayn5 wa-yusllh hal Jaml°lna:
Cf. above,
VII, C, 4 . 7.
(11)
al-lrs5 1:
Vocalized with a Hebrew hlrlq.
Cf. above, VII, A, 2 .
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206 8
.
(13)
fl hin lrsalih instead of irsaliha:
A slip
of the pen. 9.
(15) wa-lam nar5 lahu kitab:
In this context
lahu means "from his hand," "from his office," or "emanating from him."
On nara for naras
Cf. above, VII, B, 3*
.
(1?) bism abuh:
11
.
(1 8 )
12
.
(2 4) Prov. 13:12.
10
13.
(2 6 )
Cf. above, VII, C, 7.
wafat abuh: Cf. preceding note.
ghaybat al-shaykh al-jaltl Abu Ishaq:
Cf.
n. 10 above.
.
14
(2 7 )
hatta. with allf mamduda for allf maqsura: Cf. above, VII, A, 1* Table 14.
15. 16
.
(2 7) al-sultan: (30)
Cf. above, VII, A, 6.
al-dlbara . . .
alladhl:
Cf. above, VII,
B, 5 . 17. 18
.
(31) »ft°a AbQ °Imrin:
Cf. n. 10 above.
(37) tabqa, with alif mamduda for alif maqsura: Cf. n. 14 above.
19.
(39)
m° cala qalbl:
A slip of the pen.
Read:
ma.
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20?
20.
(^0 )
akhlna Abu 'l-Khayr:
Cf. n. 10 above.
behaves much like ab, except that akhl predominates.
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Akh
208 Heb. d. 65, f. 9 (Assaf-Epstein A) May God give you a long life of strength and prosperity, 0 our great and noble Elder, and days filled with happiness and contentment.
May He not (2) deprive
you of success, and may He be with youin this world
and
in the world to come. I am writing on the 25th of Kislev, the day of the departure of the caravan— may God protect it.
I have
sent to you in it (3)— may God be your support— an expla natory letter aside from this one. I gave
it to our
brother, Abu cImran b. al-MajJanl— may God protect him— and he put it in his bundle of papers.
With him also is
a letter for (4) our brother, Abu Ibrahim b. al-Sahl. Please see to it that it gets to him.I have previously described to you the tranquillity here which followed the terrible anxiety (5) and our confidence which fol lowed our dread.
Indeed this is due to God Almighty and
Exalted, namely the return of the Sultan from the Maghreb safe and victorious, and the return of the Elder, my Mas ter Abu Ishaq, the Nagld, (6) along with him.
At the time
of their return from the Maghreb a caravan had £come from . . . . 3 carrying a sealed bundle containing packets of letters from (7) our Masters, the Heads of the Academies. We read the letters of our M a s t e r . ......... the Academies,
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209 and they comprised the latter half of a treatise of which it was (8 ) said that its first part had been sent previous ly.
My heart was sorely grieved because of this.
.........
I hope
. • I am anxious about its arrival or for some
news of it from you.
(9) I am, likewise, anxious about
the matter of the 10 dinars from Al-Tbala.
(10) It was
with the ten of the Ashirians, and they remained together I hope that you have (11) You,
found out where lies
the cause
of this mishap.
0 my Master, will
take care
of this faithfully .............. I have apprised you in detail of the contents
of our Master Hay's letters to the congregation and to us (12) dignifying the Elder, Abu Ishaq— may God strengthen him— with the title "Negid ha-Gola."
And he (the Nagid)
summoned the people before his blessed seat and presented himself before them. gave.
And he collected, and the people
(13) This took place during this same month.
have not been able to collect (all the money). it is being collected.
We
However,
We shall write to our Masters, the
Heads of the Academies, and send the letters along with money (1*0 to you in the last caravan (i.e. of the season) — God willing. I have informed you . . . .
my brother • • • •
explained what happened with the Prince of the Diaspora— may God strengthen him— (15) and Isma°Il b. BarhHn with regard to the previous money which he gave two years ago,
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210 that It should be his responsibility and that he should send it to his brother, Abu *1-Khayr (16) in Fustat that he might pass it on to you, and that you— may God be your support— would take care of i t .............. ^The money remained]) with him until the departure of the Nagid (17) for the Maghreb,
The Nagid ordered him to write to his
brother to pass it on to you so that you could forward it £to the Heads of the Academies,
And whenj the Nagid went
we asked for a letter from him (i.e. IsmacIl) but he re fused (18) feeling that the Nagid would be a long time in the Maghreb.
However, he was gone only two months and
returned safe and victorious.
And now again we have asked
him to write (19) to his brother so that the money would be passed on to you, and he swore that he had written. But then, he said, "I have sworn never to send any thing via Abu *1-Faraj b. cAwkal— may God protect him,
(20)
However, I shall write to my brother that this money be longs to the Elder, Abu Ishaq, the Prince of the Diaspora. Do as he instructed you (21) in his letter, and we shall be free of it!"
So we said to him, "Write it then."
And
there were several pledges that he payed him in gold and silver coin totaling (22) 200 gold dinars, of which 10 (?) dinars are for the Palestinians and the remainder for the Iraqis.
Our letter with the relevant information will
reach you with the (23) next caravan. up all that is being collected now.
We want to gather It shall reach youe
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211 We shall ascertain the total amount and shall write to you with regard to each individual and what he should receive. (24)
I have already informed you in my detailed
letter which was sent prior to this one in the smallcompany-of-travellers that the letters of the Nagid will reach Abu ‘1-Khayr instructing him that the money be passed on (25) to you.
In the letters is an authorization by him
(i.e. the Nagid) validated in court, saying that he should forward nothing except through you.
The Nagid has just
nowhastened and written a letter in his own hand to our brother, Abu ‘1-Khayr— may God shield him—
(26) inform
ing him of what had previously been sent to him via his brother quite a while ago, specifying what was sent in gold and what in silver.
He further informed him of the
rate of exchange (27) and ordered him to convert every thing into gold and to hand it over to you so that it should be in your possession until you receive the money which was collected this year.
He also instructed him
how (28) it should be divided, and how much should be allotted to each one of our Masters, the Heads of the Academies. alone.
He admonished him to pass the money on to you
And he (Abu ‘1-Khayr)— God willing— is (29) one
who would not disobey.
For I know his dedication to you.
His mind is not like his brother’s, but rather, he exceeds him greatly.
I have already sent you (30) the letter in
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212 his handwriting . . . . « • • •
so that you will receive
what is indicated in it, for he would not— God willingrefuse,
After this, sometime during the next month, (31)
he will send you the rest of t h e .................. We shall send the letters with your authorization consolida ting the authority in your hand, so that it will not pass to anyone other than (32) his brother beoause • • • • • • . . • • We shall write to our Masters with regard to this and shall send the letters (33) to you— God ^willing—
• •
] You know, my brother, that between us and be tween these people there are ties of marriage and friend ship.
And this ( 3 * 0 .................. Our brother-in-
law, their brother, Abu *1-Fadl, has arrived from Spain (35) [bringing with him . . . . . . ..................
.for the Jeru^salemites
and the thirty for the Iraqis.
We
shall write to you with regard to its division with (36) ..............
because he dealt with it for the sake of
doing a good deed, and he devoted himself entirely to it until it arrived.
May God reward him.
(margin) With regard t[o • • • • .......... ] Abu Zikri, I was informed that he is in al-Mahdiyya suffering from an illness— may God relieve him— and that . . • • • • • • •
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213
(2) the siim of close to 200 dinars. sent it to you.
He said that he had
Now he states that he had • . ........
(3) ..................Would that we were able with him t o .................. his soul to save from punishment, and he is sending . . . . ( 4 ) . . . . . . . . Please receive our best regajrdsj • • • • • May the end be good. (5)
Our brother, Abu Ya qub Nahshon (?) has sent
10 dinars to our Master Hay and wrote him a letter with it.
We sent • • • • • •
in, already £......... with]
Abu °Imran— may J^God^ protect him.
(address) To our great and chosen Elder, Abu 'l-Faraj — may God shield and preserve him— Yosef b. Yacaqov b. cAwkal (may his soul find rest) May God be his Protector and Shepherd From Joseph and Nisslm the sons of Berekhya (may his soul find rest) Destined for Fustat— God willing (address in Arabic script) To be delivered to Fustat to the Elder Abu *l-Faraj Yusuf b. Ya°qub Ibn cAwkal— God shield and protect him
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21k
Notes Heb. d. 6$, f. 9 (Assaf-Epstein A) 1
.
(2)
11-8 baqln mln klslev:
k.
VII, A, 2
.
(2)
On a > a , cf. above,
"the caravan"— al-mawslm:
The word mawslm
literally means '•season" or "fixed time" and by extension "seasonal fair."
In the Geniza
it is the common word for the regular seasonal caravans.
Cf. Goitein, fried. Soc.,
I, P. 277. 3.
(3)
11-akhlna Abu °Imran:
k.
(k)
akhlna Abu Ibrahim:
5.
(4 )
al-*ttr*b for al-ldtlrSb: 0 0
'
'
■■ ■ »
»
■
■
Grammar, p.
■■ ii
3k,
Cf. above, VII, C, 7*
Cf. preceding note.
■ p ■ ■
dt>tt: •
•
•
•
Blau,
para. 12 A cites only dt!>tt,
but the phenomena are identical. 6
.
(5)
wa-ruju° al-shaykh sayyldi Abu Ishaq;
Cf.
n. 3 above. 7.
(7)
"our Masters, the Heads of the Academies"— sadatlna al-matha'lb:
Cf. n.
k
to the pre
vious letter.
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215 8.
(7)
"the Academies":
Here the Hebrew yeshlvot
Is used. 9.
(9)
al-°ashara dananlr alladhl: C, 8, and B, 5*
Cf. above, VII
For facal?l> facalll, cf.
Blau, Grammar, p. 107, para. 129. 10
.
(10)
”togethe r”--yadahu:
Cf. Dozy, Supplement,
II, p. 849a, where yadan Is given as "ensemble." 11
.
(11)
mwtfrrj:
12
.
(12)
ljlal al-shaykh Abu Ishaq:
13
(13)
(wa-nak)tubu xutub . . . wa-nunfldhuh (!)»
14.
(15)
fl aharayutlh— "his responsibility," a
Cf. above, VII, A, 3* Cf. n. 3 above.
Hebrew word with Arabic pronominal suffix. The word may have been a common legal term as it is found in another letter from a Tunisian to Ibn cAwkal (DK 13* 1. 3&)t
For
the Integration of Hebrew elements in JudaeoArabic:
Cf. Blau, Judaeo-Arabic, app. li,
and above, VII, D. 15.
(15)
11a akhlhl Abu *1-Khayr:
.
(16)
hatta, with alif mamduda for allf maqsura:
16
•1
Cf. n. 3 above.
1"■
Cf. above, VII, A, 1, Table 14
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1
216 17.
(18)
fa-lam yuqlm:
Cf. above, VII, B, 3*
18
(18)
"And now again we have asked1'— fa-lamma kan al-an talabna.
■Mi . i i i p. n i i— ■
19.
(18)
—
— pp
°ala yadayn Abu »1-Fara.1t
For the retention
of the nun of the dual in the mudgf, cf. Blau, Grammar, pp. 104f.t para. 126.
Cf. also n.
3 above. 20
.
(20)
111-shaykh Abu Ishaq:
21
.
(21)
safaqat:
22
.
(21)
"in gold and silver"— °ayn wa-waraq.
23.
(22)
lll-shamln:
24.
(22)
lll-clraql for lll-clraqlyyin:
Cf. n. 3 above.
On §>s, cf. above, VII, A, 6.
Cf. above, VII, B, 7* Apparently
a slip of the pen since the word is found in the plural on 1. 35 (although with the nisba ending as in the previous note). 25.
(22)
wa-sa yasil:
.
(24)
"the small company of travellers"— al-rlfqa:
26
For wa-sayas11.
Cf. Goitein, MedL^i^Soc^, I, p. 277* 27.
(24)
11a Abu 11-Khayr:
.
(25)
11-akhlna Abu »1-Khayr:
28
Cf. n. 3 above. Cf. n. 3 above.
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217 29 .
(26 )
mtqddmh:
30 .
(28 )
ywdf0:
31.
(28)
an la yatacaddl. with alif mamdOda for alif maqsuras
For mutaqaddlman.
Cf. n. 11 above.
Cf. n. 16 above ••
(margin) 32.
(3)
"from punishment"— min al-conesh (Heb.): Cf. n. 1^ above.
33.
(*0
we- eqev shaloms
Cf. above, VII, D.
3^.
(5)
• — — c -» wa-qad anfadha akhlna Abu Ya aqov:
The word
akh behaves much like ab, except that akhi tends to predominate.
Cf. above, VII, C,
7.
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COMMENT TS 10 J 9, f* 26 (Three Letters A) The writer of this letter is none other than the Nagid Ibrahim b. °Ata'. is very apparent*
The breeding of a courtier
The style is much more classical than
most of the other letters from the Ibn cAwkal archives* From the Nagid's signature it is clear that his father, too, had been a personage of great importance in the Jewish community since he bore the title rosh ha-qehlllot (Head of the Congregation).
The Nagid*s grandfather had only recently died, and Ibn cAta' expresses his deep gratitude to Ibn cAwkal for attending to matters concerned with transferring the old man's remains to the Holy Land for burial (11. lO-l^). The Nagid is distressed, however, that Abu Ibrahim Ishaq b. Sahl, who had layed out the money for the burial ex penses, had incurred financial and physical harm because of it.
Efforts were, therefore, underway to compensate
him for the loss (11. 15-25)* What were the circumstances that occupied the Nagid's thoughts and might entail "dire consequences?" 218
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219 This may be a reference to the outbreak of fanaticism among the MSlikite masses which came shortly after the accession of the boy sultan al-Mucizz to the throne.1 This fanaticism came to a climax in June of 1016, when a great number of the Shi ites of Qayrawan, men, women, and children, were slaughtered.
Although this letter
was written five days before the Jewish New Year (which fell that year on September 6), and the height of the popular frenzy was in June, passions were probably still smoldering, and no minority felt safe.
Furthermore, Ibn
al-NajI relates an anecdote telling how the faqlh Abu cImran al-FasI abused the sultan's Jewish physician— and with the ruler's consent.3
^•Idris, ZTrTdes, I, pp. 127f. 2Ibld., pp. 143-153. 3cf. above, p. 195* n* 2.
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220 TS 10 J 9, f. 26 (Three Letters A) May God lengthen your days, my brother and Master.
May He grant you lasting protection, happiness,
preservation, and sufficiency. Guardian in all things.
May He be unto you (2) a
I am writing to you five days
prior to the New Year— may God ordain for you, (3) for us, and for all His people the most prosperous of years and the most Joyful of times, and may He permit you to achieve more like it in happiness and honor. (4)
Your precious, choice, and illustrious
letters arrived with the winter boats, while your more recent letters arrived by land.
(5) With them were all
the letters and fascicules which you had sent.
I have
read them all and have given careful attention to all the
(6) conditions which you discussed that are in
cluded in the most brilliant of scrolls and those dis tressing matters.
(7) We are under circumstances which
occupy our thoughts and may bring dire consequences, so that we have no peace (8) because of them to read the letters and to give them serious attention, let alone to take action on the matters contained therein.
Neither
is this the time for me to reply to (9) their contents. I shall write to you, Master, as to the results of my dealing with this matter when the overland caravan departs
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221 — (10) God willing. You described the extent of your activity, your great preoccupation, and all that you have undertaken from beginning to end in (11) the affair of my Master the Elder— may God be merciful unto him.
You also men
tioned how you had burdened your gracious self with con cern for him until he came (12) to his sacred abode and pure resting place.
May I never be deprived of you, and
may I never lack your support and the aid (13) of a gentleman like yourself who attains merit with such worthy deeds as this.
May you not cease, my brother, to
be one worthy of thanks who performs pious deeds.
(1*0
May God Almighty and Exalted aid me to reward you, and may He be generous in requiting your good deed. My joy over this (15) matter was clouded by distress and anxiety at what happened to our brother Abu Ibrahim Ishaq b. al-Sahl— (16) God preserve him.
I re
ceived a distressing letter from him about his misfortune and the exhaustion which has overtaken him (17) as a result of his concern for my Master the Elder. received bodily and financial injury.
He has
May God Almighty
and Exalted compensate him quickly, (18) and may He reward him in my stead with the very best of circumstances. The wrapping hides (19) that still remained with al-Andalusl were delayed.
I spoke to our brother Abu
f j
cImran Musa— may God preserve him— b. al-Maj jani— may God
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222 shield him.
He promised to remedy (20) this situation
and to entrust the matter to Abu SacId Maymttn b. Ephraim so that he would get it either out of the possession of al-Andalusi»s heirs, (21) or if not, then to pay him for them out of his own money. ten dinars. sent to you.
They are worth approximately
I asked him (b. al-Majjanl) that they be So, please, remind him about it.
And he
(b. al-Majjanl) sent him (i.e. Abu SacId) and urged him (22) to see to the matter until the money gets to you. After
that you will send it to our brother, Abu Ibrahim
b. al-Sahl, so that he will be able to use it to make up for (23) what he laid out in advance for the burial costs of my Master the Elder.
I would like you to
persevere in this without delay or neglect, for it is (24) the greatest good deed that you could perform with me— God strenthen and preserve you.
Please do not
deprive me of your choice letters, for I rejoice (25) in them. Please accept the most noble and lofty greet ings of one who loves you, and to your dear sons my best and most radiant greetings.
(address) To Abu *1-Paraj, my brother and Master— God preserve and shield him
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223 Yosef b. Yacaqov (may his soul find rest) b. cAwkal# God is his Protector Prom Negid ha-Gola, Ibrahim b. Nathar., Rosh ha-Qehillot
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224 Notes TS 10 J 9j *“• 26 (Three Letters A) 1.
(1)
"preservation"— reading kila*as
Goitein,
Three letters, p. 6 , n. 13, read kaia*« but corrected the reading in Tarbiz, 37*160 (October, 1967).
For a similar usage, cf.
the opening benediction of Ibn Qutayba's Mukhtallf al-Hadlth (Cairo: 2.
(4)
1966), p 4 3.
al-lwah al-mashtiyya instead of al-alwah: The plural pattern af°al is often reduced to f°al in Maghrebi dialects. Moroccan Arabic, p. 118.
Cf. Harrell, According to
Goitein, Three letters, p. 6, n. 15» alwah in the meaning of boats is an Arabicized version of the poetic Hebrew luhot. However, the word was in use at this time also by Muslims in the Maghreb, as is seen from a fatwa of al-Qabisi (d. 1012) cited in Idris, Zirfdes, II, 3.
(5)
p. 664, n. 403.
al-kararis (sing, kurrasa)t
Indicates a
specific quantity of paper, as e.g., a quire or a ream, and also a booklet or treatise. I have thus chosen to translate it with the
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225 more neutral term "fascicule," 4.
(8)
waqt an ujawlbt
Cf. above, VII, C, 5*
5*
(9)
"the overland caravan"— mawslm al-barr: Cf. above, p. 214, n. 2.
6.
(10)
lhmamlka instead of lhtlmamlkat
Either a
slip of the pen, or else the writer has employed the non-existant masdar of form IV. 7.
(13)
yakhl:
Cf. above, VII, A, 9*
8.
(15)
akhlnna for akhlna:
A slip of the pen.
The
soribe has a small dot over the second nun to indicate its deletion. 9»
(20)
wa-kallaf Abu amrs
10.
(20)
Cf. above, VII, C, 7.
an aw yakun lstlkhrajuhu mln waratha alAndalusl:
11.
(21)
Sacid Maymun b. Ephraim bll-
dananlr:
The syntax is a bit difficult. On fa°al!tl
fa°alll, cf. Blau,
Grammar, p. 107, para. 129; cf. also, p. 19, para. 6 B and p. 24, para. 9 B. 12.
(24)
wallah yushldduka wa-yasunuka;
Cf. above,
VII, C, 4.
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COMMENT TS 16.64 (#37) This Is another letter from Joseph b. Berekhya, and like the others also bears the name of his younger brother Nisslm.
Through internal evidence the precise
date of the writing of this letter can be established as December 13» 1016 (i.e. between the appointment of Ibrahim b. cAta» as Nagid in the Pall of 1015 and the accession of Israel ha-Kohen b. Samuel b. Hofni to the Gaonate of Sura in 1017).
Although this letter is rather badly
damaged with much of the left side torn away, it still gives much valuable information. The tone of the whole letter is doleful.
The
controversies and jockeying for position at the great Babylonian Academies had a demoralizing effect on the world-wide Jewish community (11. 5“H)«
Hay Gaon was
still keeping Israel, the son of the late Samuel b. Hofni, from receiving any stipend from communal donations, and Israel had written to the North African community "complaining and crying" (shakl'an bSkl*an)• Ben Berekhya paints an even bleaker picture re garding the contemporary state of affairs in North Africa 226
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227 (11. 12-14).
Chaos, rebellion, devastation, and op
pression were all rampant. states:
The writer specifically
'‘In particular, despicable conditions have again
descended upon our city, Qayrawan."
This is obviously a
reference to a continuation of the internecine strife that attended the accession of the young al-Mucizz b. Badis.*
It would seem that one of the Tahertis was
mortally Injured when he went to collect the land tithes (°ushr) in the town of Qaytun Zanata in South-Central Tunisia2 (11. 17-19)*
Like the flare-up In June of that
year, this latest outbreak of trouble apparently had strong religious overtones.
Ben Berekhya says that "the
cUlama* (the Muslim religious authorities) are Issuing opinions • . • • "
Unfortunately, the text breaks off
here and leaves us in the dark as to the particulars. The rest of the letter returns to matters con cerning the academies.
The situation in the Palestinian
Academy was no better than that in Iraq.
Furthermore,
Ibn cAwkal's friend, Musa b. al-Majjanl and the Fustat banker, Shayca had been relieved of their responsibility for transferring North African donations to the Jerusalem
*Cf. the comment to TS 10 J 9, Letters A) above, pp. 2l8f.
26 (Three
2According to Yaqut, Mu°iam Buldan, IV, p. 216, the town is three days* journey from Gafsa.
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228 Academy.
Apparently there had been some interference in
this matter by a certain Ben Daniel (1. 26).
Now the
Nagid, the Head of the Jewish Court (Av Bet Din) and the Elders of the Qayrawanese congregation were trying to right the situation. Again there are complaints of delayed corre spondence with Iraq (cf. the comments to the preceding letters from the Ben Berekhyas).
In the case of some
queries several years had already gone by so that they had forgotten them (11. 38f.).
However, these had been
the years when al-Hakim*s persecutions of the dhimmls in Egypt had been at Its worst,3 ana perhaps Joseph b. cAwkal was not entirely to blame.
Indeed, Joseph b.
Berekhya asks after the welfare of the Ibn cAwkal*s sons and of the jama°a, the Jewish community at the very begin ning of the letter (1. 6) which is most unusual.
This
might Indicate that the situation had eased, or quite to the contrary, that it had worsened. The letter concludes with a request for Ibn cAwkal to help In the performance of a good deed by writing Iraq for information and instructions concerning a Baghdadi Jew who had died in Sljilmasa leaving an estate there and money in Qayrawan.
3 c f . above, Chap. I, A, pp. 3-^ and Chap. IV, B, p. 67.
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229 TS 16.64 (# 37) May God lengthen your days, 0 our brother, and venerable superior, and make your happiness eternal.
(2)
We are writing on the tenth of Tevet . . . (3) My other letters have already gone out with the last caravan........... (4) news of you. we received your letters which came by sea. ..........
Then
0 Master. .
(5) which arrived from our Masters the Heads
of the Academies, then your letter which came with the courier.
I read i t . . . ..........(6) and the well
being of your sons— God shield them— and of the congre gation— May God protect i t
(7) what you men
tioned about our Master Hay— may the All-Merciful pre serve him— in regard to the complicated situation • • • • your explanation to me of that (8) which was brief. However, I have read the letter addressed to my cousin Nisslm which you had sent, and thus I learned one details of this matter which has grieved (9) and troubled me.
I
ask God that He make matters turn for the better . . . . • • . results.
I also saw a letter from the son of Rabbi
(10) Samuel (may his soul find rest) complaining and crying.
I think . . . . • • • •
with the difficult (11)
state of all the people because of all this ca[used by the controvelrsy between our Masters the Heads of the
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230 Academies . . . . .
(12) . • » • • our dire state . . .
• • • • • (13) here and in all the rest of the Maghreb there is desolation and ruin, continual . . . .
(14)
the roads have become unsafe, there is a change of rulers, a breakdown of order ........
(15) In particular,
despicable conditions have again descended upon our city, Qayrawan
(16) livelihood.
"And he that
earneth wages earneth wages for a bag with holes!"
The
oppression of the peasants has increased • . • • (17) "For I set all men every one against hisneighbor." among the crimes which have occurred • • • • • • • •
And
............(18)
Barhun TahertI(may his soul
find rest)
when he came to Qaytun Zanata to collect the tithe from . . . . ( 1 9 ) . ........... the gate with regard to that here.
The cUlama* are issuing opinions, and they are
divided as t o .................... (20)1 ask God*s protection from it.
All the travellers are frightened
of t h e ........... (21) from his uncle.
The Maghreb,
Master, both near and far, is in r u i n ........ .(22) for our many sins and transgressions,
our eyes have been
looking up t o . . . ......... ( 2 3 )
It is
none other than the will of our Lord that there is this difficult qu[arrel3..........(24) a sign of relief in His mercy. I received, Master, a letter from my Master, the Head of the Palestinian Academy, sent) via (25) Abu
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231 Ibrahim b. al-Sahi— -may God preserve him— also mentioning the perverse state of affairs and unpleasant happenings which led to the removal of (26) Abu cImran b. al-Majjanl, our in-law and friend— may God preserve him— from trans ferring m o n i e s ........... (27) without any right.
b. Daniel
And that which Shacya owed to the
Palestin £ianj Academy............... (28) without order ............
The Nagid has written again . . . . .
(29)
and a letter with the testimony of the Head of the Court and of the Elders explaining the matter (30) along with this letter of mine,
£l hope you will hasten to dis
patch itj to them in Palestlme............... (lines 31-36 are very badly preserved) (37) ........... the excellence and ascendent position of our most venerable Master, Hay Gaon— may the All-Merciful watch over him •Bd
. . . . . .
(38) that is in your hands and under
your good fortune. Now with regard to our questions which are in his possession— may God strengthen him— several years have already passed (39) so that we have forgotten them.
He
still has not carried out your request with regard to them— may God strengthen you.
And if we cannot ask your
help, from whom then could we seek it? . . . . from whom we seek aid. urging, Master.
(^0) God
So do not forsake me and keep
Perhaps God will make the matter easy.
I ask that (41) you write to my Master Abu *1-Acla
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232 Samuel— may the All-Merciful protect him— and urge him to finish as I had asked the Book of Precepts, (42) the Book of Introduction w h i c h of Legacies.
and the Book
I have lost the strength to enquire about
it any further.
(43) He has not answered.
Likewise, the
Nagid— may God strengthen him— had asked him to finish copying (Sacadya*s translation of) Deuteronomy and the rest of the Book of Guidance.
(44) He thinks— God strength
en him— that we are not mindful o f . However, Master . . . .
. . . . . . . . .
(45) accomplished in this . . .
. . . or his disagreement.
However, we pray ..........
• (46) to God that all will be we^LlJ............... some thing that will guide our souls.
I hope (47) a letter from
you will reach us soon a s .............. f r o m ........... I close my letter, Master ............
• (three
more fragmentary lines)
(margin) There is also, Master, the matter of . . .
. the Baghdadi
who died in the city of Sijilmasa, leaving behind an estate. to that.
A letter came from the Sijilmas [iansj with regard He also left money here in Qayrawan deposited
with some people. . ...
Therefore, inquire about him . . . .
so that they may appoint an executor to take his
things or write to the Nagid, the Head of the Court, and
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233 the Elders as to who is entitled to it so that it may be sent to them.
We shall exert ourselves to the full
measure of our ability as it is a meritorious deed— if God wills it.
One like yourself does not need to be
admonished in such a thing, for you know its importance. Please hurry, Master, and send these letters (i.e. those attached) to Palestine.
(address) [AbuJ •1-Paraj— may God protect and shield him God is his Protector and Shepherd From Joseph and Nissim the sons of Berekhya (may his soul find rest) Deliver this and be rewarded Destined for Fustat— God willing Abundant Peace
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23^ Notes TS l6.6*f- (# 37) 1.
(5)
kltabuka ♦llatl:
2.
(7)
£h:
Read;
Cf. above, VII, B. 5*
mi.
3*
(7)
h*y:
Read;
h»yy (variant spelling of Hay).
4.
(7)
zlk;
Read:
dhlk.
5.
(9)
asal:
6.
(11)
Cf. above, VII, A, 5»
for bi[______ lkhtll^Sf;
Read;
bljjsabab
A typical
Maghrebi
lkhtlljaf. 7.
(13)
w-hlf:
Read:
wa-talaf.
8.
(13)
tawalat for tawalat;
feature is the use of the termination -at as a morpheme to Indicate the third person fern. sing, of finally weak verbs.
Cf. e.g.,
Harrell, Moroccan Arabic, p. **5» sec. II (d).
Cf. also, Blau, Grammar, p. 91»
para. 110. 9*
(1*0
wa ^tlfa0 for wa »rtlfa°:
Cf. Blau, p.
23, para. 9 A. 10.
(15)
al-qayrawan fa-qad:
Cf. n. 2 above.
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Read:
235 al-qayrawan khass fa-qad. 11.
(16)
Haggai 1:6.
12.
(16)
"peasants'’— al-badw:
In North African
usage, badw does not Indicate desert nomads but non-city dwellers.
The word is used in
this way by Ibn Khaldun in the Muqaddlma. Chapter II (Bulaq:
127*0.
The translation
"Bedouins" in P. Rosenthal, The Muqaddlmah, I (New York:
Pantheon Books, 1958) is a
bit misleading. 13*
(17)
Zacharlah 8:10.
1*1.
(24)
l’m h :
15.
(24)
II:
16.
(25)
*l-shl:
Read: Read:
cl*mh. 11a.
Read:
«shl (for al-Sahl).
Cf.
above, VII, A, 7. 17*
(41)
mukatabat sayyldl Abu *1-Acla:
Cf. above,
VII, C, 7. 18.
(4l)
The Book of Precepts— K1tab al-Shara*l°: This is either the book of Sacadya Gaon or Hefes . . b. Yasllah. • *
Cf. the introduction
to $efe§ b. Yagliafc, The Book of Precepts.
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236 ed. and trans. by B. Halper (published Ph.D. dissertation, Philadelphia:
Dropsie
College, 1915)* PP» 1-120. 19.
(42)
The Book of Introduction— Kltab al-Madkhal: This is certainly Samuel b. gofnl's alMadkhal 11a °Ilm al-Mlshna wa "l-TalmBd. Cf. S. Abramson, R. Samuel b. Hofni's Introduction, Tarbiz, 26:421ff. (July, 1957); idem., Ba-Merkazlm uva-Tefusot bltkufat ha-Ge^nlm (Jerusalems
Kosad
ha-Rav Kuk, 1965)» P» 74, n. 3. 20.
(42)
The Book of Legacies— Kltab al-Mawarlths A work of Sacadya Gaon.
Cf. Steinschneider,
Die arablsohe Llteratur der Juden (Frankurt a. M.s 21.
(43)
J. Kauffmann, 1902), p. 48.
The Book of Guidance— Kltab al-Hldaya:
The
only book known to Steinschneider by this title is that of Abu Yacqub Joseph b. Abraham ha-Kohen al-Basir, ibid., p. 90. It would be highly unlikely that the Nagid would have ordered this book from the Babylon ian Aoademles since according to Stein schneider the writer was a Karaite. 22.
(44)
yasayyldl:
Cf. above, VII, A, 9«
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237 (margin) 23.
There is a space for several obliterated words in the manuscript before li-yakunu yuwakkilu man which is not indicated in the printed text.
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COMMENT Antonin 904- (Assaf-Epsteln B) This mournful letter from Joseph b. Berekhya laments the sudden, untimely passing of the Nagid Ibrahim b. cAta*.
The year had been one of double loss for the
Jews of North Africa.
Earlier that year the well-known
scholar, the Alluf Abu ZikrI Judah b. Joseph had died (11. 22f.).*
In the letter in which Ben Berekhyra announces
that Ibn cAta* had received the title of Nagid, he also -
-
mentions that Abu Zikri had taken ill in al-Mahdiyya.
2
Assaf assumed that this illness was the cause of the Qayrawanese scholar's death, and that this letter before us now was, therefore, written ten and a half months after the other.^
This is certainly plausible, but one does not
have to assume that Abu ZlkrI's death came several months after he had first become ill.
ipor more about this scholar, cf. Poznanski, The men of Qayrawan, pp. 202f. 2Bodl. MS Heb. d 65, f. 9 (Assaf-Epstein A), margin, 1 . 1+ . 3Assaf, Letters from Qayrawan and Alexandria to R. Joseph b. cAwkal, Epstein Jubilee Volume (Jerusalem: 1950), p. 178. 238
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239 Abu Zikri's death was a great blow to the community, but nothing like the death of the Nagid.
The
latter had been the people's protector and advocate at court (11. llff.).
Those Jews who lived in the provinces
were particularly hard hit because now they had no one in the capital from whom they could seek redress for the in justices committed by rapacious governors and their officials (11. 20f•)• Indeed, as in the preceding letter, Ben Berekhya paints a picture of exceedingly dire circumstances. Tunisia is stricken with all sorts of calamities— drought, famine, and war (11. 32-38)•
For reasons of security, the
writer adds in Hebrew that Qayravian is at the moment "com pletely closed off, no one comes in or goes out" (1 . 32). It was not unusual for writers in the Geniza to take such precautions just in case their letters should fall into the hands of the government secret service (ashab alakhbar) U n f o r t u n a t e l y , Ben Berekhya does not say what was the immediate reason that Qayrawan was sealed up, nor are the Muslim historians of any help here.
^Cf. Goitein, Med. Soc.. I, p. 271 •
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240 Antonin 904 (Assaf-Epstein B) 0 our great and chosen Elder— may God grant you a long life in blessing and happiness, may He ward off all (2) misfortune, and may He bestow upon you-success in all things. We are writing to you, our brother, on the eighth of Marheshwan. (3) We are in a state ordained by the Creator Almighty and Exalted— "But He is at one with Himself, and who can turn Him? even that He doeth."
And what His soul desireth,
(4) We have been dealt a heavy blow,
and we have suffered a great loss in our bereavement of our support, the support of all Israel.
(5) Our exalted
Master, our Nagid, the Prince of the Diaspora, has passed away.
Woe unto this calamity which (6) has struck us,
this disaster which has come upon us with his loss. we say:
Thus
"The Crown has fallen from our head;Woe unto us!
(7) for we have shinned.
Master, "our Iniquities have
turned away these things, and our sins have withheld good from us."
We are afraid (8 ) and anxious, for we are left
uncovered with him gone, as he was the protector of the community and its support.
There is no doubt that God (9)
Almighty and Exalted has taken him from us for the bliss which has come to him and for the evil which has found us with him gone.
As it is said of one such as he:
(10)
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24l “The righteous is taken away from the evil to come.” Indeed, Master, the time is ripe for troubles. As to our position, (11) I have already complained to you.
It has been for a long time exposed and stripped
naked of its elders. it.
The shepherd is gone who (12) guided
This Nagid— may God have mercy upon him--was one who
protected the community's welfare from those who would expose it and took good care of most of (13) its affairs. And when he deoarted, no one was left to take good care of matters and to protect our interests. have become, as (14) it Is said:
But
rather, we
"For ye shall be as a
terebinth whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water." I am writing (15) this letter to you on the day following his passing— may his soul rest
in Paradise.
I do not know how to describe to you the state of affairs, nor (16) am I able to give you any account of this af fliction because it is more terrible than anything I might describe.
It is as if we all became (17) orphans
bereaved of their parents, for the distinguished received much good from him and the common people[even morej.
Now
the (18) poor and the destitute are utterly deprived of his protection.
Now (19) the enemy and the opponent have
become arrogant toward us. ation will come out.
We do not know how our situ
Indeed, those who are (20) far away
from us feel his loss even more strongly than we, because
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242 the governors and officials are crushing them while they (21) can find no one from whom to seek aid. I have already complained in my letter which is now on its way by ship about the situation which came (22) upon us with the death this year of Abu Zikri— may his soul
rest in Paradise.
He, too, was a support, (23)
and those near to him have been left exposed.
However,
the death of the former has left everyone exposed. belong to God who rules over (24) our destiny. is the affliction!
So great the calamity!
cause you to see its like!
But we
So much
May God not
(25) May He ordain in His mercy
a good outcome. We had thought along with him, Master, that (26) on this past Sukkot we would gather together and look into the matter of our Masters, the Heads of the Academies, and the answers (27) to their letters, and investigate what had been detained in Fustat from reaching them, and other things, so that we could bring the matter out into the open and clear it up, (28) when fate descended upon him unawares, and he went to the Abode of Truth. gone to rest and left us to sigh."
"He has
(29) Perhaps, Master,
I shall find a way afterwards when the darkness has lifted, and I shall write to you what (30) I know and express what is within me and impart it to you also, so that you may inform the people, our Masters. I (31) cannot be blamed (for not taking care of
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2^3 the affairs of the Academies at this time).
The affairs
of the kingdom, 0 our brother, are in an extreme state of turmoil,
our oity (32) at this moment is completely olosed
off, no one comes in or goes out. hunger (33) and drought.
The place is ravaged by
And just when there was a little
rain, and people began (3*0 to open their eyes, the judg ment of God came upon this leader.
And he was taken unto
Him, leaving our position exposed (35) and ruined.
I
ask God to inspire us to do what is right. The people of Gabes, too, have suffered severe hardship (36) on account of the payment that fell upon them during the time of the famine, leaving them stripped bare.
Most of them are in our city at this time.
(3?)
The Further Maghreb, like Sijilmasa and other cities, is in ruin with people dead from hunger (38) and sword.
We
live in great fear— may God make us secure from this dread. I have already (39) asked you several times to clarify for me the matter of the Gabeslans* money, namely, the 100 dinars which they had sent (**0) with Abu Zikri Judah and which should have reached you several years ago. There has been a good deal of correspondence and controversy since (41) that time, and we do not know what became of it.
Please explain to me what you know of it, and
whether (**2) any of it arrived or not*
And let me know
(also) what was sent with the Sons of Barhun (i.e. the Tahertls), our in-laws— may God protect them.
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244 (margin) I cannot write you (2) any more than this now* (3) May the [Almighty3 and. Exalted (4) Inspire us to success.
(5) I ask Him (6) to kindly enable me to get
out (7 ) of here,
(8 ) for here
there is not anything (9 )
by which I might be sustained.
In addition to (10) this—
it is a dangerous place—
(11) do you think you might (12)
be so kind as to (13) send a letter or some news.
Since
you are (14) gracious, do not leave me to my grief any longer, (15) and do not deprive me (16) of your customary kindness.
(1?) I ask God to (18) reunite us quickly
under the best of circumstances.
(19) And if I should
find a way (20) to write at the time of the next caravan (21) after this, then it (22) shall reach you.
And if (23)
the situation should (24) become even more oppressive, then we are (25) depending upon you to (26) inform our Masters of that which (27) I have written to you (28) and to con vey my apology (29) to [them]. May God shield and (30) preserve you. accept (31) niy best greetings.
Please
(32) And to my Masters,
(33) your sons, my best and most radiant (34) greetings. And may the end be peace. (address) To our great Elder Abu '1-Faraj— may God preserve and
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2^5 *
shield him— Yosef b. Ya°aqov b. cAwkal (may his soul
find reLo)
is his Protector and his Shepherd From Joseph and Nisslm the sons of Berekhya (may his soul find rest) Destined for Fustat God Willing
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God
246 Notes Antonin 940 (Assaf-Epstein B) 1.
(2)
ya1akhlna for ya akhana: A, 9» and. C,
?.
Cf. above VII,
Akh behaves similarly to
ab, except that akhl predominates. 2.
(3)
Job 23:13.
3.
(4)
gad ufjl°na:Vocalized
withHebrew
qubbus.
Cf. above, VII, A, 2. 4.
(6f)
Lamentations
5:16.
5.
(7)
Jer. 5:22.
6.
(10)
Isa. 57:1.
7.
(10)
slyyami:
8.
(Ilf)
ll-ra°I an yarc5h:
9.
(14)
Isa. 1:30.
10.
(16 )
11-annahu °zm mln an aslfahu:
In Classical Arabic la siyyama. Cf. above,
VII, C, 5«
One probably
has here the Maghrebi colloquial form of the comparative f°el (for afcal).
Blau,
Grammar, does not cite this form, but cf. e.g., Harrell, Moroccan Arabic, p. 86, para, 1.
Cf. also above, V, C, 4, n. 142.
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2^7 11*
(17)
yatama faqadu abihlm:
Cf. n. 1 above.
For
yatama with allf mamduda for allf maqsura, cf• above * VII, A, 1^ Table l^f. 12.
(21)
mughlth:
Vocalized with Hebrew qubbus.
13*
(28)
hatta with allf mamduda:
Cf. n. 11 above.
14.
(28) '
we-nasac limnuhot we-cazav otanu la-anahot: ■ 1 " ■. 1 — ■ ■ ■■ ■ " '■ ■ — •— Rhymed Hebrew.
15.
(30f)
wa-la tabqa calayya hujja:
On tabqa for
tabqa. cf. Blau, Grammar, pp. 92f., para. Ill C.
16.
(31) ' '
0
al-*ttr*b for al-idtirab: - ......
■■ •
•
■n
i ■ ■
i
•
■
dt^tt. • •
f •
Blau,9
Grammar, p. 3^» para. 12 A, cites only dt!>tt, but the phenomena are identical. 17»
(32)
sagur u-mesugar eyn yose* we-eyn ba*: paraphrase of Josh.
6 s1.
A
In the biblical
verse the two participles meaning "closed" are feminine since cities in Hebrew are feminine; but the word balad in Arabic is masculine and so the writer for the sake of agreement uses the Hebrew masculine. 18.
(32)
unhlka:
19.
(33)
mumklna:
Vocalized with Hebrew qubbus. Cf. preceding note.
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248 20 .
(35)
wa 1-qablsln:
21.
(37)
al-maghrlb al-abacld:
Cf. above, VII, B, 7. The Further Maghreb
is usually referred to as al-maghrlb alab°ad or al-maghrlb al-aqsa.
Apparently
the writer uses the plural here because he is referring to a number of specific places, viz., mlthl sl.lllroasa wa-Khayrlhl. 22 .
(39)
al-100 din, (dinar) alladhi:
Cf. above,
VII, C, 8 , and B, 5« 23.
(40)
cala yad Abu Zikri;
Cf. n. 11 above.
(margin) 24.
(290
wallah yuqlk wa-yasunak:
Cf. above, VII,
C, 4. 25.
(34)
we~ceqev shalom:
Cf. above, VII, D.
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COMMENT TS 12.175 (Three Letters B) This letter records a break in relations between the Ben Berekhya brothers and Joseph b. cAwkal which, as we have seen from the previous letters, had been building up for some time.
Delays in the transferring of corre
spondence between Qayrawan and the Academies of Iraq had finally exasperated Joseph b. Berekhya*s patience. ous delays are cited.
Numer
One letter from Hay Gaon reached
North Africa only because of the Tustaris (i.e. the father and two uncles of Abu Sa°d and Abu Nasr), who passed the letter on to Isma°Il al-Tahertl (11. 12-16).
Ben Berekhya
was particularly upset to read that Hay had not received any letters from him in the past five years (1. 17).
Thus
it is with a strong tinge of irony that he writes to Ibn cAwkal: I have taken it upon myself not to burden you any further in writing or troubling you with any needs, for I see that the matter is a burden for you. (ll»19f.) However, after Just having stated that he would no longer trouble Ibn cAwkal, Ben Berekhya asks him to
2^9
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250 help out in an affair involving Faraj, the freedman of Ben Berekhya*s father-in-law, Barhun al-Tahertl.*
Faraj was
the heir of a freedwoman who is referred to here only as "the wife of Suqayr.?
This woman died in Fustat,
and apparently, some question had arisen concerning her will and whether or not she had another heir. This request for aid in no way contradicts the first part of the letter.
Ben Berekhya here is not asking
anything for himself nor anything having to do with communal business.
This is, rather, a request that Ibn cAwkal help
in the performance of a good deed from which no man of piety could turn away. This letter gives no indication as to when it was written. It seems that it was written after the death of the Nagid Ibrahim b. cAta', who figured so prominently in all the other letters from Joseph b. Berekhya.
I would
venture to guess that this letter comes from sometime dur ing the first half of the 1020's. Despite the writer's pique, he does leave the door open to reconciliation and even says that he looks forward to the time when circumstances will "become favor able once again and our brethren shall return to us as they were before~lf God wills." (1. 20). How long this break in relations lasted we do
l-This Faraj is the writer of TS 8.12 (#26)+ .
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251 not know since this is the latest piece of Ibn cAwkal*s communal correspondence to have survived.
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252 TS 12.175 (Three Letters B) May God grant you long life, 0 our great and chosen Elder.
May He guard you and take charge of you.
May He not deprive you of success.
And may He be near
unto you. (2)
I am writing, 0 my Elder,— may God shield
you from misfortune, and may that which makes people happy fall your lot— on the last day of j^the monthJ of Av, sound in body, (3) but troubled in spirit by the delay of your letters, your neglect of our affairs, and your casting aside any thought for our relations.
(^) The land-
caravans and the sea-going ships have already arrived, but I have not seen any letter from you nor any instructions. Furthermore, (5) your letters came to our friend, the Elder Abu cImran b. al-Majjanl— may God protect him— and in them no mention of us!
As you know, Master, (6)
the privilege, of friendly relations is a gift of God Almighty and Exalted, and the nearness of brethren’s spirits is a gift from Him, too— as it is said: Joseph found favor in his sight.w
"And (?)
But when this good
fortune is denied man, it falls from the hearts of brothers and ceases to be preserved.
(8) When the state of affairs
reaches this point, one ought not to reproach neglect or inattention.
(9) The believer rather should give thanks
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253 to his Lord for every circumstance, whether it brings joy or sorrow, as the saint has said:
Ml will lift up
the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord. (10) I will find sorrow and grief, but I will call upon the name of the Lord.'1 What weighed most heavily upon my heart, Master, was that you mentioned to (11) Abu
Imran in your previous
letters that the fascicules and letters arrived from our Masters the Heads of the Academies, and that you were going to forward them with someone whom you could trust. (12) Then you neglected the matter, and we have not heard ^anything from him, and i} do not know what I shall do. If God Almighty and Exalted had not (13) in His mercy ordained the arrival of the letter from my Master Hay— may God strengthen him— by the hand of the Tustaris, who passed it on to Abu (14) [ibrjahlm IsmacIl b. Barhun Jand who copied itj in their concern that it should not be lost before it arrived . . . ( 1 5 ) ......... I thanked G o d ........... for this gave strength to my heart and balm to my s o u l ........... . . ( 1 6 ) when I saw in it £his excellence} the like of which I have seen from him ever since we have been in correspondence— may God strength en him. (17) What weighed most heavily upon my heart (was the fact that) he mentioned not having seen any let ter from me for the past five years.
I do not (18) know
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254 • • • • • • • • of the times,
and all that is due to the difficulty God, praised be He, is above all (19)
circumstances, I have taken it upon myself not to burden you any further in writing or troubling you with any needs, for I see that (20) the matter is a burden for you. Therefore, we shall patiently bear the changes of fortune until it shall become favorable for us once again and our brethren shall return to us as they were before— if God wills. (21) The reason for my writing this letter to you is that this lad, FaraJ, the freedman of my fatherin-law~may God be merciful unto him— who is the bearer of this letter, has (22) displeased me by remaining here this (year) in accordance with his bad judgment.
He has
caused anxiety to himself and to us, with no benefit to himself.
(23) Last year he asked me when I had written
you a letter to inform you that the wife of (24) Suqayr, the freedwoman of my father-in-law— may God be merciful unto him— who died there with you, left no other heir save this Faraj.
If perchance she had left (25) anything
to anyone else, then please send her will.
If she did
not, then he is the one with the most right to it.
(26)
He says that D e o p l e ............ . and say that she has an heir in Qayrawan.
I would like you to send him (27)
word in our name that she [has3 no heir
Qayrawan
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255 with any claim to her estate*
If she did leave anything,
then he (28) [is the one who has the most right to it becausej of his close relationship to her.
The unfor
tunates of God Almighty and Exalted are your charges. So do not deny him aid in this (29) [which we have re quested of you.
Do it
J
out of consideration for him and
in hope of Divine reward. If you can see yourway to answering this letter, I would consider that a favor ...
(30) • • • •
and if it is too much of a burden for you, then
Master, you are excused from it.
I would also like . •
• (31) [you to forward the letters and fasciculesj which have been detained in your possession up till now, lest [they should be lostj ( 3 2 ) ........ j . . pi [ease accept our} most noble and lofty greeting ( 3 3 ) • • • • • • • • • • • • may the end be good.
(address) To our great and respected Elder, Abu *1-Paraj— may God strengthen and preserve him— Yosef b. Yacaqov b. °Awkal (may his soul find rest) God is his Protector and Shepherd Prom Joseph and Nissim the sons of Berekhya (may his soul find rest)
His friend
Destined for Pus[tat]
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256 Notes TS 12.175 (Three Letters B) 1. 2.
(3) (4)
kltablka:
Read:
kutublka.
"the land caravans"— mawaslm al-barr;
Cf.
above, p. 21^, n. 2. 3. 4.
(4) (5)
lam ara:
Cf. above, VII, B, 3.
lil-shaykh Abu °Imran:
Cf. above, VII, C,
7. 5.
(5)
lam ykn:
Read:
6.
(6)
mnyh:
7.
(6f)
Gen. 39s^.
8.
(9)
"the saint"— wallyy:
9.
(9f)
Ps. Il6:13f.
Read:
lam yakun.
mlnna.
i.e. David.
The final two lines are not
in the Bible but follow the interpretation of Rabbi Tanhum in Berakhot 60:2.
See
Goltein, Three letters, p. 172, n. 27. 10.
(lOf)
11a Abu cImran:
Cf. n.
11.
(li)
kararls for kararls:
k above.
On facalll> ,fa°alll,
cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 1079 para. 129.
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257 12.
(11)
13.
(12)
Read °a(nhu) for (mlnhu).
14
.
(12)
lam adrls
15.
(13)
lias
.
(14)
la°allas
17.
(15)
*lhhs
.
(15)
wa-qad kan flh °lzzan 11-qalbls
16
18
s *dnt1: Reads
sadatlna.
Cf. n. 3 above.
Written here llayy with shadda! Reads
Reads
ll'alla.
allah. A hyper-
correctlon similar to that cited above, VII, C, 6. 19.
(17)
The word °lzz here is Ism kana.
ra*a, with allf mamduda for allf maqguras Cf. above, VII, A, 1* Table 14.
20
.
(20)
hatta, with allf mamdudas
Cf. preceding
note. 21
.
(21)
"my father-in-law"— °AmmIs means "paternal uncle."
°Amm literally
According to
Goitein. Three letters, p. 170, °amm can mean father-in-law in present-day colloquial Yemenite and Egyptian.
However, one need
not look eastward for examples because in colloquial Moroccan the term is loosely used for many relatives, including father-in-law.
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258 This translation is borne out by the fact that we have a letter from this Faraj (TS 8.12+ ) signed "FaraJ the Freedman of Barhun," and we know that the latter was the father-in-law of the writer Joseph b. Berekhya. 22 .
(25 )
lam tuwassl:
23.
(3D
The suspension of alef and yod is a mis print.
24.
(33)
Read:
Cf. n. 3 above.
lnnaha and yadlk.
we-ceqev shaloma
Cf. above, VII, D.
(verso) 25.
r*»°h: Read:
ra°Ih.
26 .
"his Protectorw--kgll1uh.
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PART II B BUSINESS CORRESPONDENCE
259
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COMMENT ENA 3793, f. 7 (# 31) This is a very early letter— probably still from the tenth century.
The letter is addressed to the senior
Ibn cAwkal, Jacob.
Regards are sent to Joseph in 1. 14.
Although the letter is rather brief, and several lines near the end are damaged, it is not without historical value.
We have here an early reference— as far as the
Islamic world is concerned— to the institution known in Roman law as the "sea loan."*
Jacob b. cAwkal had appar
ently extended a loan of ten dinars to the writer, Joseph b. Labrat• al-FasI,9 when the latter set out on an overseas commercial venture (i.e. from Egypt to Tunisia).
As with
its Byzantine counterpart, this loan had a set time limit for repayment which was probably one month after arrival abroad.
However, due to the depressed market in Tunisia,
al-Fasi had been unable to sell his goods and pay back the loan on time.
Another factor prompting this letter
was the fact that al-Fasf had not heard from the senior
^Concerning the Byzantine sea loan, cf. LopezRaymond, Medieval Trade, p. 169. For another example of the sea loan in the Geniza, cf. Goitein, Med. Soc., I, p.
.
256
260
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Ibn cAwkal and. probably sensed that the latter was displeased.
Thus this letter explaining the delay.
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262 ENA 3793* f 7 (# 31) May God lengthen your days, my venerable Master and beloved Elder.
May He grant you endless days of
health and happiness. city of Qayra£wa]n.
I am writing (2) to you from the I am well and in good health— thanks
be to God in abundance.
May He ordain that I be reunited
(3) with you under the best of circumstances, for such things are under His authority and power. I sent to you, Master, (4) the ten dinars which you had loaned me with Jacob b. Ukht gas [an].
May God
properly reward you for what you have done for me.
The
reason for the delay in this matter • • • • . (5) was the scarcity of sales due to the depressed market.
The little
bit of merchandise that I did manage to sell was at a reduction.
Therefore, do not think, Mast[erJ, (6) that
there was anything blameworthy in my tardiness. Prom the time I left you until now, I have seen no letter nor any instructions from you (7) — may God cause you to be occupied with what is good.
Our coreligionists
have informed me that you and your son are well— God preserve you both.
(8) may
Now if you should have need of
anything, Master, write me, and I shall obtain for you (9) what you wish— God willing.
God knows my trust in you and
my affection toward you which is for no reason other than
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263 my love (10) of God Almighty and [^Exalted........... Do not J deprive me of your favor— may God reward you in my stead with
all good.
..............
(11) .• . . will not be delayed . .
the reunion of friends (12) in a state
o f ......................... God from
all good and send
you (13) that which you hope f o r ............. ... the length
after
of your days— God willing. I extend to your honored person—
(14) may God
preserve and shield it— the best of greetings.
Best greet
ings to my Master, your son, Abu ’l-FaraJ— may God preserve him.
(15) Our group of friends, the Fasls, send you greet
ings. And you are more illustrious and exalted than "al-Sadr."
(address) To Abu Bishr— may God lengthen his days— the beloved and revered, Yacaqov b. Yosef b. cAwkal— may God be his Protector From Yosef b. jLabr}a$ al-FasI For Fustat God willing
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264 Notes ENA 3793, f. 7 (# 31) 1.
(1)
atala *llah . . . . , °ala baqa'lk:
usually
without cala. 2.
(2)
nahmad allah llayk (t) kathlra qadlr an: The construction of the phrase is very strange Indeed!
Apparently, the writer has
skipped several words. 3.
(4)
al-10 dananlr alladhl:
Cf. above, A, 1,
and B, 5« 4.
(5)
°ala ^-takhrlj:
For the meaning "at a
reduction" or "at a loss," cf. ft. Beaussier, Dlctlonnalre practlque arabe-frangals (Algiers: 5«
(6)
waslyya: VII, A,
6*
(7)
1958), P* 273« On allf for ta* marbuta, cf. above, Table 14.
"our coreligionists"— ashabna: *“•. 1-
Literally,
"our friends." 7.
(14)
al-salam:
For this writing of al-aalam
which may be scrlptlo defectlva, rather than vowel shortening, cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 19,
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265 para. 6 B, and p. 24, para. 9 B. 8.
(15)
al-fasln;
Cf. above, VII, B, 7.
9.
(15)
wa-anta ajall wa-a°la mln al-^adr:
The
word sadr literally means "breast."
Goltein,
Jewish trade, p. 82, suggests that perhaps this is an abbreviation for some title of honor, such as sadr al-din. r
i
i
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COMMENT DK 13 (# 16) This Is the long angry letter which has been cited frequently in Chapter V*
The letter is fairly
early— probably from the first decade of the eleventh century.
(The author's son, Abraham b. Samhun, appears
as one of Ibn cAwkal’s agents and correspondents years later.1)
One of the marks of this early period is-the
widespread use of caravans for transporting goods.
2
Besides protesting complaints that he had mis handled Ibn cAwkal's affairs, Samhun bitterly denies the allegation that he had sought to take the place of Ibn cAwkal's chief agent and friend, Musa b. al-Kajjanl. Samhun further protests Ibn cAwkal's not honoring an order of payment made out to two of Samhtln's creditors. Refusal to honor an order of payment was a most unusual, not to mention serious, occurrence. The language of the letter has a particularly Maghrebi flavor.
XTS 12.124 (# 15). 2Goitein, Jewish trade, p. 50. 266
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267 DK 13 (# 16) 0
my esteemed Elder, Master, and superior—
may God grant you long life and make lasting your honored position, your well-being, and your security. writing (2) on the twenty-third of Elul.
I am
I am In good
health— thanks be to God in abundance— and am yearning for the sight of your blessed countenance.
(3) May God
reunite us under the best of circumstances and with the most perfect of joys*
Your gladdening letters arrived,
and I learned from them (4) that you are in an excellent state of health— may God cause it to continue.
May He
cause all good things to increase for you and bestow blessings upon you. You mentioned,
0 my Elder and Master, that I
received (5) the brazilwood and sent it on to Spain.
I
did not take it for myself, nor did I make any profit from it.
On the contrary, I took a loss.
(6) I did this
because of your patronage and because you aid me with your high position with regal'd to that which I send you at my expense.
I was sure (?) that your letters would
have afforded me the very opposite of what you had written to me, paining my heart, and for which I do not know the reason.
(8) You sent your consignment inlsrar, and I
sent my consignment to you in the beginning of Ab.
Could
your consignment possibly have come from Spain, making
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268 the trip in two months ?!
(9) And. even if it were possible^
you certainly would not have acted similarly. You mentioned in your letters that I should send you the four qintars and twenty (10) ratls of silk. Is not a third of it my brother*s capital?
Besides which
he is entitled to a third of the profit along with you. (11) Furthermore, everyone agrees that the silk will sell better in Qayrawan than in Fustat— for a dinar and a half (per rati) according to the standard of Qayrawan.
(12)
Would that I had hastened and forwarded to you your share of it as you had requested of me, for most of the proceeds remain as debts and I have debited (13) myself for all that Is due my brother and all that is due you.
Nor did
I receive the payment for a qlntar from Salama al-Mahdawi (14) until only eight days prior to the writing of this letter.
There is also a debt which remains outstanding
with Ibn al-Sabbagh because I sold to him on credit.
(15)
And I lost a great deal of money with the pattern painters, but I did not charge you anything from this because my brother settled the account with me (16) before his departure, and he took his account.
And this is my reward
from you after all of this! I sent you in (17) the caravan of the Sijllmaslans with Abu *1-Surur b. Barhun one hundred cAziziyya dinars less one quarter that I payed out (18) from my own money.
I have not collected a penny from the price of
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269 the silk because of my high esteem for you and because of your high degree of (19) nobility and piety.
Nor do
I wish anything from you other than that you do the same for me, even as I have done with your goods, (20) with respect to what I am sending to you. As to those pearls you sent, I have already taken care of collecting their price. How much longer?! What would have been had I taken (21) a quarter of the profit?
You would have made a profit by my hands of
close to one dinar per dinar, (22) and there would not have been any benefit for me. would repay me.
However, I did expect that you
Had you sent me what you owed me, (23)
and were I owing you 2,000 dinars— would I have withheld it from you?
Would not your money reach you by sea as
you would wish?
(24) I would like to avail myself of my
own money even as you do.
And if— God forbid— your money
were to go out a second time (25) and enter into my ac count, how then would I be regarded by you?
God Blessed
and Exalted knows my good intentions, and He repays each man according to his intentions. (26)
What troubled me most was your withholding
from Ibn Yazdad and Salama, Furayj’s son-in-law, that which I had asked you to pay (27) them or give them in merchandise in accordance with my order of payment. you have withheld payment from them, and it is a debt upon me.
(28) Your merchandise is still in Spain.
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But
270 Meanwhile, their letters filled with condemnation have reached evsryouS• My reputation is being ruined. only (29) you had promised or said to them:
If
HHe has given
instructions for you," so that they would be patient, I would have been spared this disgrace. I have been informed (30) by our Maghrebi co religionists that they had heardfrom Abu *1-Khayr b. Barhun in your name that I had written to you asking to (31) be given Ibn al-Majjanl's position. I certainly did not seek that, nor would I undertake such a thing. have I any need (32) for that.
Nor
What I do need is the
benefit of your high position and for
you
to . take
care on my behalf of that which I send you, even as I do for you.
I had only said (33) that you should entrust
me to take care of whatever you might need in exchange for your taking care of my needs.
God forbid, I should
take over (3*0 someone else’s position or try to share in his affairs.
Should my end be such, then may He do
unto me in accordance with such an Improper thing.
(35)
I am not such a one who would take even a penny that is due another nor one from whom anyone should have to claim anything• I had agreed with Farah al-FasI that he should take care of the remainder of (36) the brazilwood so that I might receive it and send it on to Spain • • • • (at a commissjion
at
the same time taking the responsibility
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271 for it.
(3?) Each qintlr has been appraised at twelve
dinars in the presence of a number of our brethren.
How
ever, all this is up to you; the right of decision is yours.
(38) Thank God, in the end Fara£ did not com
plete it, for you would have acted as you did before.
(39)
By God, Master, the profit resulting from this was even more than at first, because the brazilwood sold for me this year (40) for 125 dinars, while I had purchased it in Qayrawan for 265 dirhems!
God knew my good intentions
and did not cause me any difficulties (41) in this— from which I had no personal benefit. You mention in your letter, Masters
"If your
handling of my business is correct, then I shall send you goods." (42) I do not
need
w ha t
I receive from
you or from anyone else, for God Exalted has been abun dantly gracious (43) unto me, as you know.
However, it
is my desire to avail myself of your high standing for those things which I send to you (44) and also to serve you in whatever you send me, as is correct, without seek ing any profit for myself.
(verso) Furthermore, Master, I have no doubt that you will take care of my goods in a manner befitting one like yourself.
I am (2) confident of your goodness and piety.
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272 Had it been t h a t ........... the rest of the money due you was In my possession............... (3)1 would certainly have sent it along with the hundred dinars in full even before having collected the full price of the silk, you.
(k)
I would not withhold even a silver habba from
And if— God forbid— some misfortune overtook your
property either on the sea (5) or on land, would you withhold money due me?
Or is there anything which would
allow you in your piety to do such a thing?
But God (6)
Blessed and Exalted is gracious in His protection, and He has kept us safe. I hope, my Master and Lord, that you have payed Salama (7) and Ibn Yazdad— may God protect them— what I had indicated.
Likewise, Master, would you make my account
even as (8) I have made out your accounts in good faith and with precision in the presence of a number of our brethren.
Therefore, pay Salama and Ibn (9) Yazdad, and
if anything still remains, I shall pay it with the most ample of goods.
And if anything remains for me, then
£l expect you to do^ likewise.
However, Master, if you
do not (10) agree to that, but insist that money be sent, then you should send my money, since it came before that due you.
I got no benefit out of it— not even for ex
penses which (11) I incurred, nor for the outlays.
Where
as, your money reached you according to its calculation. When I read your letter (12) concerning the
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273 matter of the pearls, I did not go to Musa, nor did I ever talk to him about it, because you did not think that I should have a prbfit (13) through you of even ten dinars* much.
Although you have made through me ten times as You mentioned that you (14) had ceased sending me
goods at your expense because I had acted badly you.
towards
Master, I have not (15) gained my money from the
portion of others, nor do I want such a thing.
Thank
God, no one has any complaints about us, (16) but rather, abundant profit and gain from which we draw no personal benefit. I ask again, do not be obstinate (17) about paying Salama and Ibn Yazdad what is due them, even If you have to take a loan for me. it (18) from my money?
And how would you pay
I hope to receive my money via
caravan soon along with your letters.
Your piety and
honor (19) as a gentleman, as well as the fact that I perform services for you with all good intentions compel you to stop putting me off.
(20) May God substitute for
the present times what is better.
I would not venture to
say to you (21) to send me anything, and I shall carry it out for you, lest you would say of me that I had asked you to put me in (22) Ibn al-Majjanl*s position. no need of that.
I have
For the little we have here in the West
is like the abundance you have there. (23) Again, I am at your service for whatever
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274 you might send for you own personal gain without any advantage for myself.
(24) By God, Master, I would act
in this way as God knows. You mentioned that you payed Isaac b. (25) C
a
Allan the one dinar.
However, I had already settled the
account with Ibn al-Waqqaf entirely.
Had he been here,
you would have received his letter concerning that. I extend (26) the best of greetings to my Master and Elder's illustrious person, and to his sons Hlllel and Benjamin— may God protect and shield them— (27) best greetings.
(margin) I have already submitted to you the statement concerning the sale of the silk and the related expenses from the first to the last, with a description of every detail of what I sold (2) from it.
It is a copy of the
entry from the account book, and there is no undue loss for yourself.
May God replace what has gone • • • • • •
• • That which remained with the pattern painters will never be (3) recovered from them.
You may check the
statement for its veracity, and if there is any doubt concerning anything, let me know, and I shall clarify It— God willing.
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275 (address) To my Master, Superior, and venerable Elder, Abu *1Faraj— may God give him long life, And make his honored position and his blessing lasting— Yusuf b. Ya°qub b. cAwkal (may his soul rest in Paradise) God is his Protector, Keeper, Helper, and Shepherd From Samhun b. Dawud b. al-Siqilli
Fustat G^od willingj
(address in Arabic script) Destined for Fustat— God willing
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276 Notes DK 13 (# 16) !•
(*0
^ °ala^ : Reads
^ °alaJ •
2.
(9)
lama kan taf°al:
3.
(9)
al-4 qanatlrs
4.
(11)
wa-a.yd.an fa "ttafaq jaml
Cf. above, VII, C, 3« Cf. above, VII, C, 8. al-nas an . . .:
Cf. above, VII, C, 9* 5.
(11)
"sells better"— abya° mln:
A comparative Q of the non-existant adjective ba»l . mm
6.
(12)
wa-layta law:
The use of these two words
together is a bit strange.
Perhaps the
writer thought it was more emphatic. 7*
(15)
bll-nasi»a for nasl*atan.
8.
(15)
wa *nkasar ll: p. 466a.
Cf. Dozy, Supplement, I,
The expression is literally
equivalent here and in other places in the Geniza to the English expression "to go broke•" 9.
(17)
°ala yaday Abu »1-Surur:
Cf. above, VII,
C, 7.
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277 10.
(18)
"penny"— khrw.:
Perhaps an abbreviation
for kharruba, a carob seed.
Cf. Goitein,
Med. Soo.. I, App. iii, p. 3&0. 11
.
(19)
wa-lam nurld:
Cf. above, VII, B. 3«
12
.
(20)
fa-hatta ash:
Cf. above, VII, B, 6.
13.
(21)
qarlb mln 111-dinar dinar (!): Grammar, p. 24, para. 9 B.
Cf. Blau,
Cf. also above,
VII, E. 14.
(23**)
kan na°qiluha °alayk; a-laysa kan tasll llayk; wa-kan nantafi0 :
Cf. n. 2 above.
The use of kSn here in the last instance resembles the use of the particle ka- in present-day colloquial Moroccan. 15.
(24)
safar:
.
(27)
*ht//b//s(b)t:
1?.
(30)
mln Abu *1-Khayr:
18.
(34)
al-shayr w5.1lb:
19.
(36)
"responsibility"— aharayut (Heb.)s
16
Cf. above, VII, A, 6. Read:
Cf. n. 9 above. Cf. above, VII, C, 8.
this is a legal term. 20
.
(37)
ashSbnSi
*htbs ^ b ^ t .
Perhaps
Cf. above, VII, D.
Usually indicates coreligionists,
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278 but here it may only be business friends. 21.
(39)
abya° or ubl°a:
Cf. n. 5 above.
22.
(40)
wa-lam yutil:
Cf. note 11 above.
23.
(42)
j^wa-la, .mln~]:
Reads
^wa-la mlnj.
(verso) 24.
(3 )
al-»100 din.:
25.
(5)
kan tahbis; kan yajuz: "
Cf. n. 3 above.
•
26.
(10)
kan yujlz:
27.
(10)
siyyamas
28.
(12)
lam namdl: 1
Cf. n. 2 above.
>
Cf. n. 2 above.
In Classical Arabic lS slyyama. Cf. above, VII, B, 3»
■ "■ 1» —
29.
(13)
lam tara:
30.
(13)
dananir:
Cf. preceding note. On facalll^fa°alll. cf. Blau,
Grammar, p. 107, para. 129. 31.
(18)
bll-qurb mlnnl:
A bit strange.
32.
(20)
allah yubadlll al-awqat:
Cf. above, VII,
C, 4. 33.
(21)
khawf an taqul:
Cf. above, VII, C, 5»
34.
(23)
fa-ana khadlman lak:
Cf. above, VII, C, 6.
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279 35.
(24)
blla nafcan 11: The tanwln here is also a hypercorrection.
36.
(24)
wa-ana wallah yamawlaya sar bldhallk: One would expect sa*lr or slrtu.
For £a, cf.
above, VII, A, 9« 37.
(25)
wa-law kan hazlr (hadlr):
Note, after two
hypercorrections, here we find khabar kana without the tanwln.
(margin) 38.
(2)
wallah yukhllf ma jaz:
Cf. n. 32 above.
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COMMENT TS 12.218 (# 18) This is the only letter to Joseph b. cAwkal from his longtime friend and associate, Musa b. al-MaJJanl, that has been preserved.
It was written on February 25,
1011, but was not received until five months later on May 1 3 .
The reason for the long delay was that the letter
came by caravan overland since ships did not sail during the stormy winter months. The first part of the letter deals with the affair involving the Tahertls and a shipment of silver, which has been discussed in detail in Chap. V.
The writer
goes on to describe the sorry state of affairs in Qayrawan at that time.
Just what was the cause of the state of
emergency mentioned by Ibn al-MaJJanl is unknown, and none of the Muslim sources throw any light on the matter. The final part of the letter, although badly eaten away, clearly refers to the fltna in Spain.1 The Hisham mentioned in 1. 19, obviously refers to the Umayyad Hisham II, who had been forced to abdicate in 1009 but had
1Cf. above, Chap. I, B, p. 10, n. 24. 280
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281 regained the throne the following year.2
In the pre
ceding line Musa informs his friend that one of the lat ter* s agents, §isday b. Halabu is stuck in Cordova.
Appar
ently Ibn °Awkal was quite concerned about Ibn HalabC since in another letter from the Tahertls to Ibn cAwkal we reads You asked in your letter, 0 our Elder, to give you news of Abu *1Fadl Hisday b. Halabu— may God protect him— but we have not, Elder, heard any news from Spain which would comfort one’s heart, but only wars and • . . 3
2Levi-Provencal, L ’Espagne musulmane. II, pp. 304-320. » 3ULC Or 1080 J 248 (# 21), 11.
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282 TS 12.218 (# 18) I am writing to you, my Elder and Master— may God grant you long life, lasting good health and may He protect you— on the nineteenth of Adar.
(2) I am well and
in good health— thanks be to God— but I long for my Master, the Elder— may God make his honored position permanent and hasten the day (3) in His graciousness and benevolence when I shall meet with him again. Your esteemed letter arrived with news of your welfare—
(4) thank God for that.
I ask that in His
graciousness and benevolence He give you an abundance of all that is good.
You mentioned, my Master— may God (5)
protect you— that which you had sent here. ready arrived safe and sound.
It has al
However, I did not receive
your letter, Master, (6) until several days later.
I
went
to the people {who brought the consignment) and asked them what they did with the silver.
They said that (7)
[they did not take care^ of it, but rather the Sons of Barhun (i.e. the Taherti brothers), who sold it after having melted it down.
If only you had asked me to be
there with them (8) when it was sold, you would have had some profit. in need of it.
Eut it reached them at a time when they were I enjoined (9) them to send it, but they
said, "Did he (Ibn cAwkal) not order us to give it to the Taherti brothers so that they could pack it in (10) a bale
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283 like the one in which it arrived and send it on with trustworthy merchants."
However, the Fasls have already
left here, and there are none in our city more trustworthy (11) than they.
And so I did not succeed with them for
they said, "He ordered us not to give it to anyone other than the Taherti brothers."
And they, my Master, are one
group (12) from the time they allied themselves together, and their word is one— especially during times of crisis in the city. I have already described to you (13) the state of the city and of the markets here today. make a penny.
One cannot
If ( 1 * 0 ............... does not stimulate
the market a little, the city will remain empty as it has been locked up for nearly the last two months. the (15) . . . . . . . . . .
And as to
[my Maste^r, I shall take
care of selling it as soon as this state of emergency eases.
A n d ......... with obstacles
(16) .
. . • • • not arrive till I speak with him, and in the third c a r a v a n ................ w r i t e ...............(17) that which you want to know, and I, my Master, shall en join them to . . . . . . . of (18) Hisday [b. Halajbu.
.
[y o u askejd, my Master, news He is stuck in Cordova, and
the people there are in dire straits .
........... the
Berbers ( 1 9 ) ................ the Slavs with Hisham. They saw that they would die and would not ............ Berber . . .
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28
^
(11. 20-23» the margin, and verso are incomplete. writer goes on with the situation in Spain. mentions:
indigo not having been delivered.
market being depressed.
The
He then Some
All the spices having left.
Regards to Ibn cAwkal's sons.)
(address) To my Elder and Master Abu '1-Faraj— may God prolong his dear life— Yosef b. Yacaqov, the Head of All— may God make his honored position permanent From his sincere, devoted friend, who is grateful for his love, Mujsa b.J al-Majjanl
(note of receipt in Arabic script) Arrived on the sixth of Shawwal, *M)1 (A.H.)
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285 Notes TS 12.218 (# 18) 1.
(1)
yashaykhl:
Cf. above, VII, A, 9.
2.
(1)
11-11 bag?:
Usually one finds In the Geniza
lettersbagIn here. 3.
(3)
ljtlma0 :
Cf. above, VII, A, 4.
On a > a in final syllables, cf.
Blau.Grammar, pp. 23f«» para. 9 A. 4.
(5)
11a hona:
Cf. above, VII, A, 3»
5.
(5)
sallm mu°afan:
Half with tanwln and half
without! 6.
(6 )
ma °amiltl f’l-fddh:
For the contraction of
fi, cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 117, para. l6l A. Cf. also, Harrell, Moroccan Arabic, p. 209. 7.
(7)
’lly for Ilia;
Cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 25,
para. 10 Ba. 8.
(9)
fl-tw.1.1h for fl »l-tawaj.1uh:
9.
(10)
wa-qad kharaj mln hona fasIn:
Cf. n. 6 above. For al-
fasl.yyln, cf. above, VII, B, 7* 10.
(11)
fa-lam tuslb:
Cf. above, VII, b, 3»
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286 11.
(12)
mln waqt an:
Cf. above, VII, C, 5»
12.
(12)
ltasaharu: ■• ■ '1™ 1
13.
(12)
fl-bld for fl »I-balad:
14.
(13)
"One cannot make a penny"— ma thamma man
Cf. above, VII, B, 2.
yahlll dirham fl ha.ja:
Cf. n. 6 above.
yhyll for yahlll:
Cf. above, VII, A, 3»
(verso) 15.
(7)
wal-salam for wal-salam:
Cf. Blau, Grammar.
p. 19, para. 6 B and p. 24, para. 9 B.
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COMMENT TS 8.12 (# 26) This Is another early letter (probably from the first decade of the eleventh century) written to Joseph b. cAwkal by a freedman of the House of Taherti by the name of Faraj.
This same Faraj appeared in one of the
letters touching on communal affairs which was sent to Ibn cAwkal by the Berekhya brothers and in another sent to Jacob b. °Awkal from the Tahertls.1
In the letter
before us Faraj apoears as an independent merchant him self.
He asks Ibn cAwkal to purchase pearls for him
from the pilgrims returning from the Hajj (the annual pilgrimage to Mecca).
In Arabia the Muslim pilgrims had
a first-hand opportunity to purchase pearls which came in from the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean.
The money
for the pearls was being sent to Egypt with Musa b. Majjanl, Ibn cAwkal's close friend and business associate (cf. the previous letter).
Icf. TS 12.125 (Three Letters B)+ ; TS Arabic Box 53. f. 11 (# 30).
28 7
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288 TS 8.12 (# 26) 0 my venerable Elder and Master, may God lengthen your days, make your security and well-being eternal, and give you His most perfect (2) blessing.
May He protect
you from misfortune and that which is hateful.
I am
writing on the first day of Shevat and ask (3) God to make it a felicitious month for us and for all Israel and bless it.
I wrote (4) you, Master, a letter in the first
caravan, informing you that the pearls which you were kind enough to send arrived— may God make your honored position permanent.
(5) There was benefit and blessing
in this, thanks to God's graciousness and your o w n praised be God.
As to the cloth (6) which was with it,
I sent it on to Spain because it does not sell well for me here this year. 1 have sent to you, my Master, (7) knowing all your indulgence toward us, via (?) Musa b. al-MaJjanl— may God protect him— a purse (8) containing 120 dinars in number.
However, its weight is only 118^ and 2 qlrats.
Furthermore, five dinars are in quarter-dlnar coins.
(9)
May God in His mercy cause them to arrive safely. I would like from you, Master,................ with your indulgence, that if there are (10) any good pearls which you can buy before the masses of people de part for Mecca, and if you can send them with (11) the
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289 first to leave— then do so and send them by land.
If
this is not possible, Master, hold on to the money until the (12) caravan returns from Mecca, at which time God may make the purchase convenient.
But if— God forbid—
it should happen that (13) pearls will be scarce this year, then buy me whatever you can with half the sum, and with the other half buy some high-grade istas (variety of indigo) or . . . ( 1 4 ) ........ and send it to me by land— if God wills.
You, my Master, have a free hand
(15) in whatever you decide to choose.
I hope that my
Master— may God protect him— will be indulgent with me for I an inconveniencing (16) him.
Master, do in this
matter that for which God will reward you in this world and the world to come. (17) My best greetings to you in particular, Master.
I extend to my Masters Abu *1-Fa$l and Abu *1-
Tayyib my best greetings.
(18) .......... greetings.
And to £all those who are undjer your protection greet ings.
(margin) I hope that you will send any orders you might have by land— if God wills.
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290 (address) To my Master Abu *1-Faraj--may God lengthen his days— Yusuf b. YacqQb b. cAwkal and Abu »1-Fadl and Abu *1Tayyib, Hilal and Binyamln, Yusuf's sons From one grateful to them, Faraj The Freedman of Barhun
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291 Notes TS 8.12 (# 26) 1.
(2)
"the first day of Shevat"— mustahall
Shevat.
2.
(2)
asal:
Cf. above, VII, A, 5»
3.
(3)
ylsr:
Common abbreviation for ylsra'el.
Cf. above, VII, A, 10.
k.
(3)
wa-kwnt:
5.
(6)
"does not sell well for me"— lam yahmllnl:
Cf. above, VII, A, 3*
Literally:
"it has not carried me."
6.
(6)
hona:
Cf. above, VII, A,
7.
(7)
surra:
8.
(8)
ml*a wa-clshrCn: Although the nominative
s>s, cf. above, VII, A, 6.
plural termination is the grammatically correct form here according to Classical Arabic, it is exceptional in these documents. 9.
(13)
binuss, wal-nugs:
10.
(13)
"high-grade indigo"— lsatls ra*uy (Heb.).
11.
(1^)
"you . . . have a free hand"— inta . . . al-sawlyy (?):
Cf. above, VII, A, 6.
Perhaps for al-sawlyy
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292 "correct," "proper," "sound," etc. 12 .
(16 )
b.ll-gemul:
13.
(16)
wa-khra for wa-ukhra:
Hebrew for reward.
colloquial Moroccan.
As in present-day Cf. above, VII, A,
5.
(verso)
14.
(1)
mln shaklrlhlma; On the dual for the plural, cf. above, VII, b, 4.
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COMMENT TS 13 J 17, f. 3 (# 1) This letter is from Joseph b. cAwkal's chief agent in Alexandria, Ephraim b. IsmacIl al-Jawharl, who was also the nephew of Ibn cAwkal*s friend and associate, Musa b. al-Majjanl.1 After the usual amenities of the introduction, Ephraim relates in detail the preparation for a convoy of merchant ships with a military escort (11. 5-13)* Such extensive precautions as those mentioned here were not usual.
Most likely, this letter was written during
the period 1025-102? when a huge Byzantine army and fleet were sent against Sicily, or between 1030-1035 when the Emperor Romanus Agyrus attacked Syria and renewed hos tilities against the Fatlmids, while at the same time besieging the Kalbids of Sicily.2
The former period
seems more likely, however, since the defeat suffered by the ruler of Qayrawan, Mucizz b. Badis (called here only sahib al-qayrawan), very possibly refers to the
*Cf. above, Chap. V, A, p. 80. 2Lewls, Naval Power, pp. 19^f* 293
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294 loss of a huge Zlrid fleet of four hundred ships in a storm off Pantelleria In 1026.3 This letter mentions a number of people and ships known from other Genlza texts.
The man, °Ammar,
who delivered Ibn cAwkel's letter to Ephraim (1. 3) Is mentioned in another letter translated below**’ specifically as being a fay.1, or courier.3
Harun mentioned in 11. 4f.
is certainly Harun b. Yusuf al-Ghazzal, one of Ibn cAwkal*s main agents, who is very frequently mentioned in the Ibn cAwkal correspondence and Is the writer of one of the letters translated below.^ Abu Sa°Id Khalaf b. Yacqub al-AndalusI (1. 13) was the wakll al-tut 1.1ar, or Representative of the Mer chants, In the Tunisian port of al-Mahdiyya (a post of very great importance)J
Khalaf (his Hebrew name was
Hayyim) was also of great prominence in the Jewish
3idris, Zlrldes, I, p. 168. Idris does raise a doubt whether or not the passage in Ibn al-Athlr, Kamil, IX (Cairo: 1301), p. 145, which records this disaster is absolutely trustworthy, since it is not confirmed by any other sources and very much resembles a later incident. **Mosseri L 52 (#12), 1. 3+ . ^concerning the fayj, cf. Goltein, FuytidJ, El » II» PP* 969f. 6TS 13 J 29, P. 2 (# 6)+ . ^concerning this office, cf. Goltein, Med. Soc., I, pp. 186-192.
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295 community#
He and his son, Nisslm, are highly praised
in a Hebrew epistle from the head of the Jewish high court (Bet Din) of Sicily for their outstanding services to Sicilian Jewry.
The epistle was circulated throughout
the Mediterranean Jewish communities as a testimonial to Q
Khalaf*s signal contribution to his people. Sahlan mentioned in 1. 16 is perhaps Sahlan Alluf b. Abraham, the banker and scholar who succeeded his father as head of the Babylonian Jewish community in Fustat in the 1030*s.^ Abu ZikrI Yahya, who is mentioned twice in this letter, is Ephraim*s cousin and the son of Musa b. al-Majjan£.
Most of the other people mentioned;
Ibn al-Sahala*s
"young man," Wadca, and SalSma, are underlings, either slaves or freedmen# are both Muslims.
Ibn al-QaddSr and Ibn cAbd al-Qudra It is Interesting to note that Ephraim
draws a suftaja, a bill of exchange somewhat parallel to a modern cashier's c h e q u e , from a Muslim banker, Ibn cAbd al-Qudra (1. 32).
®Cf. Mann, Resoonsa of the Babylonian Geonim, JQR. N.S., 9:l62ff. The full text, TS 24.6, is given in ibid.. pp. 175-179. ^Mann, Jews. I, p. 97. lOpor more information on the suftaja. cf. Fischel, Jews, pp. 17-21, and Goltein, Med. Soc., I, pp. 2 4 2 - 2 ^ 5 7 “
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296 TS 13 J 17, f. 3 (# 1) I am writing to my Master, the venerable Elder — may God grant him long life and give him lasting days of well-being and happiness— on the 2?th day (2) of Iyyar, may God ordain for my Master, the Elder, good and happi ness all the days of his life.
(3) As for myself, all
is well— thanks be to God alone. My Master's letter was delivered by cAmmar.
I
learned (4) from it that my Master is well, may God cause this to continue.
My Master, the Elder has mentioned
that Harfln (5) and all that was with him arrived safely, thanks be to God.
As you know, my Master and Elder, from
my previous letters we no longer (6) have even one bale on land and all of the bales on the ships are in (7) the best places.
I ask God that He insure for us their safe
arrival; and we have heard pleasing news from the West. (8) For, by God, Master, bad reports about Qayrawan have been on the Increase, and every man adds his own rumors. (9) While as for us, we have been in a trying state.
I
ask God to let us hear something good from there, for we shall have no peace until (10) their letters reach us with news of their welfare.
I ask God that it will be
thus. As for the ships, Master, (11) they are com pleting preparation for sailing, and not a soldier remains
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297 on shore*
They have already taken their water and
provisions and are awaiting the completion of (12) the warships and its launching into the sea. warships)
They (i.e. the
are about to set sail and the merchant ships
are sailing with them. letter the light
The day after the writing of this
warships will be launched (13) because
they have completed their repairs today.
I have written
to my Master, Abu SacId Khalaf b. YaCqub, (14) — may God protect him— a letter in four copies, and I sent on each ship one copy with one of our brethren; (15) Salama b.
one copy with
Abl Khalil on the ship of al-BacshushI, a
second copy with Sahlan on the ship of al-Andalusi—
(16)
may God protect him— a third copy on the ship of Ibn alQaddir— may God protect him, which I entrusted to (1?) Ibn al-Qaddar himself, because no Jew was on board.
The
fourth copy (18) I entrusted to Salar al-Itrabulsi, Ibn al-Sahala*s "young man."
I enjoined all our coreligion-
ists, (19) may God protect them, that they keep an eye on the seventy bales and one barqalo until they are delivered safely into the hands of (20) Khalaf b. Ya°qub al-Andalusi — may God protect him.
Likewise, I have written to Qay-
rawan to my maternal uncle— may God strengthen him (21) — a letter in five copies, and I have also copied the letters which I am sending to you, my Master.
I have entrusted
to Wadca— may God orotect him— the letters which (22) my Master wrote me, there being twelve such letters.
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I
298 shall bind up the remaining letters and send them on five ships (23) with our coreligionists, may God protect them. And likewise, I have written to my Master, Abu Zikrl Yahya, may God protect him (24) five letters.
I have
apprised him of all that I sent to al-Mahdiyya this year— that being one hundred seventy-nine bales (25) and two barqalos.
1 also informed him of the ships and
of what was collected from the advanced payment, and the like.
I ask from God (26) that He ordain in His mercy
their safe arrival. I have asked my maternal uncle— may God make his honored position lasting— that at the moment of the arrival (27) of the bales to al-Mahdiyya that my Master, Abu Zikrl Yahya, his son— may God protect him—
(28)
should receive all the bales, sell them in al-Mahdiyya at the time of the fair, and send all of the money (29) to my maternal uncle in Qayrawan.
I have asked him to buy
for my Master all the goods which he requested be bought (30) like lead, wax, brocade, cloth, and saffron, et al. I have already informed my Master, the Elder (31) may God make his honored position lasting, that I still owe thirty dinars from the freight, and I have taken a suftaja from Ibn cAbd *1-Qudra.
(32) I took the
ten dinars which were with Salama— may God protect him— and made payment with them. All the ships are ready (33) for sailing— may
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299 God ordain their safe arrival.
I was, G Master, going to
send Salama, may God protect him, (3^) when I was informed that the ruler of Qayrawan had been defeated, and there is great excitement here in the city.
I was afraid that
( 3 5 ) .................. for the bad reports had increased, and i f ................ the merchandise...........two days took (36) ................... (several lines miss ing)
(margin) the Elder
(2) and be good to him.
[My best greetingsj to [my Master • . • • .J (3) — God preserve him. Sacid—
may
(4) Best [greetingsJ to my Master Abu
(5) may God sustain him . . . (6) And to every
one who is under my Master, (7) the Elder's wing—
(8)
may God make his honored position (9) lasting— greetings. May God be good to him, and may the end be good.
(address) To my Master, the venerable Elder, Abu '1-Faraj Yusuf b. YaCqub Ibn cAwkal (may his soul find rest) May God make his honored position lasting, exalt him, grant him happiness, and bless him.
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300 Prom his servant, Ephraim b, Isma°Il (may his soul find rest) al-Jawhari
To Fustat, his reception hall--God willing
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301 Notes TS 13 J 17, f. 3 (# 1) 1*
(6-7)
2.
(7)
lam yatabaqqa:
Cf. above, VII, B, 3»
samlcna mln al-gharb khabar an nasurr; Cf. above, VII, C, 5«
3.
(9)
taht hal an °azlm:
Cf. preceding note.
4.
(11)
hwms
5.
(12)
"the warship"— usuul (for ustul):
Cf. above, VII, A, 3.
warship*
A heavy
The word Is derived from the Greek
flrra>*f and means in Arabic both fleet and vessel.
Cf. Dozy, Supplement, I, p. 22a.
6.
(12)
yarmlytlh:
Cf. above, VII, B, 1.
7.
(14)
dafa°tuhu instead of dafactuha:
The writer
is influenced by the general plural being masc. sing, in form. 8.
(19)
sallamahuma 'llah:
On the dual for the
plural, cf. above, VII, B, 4. 9.
(19)
yara*lyu:
Cf. n. 6 above.
10.
(21)
al-kutub alladhl:
Cf. above, VII, B, 5*
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302 11 .
(22 )
wa-hlya:
Spelled here as the Hebrew third
fem. sing. (hy1). 12®
(24)
fl hadha 1Psana:
13.
(31)
suftaja:
Cf. above, VII, B, 5.
A Persian word usually translated
"bill of exchange."
For a detailed expla-»
nation, cf. Goltein, Med. Soc., I, pp. 242-245. 14.
(32)
al-10 dana. (dananlr) alladh?: above.
15.
(34)
Cf. also above, VII, C, 8.
rahab an caz?m: rhj..
Cf. n. 11
Rahab is misprinted as
For an, cf. n. 2 above.
(margin) 16.
(13)
we-°eqev shalom;
Cf. above, VII, D.
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COMMENT TS 13 J 19, f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3) This is another very detailed letter from Ephraim al-Jawhari in Alexandria.
It was received in the
office of the House of Ibn cAwkal on April 8, 1030.
As
in the previous letter much of the information concerns the loading of merchant vessels.
The mention of galleys
(1. 1?) and warships (1. 19) indicates that this letter, too, was written during a period of tension.1 Ephraim mentions that of twenty-five bales of flax that arrived from Central Egypt, twenty-three were being sent to Tunisia 6n two ships.
One of these two
ships, the al-Maqrus, is mentioned in two other letters translated below.^
The remaining two bales were being
shipped to Sicily.
Ephraim goes on to mention various
commodities which were due to arrive from the Egyptian Mediterranean port of Rashid (11. 21-25)*
!cf. the comments to the preceding letter and the source cited there in n. 2.
2TS Arabic Box 5, f. 1 (# 28), 1. 3^+ , and TS 13 J 17, f. 11 (#7), 11* 5, 10 and margin*. 303
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304 The reverse side of the letter consists of quotations from the Tunisian market sent by Musa b. alMajjanl.
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305 TS 13 J 19f f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3) I am writing to my Master the venerable Elder— may God grant him long life and make lasting His aid and blessing—
(2) on the 27th day of Nisan— may God seal
it for my Master the Elder with the'best of seals.
(3) I
am in a state of good health and am happy that my Master the Elder is still alive— thanks be to God alone.
(k)
I have sent a number of letters to my Master
informing him of all that (5) we need, and I have informed him of what happened to us in the matter of the khltl. Thank (6) God we are just fine.
Furthermore, I have in
formed you about Salama b. Baban and his trip (?) to Abu Qir.
He has already arrived safely in Alexandria— thanks
be to God.
I received (8) from him all that he had with
him— 25 bales in good condition.
I sought the guidance
(9) of God Exalted and loaded them on the same day that I am writing this letter.
I sent 20 bales (10) on the
qarib al-Maqrus bound for al-Mahdiyya, 3 bales on the ship al-Rasul, (11) also bound for al-Mahdiyya, and 2 bales on the ship al-Andalusi bound for Sicily.
(12) When the
rest of the bales arrive— God willing— I shall, after seeking Divine guidance, (13) load the rest with proper marking for Sicily and al-Mahdiyya.
I hope (14) that on
this day that I am writing to you, the Nile boats will
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306 arrive from Rashid— God willing. The Ibn al-Mukra and the al-Hazmi (15) are in the last stages of loading and are ready (to sail). pray God will grant them (16) safety.
I
The ships have not
loaded a bale without people in a state of confusion be cause of (17) the men who were taken on to the galleys. I pray that God will make it easy for them.
(18) i'o one
among them has more than half his load since they are waiting for the rest of the Nile boats to arrive from (19) Rashid.
The warships are not allowing anyone to load even
one bale aboard them.
It seems to me that the transport
of cargo (20) this year is light, although there are many ships.
The ship-owners are sitting idle (21) as are the
merchants— I ask God to grant us good fortune and His aid. As to that which my Master the Elder (22) wishes to know with regard to SacId:
all the bales which (23) be
had on the ship of Ibn Kabak arrived safely and he has al ready put it on display for sale.
Abu 'l-Faraj b. Khalluf
(2*0 is still in Rashid and has not yet arrived,
-.'hen—
God willing— he arrives, we shall (25) be there to help him divide up the bales. that takes place.
I shall Inform my Master when
I hope letter from my Master (26) will
be soon in coming with Joyful news of my Master*s welfare and the well-being of all (27) his household— God willing. I hope my Master has purchased for me the asphalt which I had requested (28) him to buy and to send via the
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307 Nile boats. May I never be deprived of my Master's gracious ness.
I extend to (29) my Master the venerable Elder the
b£est of gjreetings.
(margin) To my Masters (2) Abu Sahl and Abu SacId— preserve them— the best of greetings.
(3) may God
(4) And to all
those under the protection of my Master (5) the Elder, my best greetings.
(6) I had left with (7) my Master the
venerable Elder, three baskets of saffron, and I would now like to request of (8) my Master, (9) if there should happen to be (10) anyone to buy them on two months credit at 5 dinars (11) per mann, (12) to sell them (13) and write me the sale price.
(14-) If there is not anyone (15)
interested in buying them, (16) then keep it until I arrive—
(17) God willing.
I—
(18) God willing— shall
write (19) to my maternal uncle— may God make his (20) honored position lasting— sending the letters on (21) the al-Hazmi and the Ibn full account
(23)
(22) al-Mukra.
I shall give him a
ofthe 99 bales (24) and one barqalo and
shall specify (25) each item.
(26) I shall instruct him
to sell them
(27)
inal-Mahdlyya (28) during the fair (29)
as my Master
(30)
the Elder had instructed—
willing.
(32) And may the end be successful.
(31) God. (33) Harun
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308 is in (3*0 good health (35) and sends (36) to my Master (37) the Elder his greetings,
(verso) I have already informed my Master the Elder in my preJVioujs letters of the arrival of the courier from the West,
(2) However, I did not receive any letter from
him until this day that I am writing to you, ceived a letter from my maternal uncle—
I Just re
(3-8) may God
ever be his support— ia which ;he mentions the current prices which are as follows: Qimafc 6-8—
Buslrl flax goes from 6£-8;
it sells better than the Buslrl; Malal does
not sell— it goes from 5-6, but no one buys it; pepper 105; brazilwood 35 dinars per qintar; lacquer 50 dinars per qintar; KirmanI indigo cannot be found and is worth 75 dinars per qintar; yellow myrobalan 9 dinarB per qin tar; sal ammoniac •
Z\ mann
for one dinar; sugar 6 dinars
per qintar; olive oil 12 qafiz for one dinar .......... ........
price. Likewise, there arrived a letter from °Umar b,
(9) Jacfar in al-Mahdiyya to Sacada, Ibn Parah»s "young man.M
He Informs him that (10) Qimat flax is selling
briskly in al-Mahdiyya and that they are dealing only in Qimat there.
Whereas, (11) Malal has no market.
I
ask God in His graciousness and generosity to grant us
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309 success and to give us aid.
Amen.
(address) His honor, my Master the venerable Elder Abu *1-FaraJ Yusuf b. cAwkal (may his soul find rest)--May God give him lasting support and blessing From his servant, Ephraim b. Isma°Il (may his soul find rest) al-Jawharl to his reception hail— God willing May the end be successful.
(note of receipt in Arabic script) Arrived on the first of Rablc II, 421 (A.H.)
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310 Notes TS 13 J 19, f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3) 1.
(1)
f y d h for tafyldahu:
2.
(2)
11-3 baql:
Usually In the Genlza letters
one finds bagIn. 3.
(4)
Sorlptlo defective.
Cf. above, VII, A, 4.
wa-carraftu 11-mawlaya:
Usually carrafa
takes a double direct object as in the following two lines. 4.
(5)
khltlyya:
In the Genlza this word is usually
the plural of khltl, a type of fast boat.In alMuqaddasI, Ma°rlfat al-Aqallm. p. 32, the word is singular, and so too, perhaps in this in stance.
Cf. Goitein, Med. Soo.t I, pp. 295f«
On allf for ta* marbuta, cf. above, VII, A, 1. 5.
(?)
11a Abuqlrt
Cf. above, VII, C, 7.
6.
(7)
saliman for sallman:
7.
(8f)
WI sought the guidance of God Exalted"— lstakhartu, etc.:
Cf. above, VII, A, 4.
Literally, "I sought from
God to choose the best for me."
On this
practice of divining God*s will, cf.
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311 Goldziher, Istikhara, El1. II, pp. 561T. Similar
practices are found amongst the
Jews and Muslims of the Middle East up till today. 8.
(12)
in shallah:
As in many dialects today.
Cf.
above, VII, A, 9. 9.
(13)
wa-11 *l-mahdlyya:
On ll as a short form
of 11a, cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 119, para. 164 A. 10c
(14)
"the Nile boats"— al-jurum (sing, jarm): kind of barge.
The word (pronounced garm)
is still used in Egyptian today. 11
.
(15)
mwswqyn for mawsuqln:
Cf. above, VII, A,
3 and 6. 12
.
(16)
wal-markab lam tusaq °ldl:
For markab as
feminine, cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 96, para. 119 B. 13. 14
.
15.
A
(18)
1* yantazlru for ilia yantazlru.
(19)
"the warships"— maraklb al-ahmlya1.
(19)
lam yukhllyu for lam tukhll:
For the -lyu
ending, cf. above, VII, B, 1.
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312 16 .
(20 )
wal-maraklb kathlra: On alif for tg* marbuta, cf. n. 4 above.
17 .
(22 )
al-°adal alladhi:
18.
(23)
sallman for salimatan.
19.
(26)
nasurr: ■■ I
Cf. above, VII, B, 5.
On s3>s, cf. above, VII, A, 6.
«■■■
'
9
W
V
(margin)
20.
(7 )
al-3 agfat:
Cf. preceding note.
Cf. also,
VII, C, 8. 21
.
we-ceqev shalom:
Cf. above, VII, D.
(verso) 22 .
(1 )
fl kutubl al-muta|qaddlmja:
On alif for
ta* marbuta,? cf. n. 4 above*
—
" ■
■
—
23.
(1)
fwj: Read:
fay3.
24.
(3 )
fi for fih:
Cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 117,
para. l6l B. 25.
(4)
wit sells better than the Buslrl"— wa-huwa akthar mashl mln al-BusIrl.
26 .
(5)
yaswa, with alif mamduda for alif maqsura: Cf. above,VII, A, 1, Table 14.
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313 27.
(7)
halll asfar, for halllaj asfar:
Cf. above,
V, B, 9.
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COMMENT Bodl. MS Heb. d 4-7, f. 62 (Cat. 2699, no. 25) (# 5) This letter is also from Ephraim al-Jawhari and like the preceding letters is sent from Alexandria. However, in this letter we find that Ephraim has just returned from the Maghreb and is overseeing the forward ing of goods to Ibn cAwkal in Fustat. It is interesting to note that the agent in Alexandria receiving Ibn cAwkal*s goods at this time is a Muslim, Ibn Rustam.
It is typical of this interfaith
cooperation in business that should the loading of river boats to Fustat fall upon a Jewish holy day, Ibn Rustam*s agent, Abu Bakr, would handle it (11. 12f.). The Dar Manak (1. 5) was a combination of toll station and bourse both in Alexandria and Fustat and appears also in an account statement translated below.1 The Dar Manak is mentioned by al-Makhzumi in his admin istrative handbook which deals among other things with the maks, or customs duties, levied in the Egyptian
1Bodl. MS Heb. d 65 (Cat. 2877), f. 18 (# 34), 1 . 4+ . 31^
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315 ports.
2
Abu SacId Khalluf b. Zakariyya*, whom we find here in partnershp (khulta) with Joseph b. cAwkal for two bales, was an important merchant and author of IS 13 J 17, f. 11 (# 7), which follows this letter.
2C1. Cahenv Douanes et commerce dans les ports mediterraneans de l*Egypte medievale d*apres le MlnhadJ d *al-Makhzumi, JESHO. 7:236f, part 3 (1964). Cahen was undecided on the orthography of the word since some literary texts read dSr mgllk. The Ibn cAwkal archives clearly show that the correct reading is manak♦ Since the word Is apparently foreign, a later scribe could easily have misunderstood it.
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316 Bodl MS Heb. d 47, f. 62 (Cat. 2699» no. 25) (# 5) 0 my Elder, Master, and esteemed leader— may God grant you long life and lasting days of contentment. (2) I am in a state of good health— abundant thanks to Him Who is the cause.
I wrote a letter which was sent
to you, my Elder and Master, (3) with the courier, alAshqar, informing you about the arrival of the qunbar. Khiyara, and the safe arrival of Abu '1-Khayr b. Barakat(4) thanks be to God.
I hope it will reach you and that
you will find it informative— God willing.
I have in
formed you that I had payed (5) all that we owed on the remaining freight charges and the duties for the bales at the Dar Manak and at the Rashid city gates.
I sought
to (6) send them with Bunana, but I was unable because I found that one of the bales had (7) leaked some mercury. I shall personally see to opening it and shall fix and repack it.
(8) My Master Abu SacId Khalluf b. Zakariyya*
— my God be his support— wrote me that he requested that my Master, the Elder, receive (9) in his stead, the load which arrived for him with me.
Furthermore, he gave me
a free hand to send it to you in any way I deemed appro priate. (10) Abu Bakr, Ibn Rustam*s agent— may God be his support— has informed me that all which belongs to
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317 my Master, the Elder, from (11) the bales, he put in storage with the Elder Ibn Rustam.
He was by my side
when the bales were received, and he would not (12) [take] anything save a small gratuity— my God recompense him. He said that he will be with me when they are to be loaded— God willing.
(13) Should the loading happen to
fall on a holiday, he will take care of it himself until it reaches my Master, the Elder--may God make (1^) his honored position lasting. There are four bales, one of which belongs to my Master, the Elder, alone, two are held in partnership with (15) Khalluf b. Zakariyya*— may God be his support— and one has stamped on it the name of Farah b. Sulayman and is to go to Khalluf.
(16) As to the bale which was
leaking mercury, I shall take care of opening and correct ing it, and shall bring it (17) with me— God willing. Likewise, I shall bring (18) with me the purse I had brought (from the Maghreb)--God willing— or, if it so happens that one of our faithful coreligionists can, I shall send it with him after (19) having sought the ad vice of Abu Ibrahim IsmacIl b. Abl °Uqba on the matter. I pray (20) God that the shakhtur will arrive, and I shall collect the purse for you which is on it— God willing. (21) May my Master, the Elder, not deprive me of his letters Informing me of his health, his welfare,
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318 and whatever (22) he requires, so that I may accomplish it . . .
I extend my best greetings to my Master, the
noble Elder (margin) and to each of his sons best greet ings.
Greetings also to all who are under his protection.
(address) My Elder, Master, and Lord, the Elder Abu 'l-FaraJ £may GodJ prolong {his life^j Yusuf b. Yacqub (may his soul find rest) b. cAwkal From Ephraim b. IsmacIl (may his soul
find rest)
One who is grateful of his favor
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319 Notes Bodl. MS Heb. d 4-7, f. 62 (Cat. 2699, no. 25) (# 5) 1.
(2 )
°an hal salama wa-°aflya 11 -mawlaha al-hamd: It is unusual for the writer not to change the alif maqsura in mawla to alif mamduda with the addition of the pronominal suffix.
2.
(3)
qunbar:
Concerning this type of vessel,
cf. Goitein, Med. Soc., I, p. 306. 3.
{k)
in shallah:
As in many dialects today.
Cf.
above, VII, A, 9* 4.
(4)
wazant— "I payed:**
Literally "I weighed
out." 5.
(5 )
al-a°dal for al-a°dal:
The writer is con
sistent in this spelling In all his letters. Cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 19, para. 6 B. 6.
(1 2 )
"a small gift"— macuna.
7.
{Ik)
"two bales in partnership"— wa*cldlayn khulta:
Concerning khulta, cf. above,
V, A, n. 27. 8.
(16)
annahu n°lm:
A slip of the pen.
Bead:
annahu na°mll.
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320 9.
(17).
al-surra alladhl wasalat:
Cf. above,
VII, B, 5. 10.
(20 )
shakhtur:
According to Dozy, Supplement.
I» P* 733t>» ‘'grand bateau." 11 .
(201*)
wa-kltabl mawlaya «1-Bhaykh: One would expect kutub here.
The writer apparently
means to say "your letters for me."
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COMMENT TS 13 J 17, f. 11 (# ?) The writer of this letter, Khalluf b. Zakariyya*, has already been met In the previous letter.
Here we
find that he bore the additional epithet of al-Ashqar, "the man with fair or reddish hair.'** The writer informs Ibn cAwkal that two ships, the al-Maqru§ and the Ibn al-Basmali,2 which were on their way from Fustat to Tunisia, were impounded in Alexandria along with their cargoes (11. 5-1*0 •
The owners of the
vessels, who were themselves merchants, were in debt,it would seem.
Their creditors got the government author**
ities to confiscate the ships.
The cargo, too, was im
pounded on the assumption that perhaps some of the mer chants owed the two ship owners money on the freight. However, with the discovery of the al-Maqru§' account book, it was found that Ibn cAwkal had no outstanding debts, and as a result, his goods were released.
Ibn Zakariyya*
*Wehr, Modern Written Arabic, p. ^8la. 2al-Maqru§: TS 13 J 19, f. 29 (# 3), 1. 10+ , TS Arabic Box 5, f. 1 (#28), 1. 3**+ J Ibn al-Basmall: TS 8 J 18, f. 14 (# 11), 1. 7+ . 321
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322 was not so fortunate* In this letter, again, we find, the House of Ibn cAwkal having business relations with Muslim mer chants (11. l^ff.).
The fact that Ibn Zakariyya* intends
to go to wish Ibn Ghawth well for the holiday (in this case cId al-Fitr, the breaking of the Bamadan fast) indicates the cordial relations obtaining between Jewish and Muslim merchants. The writer also informs Ibn cAwkal that many pilgrims would be coming from Sicily for the Hajj (pil grimage) to Mecca.
Since the HaJJ was also a time of
thriving business activity, the pilgrims often carried goods both coming and going.3 The letter was received at the Ibn cAwkal office on October 7» 1030.
3A popular wish made to Muslim pilgrims was; “May your pilgrimage be accepted, yoursin forgiven, and your goods not remained unsold" (ha.1.1 maqbfll wa-dhanb maghfPr. wa-tl.l5ra 15 tabur). Cf* also TS B.12 (# 26)+ above.
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323 TS 13 J 17, f. 11 (# 7) In the name of God Almighty 0 my Master, l e a d e r ........... may God grant you (2) long life and lasting blessing. deprive you of success.
May He not
I am writing to you from Alex
andria on Thursday (3) at the beginning of Marheshwan. I am well— thank God— but I yearn for you— may God hasten (4-) our reunion under the best of circumstances, for He has charge of such things. Know, Master, that I arrived here (5) two days ago, after being on the road six days.
I asked for news
from the agent of the ship al-MaqrSs, (6) and I learned that he received
J00 dinars
of flax, plus commission.
from Ibn cImran for 12 bales (7) He sold the ship out from
under him on the testimony of some Gentiles who bore witness against him.
They were among those who were (8)
with me on the ship. So he took it by order of the Qadl, and my con signment was impounded for that reason!
(9) That is,
those four bales of pepper about which you know.
How
ever, you may rest at ease because afterwards (10) they found the account book of the al-Maqrus in which was a detailed rendering of your account— what was sent to you and what (11) came to him from you • • • on one side.
• • your account
His agent collected your Droperty from (12)
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324 the man.
As for the ship Ibn al-Basmali, its cargo was
produced and was brought to Qayrawan to cAbd Ibn Hisham, (13) the Qadl. be with it.
As of this hour we do not know what will
I ask God to ordain a good outcome for you,
(14) for us, and for all Israel. I arrived on the eve of the Muslim feast and did not find (15) Ibn Ghawth sitting in his shop.
Then
I was afraid to send the letter during the holiday lest (16) it should be mislaid.
On the morrow of my writing
this letter, I shall go to his house to wish him well for the holiday.
I shall deliver it (17) to him and get
his reply and the thing which you requested— God willing. As for Shucayb, the agent, we (18) have no need of him in this matter. work out well.
May God cause everything to
What troubles my heart is (191 that my
consignment has been confiscated.
A hundred dinars passed
me by in two selling periods, and my consignment has been held up (20) until the very end of the period— may God keep it safe. As to that which you wished to know:
Today (21)
a light qarib arrived from the capital of Sicily after being 29 days en route. 30 £ passengers (? )]•
It was carrying cheese (22) and
They mentioned that Ibn Jacfar*s ship
set sail with them on the same night, and that when they left Palento (23) there were two ships loading behind them— the Ibn Daysftr which had come from here (24) and a
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325 ship belonging to Ra'iq.
Two ships were hired to trans
port Apulian (?) grain— may God protect them.
(25) They
also mentioned that they had met the ships which were wrecked fifteen days ago; and that flax (26) in is 25 quarters per qintar.
^icily
It is not selling well.
Finally, they said that many pilgrims would be coming for the Hajj.
(margin) No letter arrived on this qarib for any Jews. Our people's letters are on Ibn Ja°far*s ship— may God cause you to receive good news.
(2) Do not hold back your
letters from i^e if any letters reach you from the agent of the al-Maqrus that all has gone well for you.
(3) He
will no doubt write to you explaining what he has done since those first letters.
(verso) I extend to my Master the Elder the best of greetings.
And to your sons and all who are under (2)
your protection best greetings.
Whatever you should need
here, please do me the honor of (3) informing me of it. Peace unto you.
I trust in God.
And may the end be for
the best.
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326 (address) My Elder and beloved Superior Abu '1-FaraJ Yosef b. Ya°aqov b. cAwkal— may God grant him long life and may He ever afford him His protection, guidance, and guardian ship From Khalluf b. Zakariyya* al-Ashqar (may his soul find rest). One grateful for his favors Destined for Fustat— if God Almighty and Exalted wills
(note of receipt in Arabic script) Arrived on the sixth of Shawwal ^21 (A.H.)
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327 Notes TS 13 J 17, P. 11 (# 7) 1.
(1)
blsm allah al-cazrm: Muslim basmala.
A variant of the
Such openings are rare in
the Ibn cAwkal correspondence*
In fact, there
are but two other occurrences— TS 12*383 (#29) and TS 12*391 (#3^a)+ . 2.
(2)
Alexandria:
Written here Iskandarlyya
without the article* 3*
(3)
mustahallt
"the beginning of the month.H
4.
(4)
al-lshtlmgc for al-l.1tlmgc :
Cf. Blau,
Grammar, p. 37, para. 19 C. 5-
(*0
ill hon:
6.
(5)
ll yawmayn:
7*
(7)
Hebrew goylm (gentiles): Muslims.
Cf. above, VII, A, 3* For llyawmayn or 11a yawmayn* Always indicates
Christians are called in the
Genlza °arel (uncircumoised). 8.
(8)
wa-qabadaha bll-qadl:
bi== by order of.
9.
(9)
al-4 acdal al-fulful alladhl:
Cf. above,
VII, C, 8 and B, 5.
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328 10
.
(10)
hys*bk for hlsabak:
11
.
(10)
ma°o for macahu:
Cf. above, VII, A, 3*
Cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 59»
para. 50 D. 12
.
13.
(13)
asal for as*al:
(14)
ysr:
Cf. above, VII, A, 5*
Common abbreviation in the Geniza for
yl8ra*el. 14.
(14)
yawm
e
arafat
c— id al-qawm:
For this use of
°arafa, cf. Goitein*s note in Jewish trade, P. 25, 15. 16
(15)
. (15-16)
khyft
for khiftu:
Cf. n. 10 above.
"lest
it should be mislaid:" yahsll lahu
nlsyan. 17.
(18)
allah
yuhsln al-khalast
Cf. above, VII,
C, 4. 18.
(19)
wa-tacuq rahll:
The writer treats rahl here
as feminine. 19.
(20)
allah yusalllmuh:
.
(21)
mln madlna slqllllyyat
20
unusual.
Cf. n. 17 above. This combination is
On alif for ta* marbuta, cf. above,
VII, A, lt Table 14.
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329 21•
(22)
30 ra . .:
Goitein suggests ratlb which he
believes to be units of quantity for cheese. However, the reading raklb also makes good sense here. 22.
(22)
m°hwm;
Cf. note 10 above,
23.
(22)
laylS for layla:
24.
(23)
mln al-madlna:
25.
(23)
mln hon:
26.
(24)
lpl*yh:
Cf. n. 20 above. Cf. n. 20 above.
Cf. n. 5 above. The translation Apulia is unsure
since the Arabs called the city al-anbullyya, Cf., e.g., Amari, Blblloteca arabo-slcula (Leipzig:
F. A. Brockhaus, 1857), index
to Arabic text, s.v. 27.
(26)
bll-slqllllyya:
Here with the article,
(margin) 28.
(1)
allah yutallcuka °ala khayr:
Cf. n. 17
above. 29.
(2)
ktwb:
Cf. n. 10 above.
30.
(2)
al-wakil al-Maqrus:
Cf. n. 9 above.
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330 31.
(3)
yktwb;
Cf. n. 10 above.
32.
(3)
dhlk al-ktwb ak-ula, for dhlk;
Cf. Blau,
Grammar, p. 64, para. 51 E and n. 50; al ula with t5* marbuta for alif maqsura: Cf. above, VII, A, 1, Table 14.
(verso) 33.
(2)
hon:
Cf. n. 5 above.
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Comment TS 13 J 29, f. 2 (# 6) The author of this letter, Harun b. Yusuf alGhazzal, has already been mentioned as being one of Ibn cAwkal's main agents.1
This letter which was written in
the Spring of 1030^ describes the sorry condition of the markets of al-Mahdiyya and Qayrawan.
Harun lists the
prevailing prices for several varieties of flax, as well as for other commodities0
Harun also mentions some un
specified oppressive acts of the government (1. 16). The poll-tax (jlzya), of course, concerned the Jewish and Christian communities.
However, the other exactions
(ghurum) may have been against the general populace. What exactly is alluded to here is not certain. The Arab historians tell us that this period was one of continual Berber uprisings, and even a march against Qayrawan in 1029 which, however, was put down with a great blood bath. Again in this letter we find an explicit testi-
^■TS 13 J 17, f. 3 (#1), 1. ^+ J and TS 13 J 19, f. 29 (Assaf-Epstein C/#3), margin+ . ^Ibn cIdharI, Kltab al-Bayan al-Mughrlb, I, pp. 2?^.; Ibn Khaldun, Hlstolre des Berbferes, I, p« 20^-. 331
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2
332 mony to the interconfessional cooperation obtaining in business.
Harun states that he held a bale (probably
flax) in partnership with Khalifat-Allah, who is cer tainly a Muslim (1. 3). Harun informs Ibn cAwkal in this letter that he has taken a wife for himself in al-Kahdiyya (1. 15)• At the end of the letter Harun send regards to his ’'brother'' Salama.
This may indeed be his brother and the author of
the following letter to Ibn °Awkal, but not necessarily. The Arabic word akhi then as now was loosely used to designate even casual acquaintances.
Goitein suggests
that perhaps the merchant Salama al-Mahdawi is referred to here.3
^Goitein, Jewish trade, p. 22.
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333 TS 13 .J 29, f. 2 ( # 6) I am writing to you at the beginning of Nisan from Qayrawan.
May God prolong yourdays, 0 my Master and
exalted leader.
I am well and in good health--thanksbe
to God. (2) As to what you wish to know, my Elder: number of bales arrived for me in the first ships.
A I
myself arrived afterwards and found them in the warehouse. (3) My Master Abu '1-Hayy did not sell anything from it at the fair for me, with the exception of the bale which was held Jointly in partnership by myself and KhallfatAllah, because (*0 we arrived on three different ships: the first ship of the Qafld, the ship of Ibn al-Qastall, and the ship of Abu *1-Kharrar, in which I was a passenger. I arrived (5) hut found that he had not sold anything, and I was sorely grieved at this. tfhen we came t o ............... there was no market.
No one could' make a penny, and we did not (6)
sell anything except a single bale of good flax . . . .
I
took a loan against it and bought a little olive oil, its price (7) being between 6-5/8 and 7.
Then I put it in a
warehouse.
Olive oil here at the present time is between
7* and 7£.
I have made the trip up to Qayrawan (8) at
this time only with great anxiety and worry because of the depressed market.
I pray God that the market will be
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33^ stimulated after the Passover, and I shall set about (9) selling according to what God ordains for me, and I shall buy whatever God inspires me— may it be for the best. Busiri flax (10) goes for 7 to 9 dinars a qintar.
Ashmuni (flax) goes for . .-3/^ to
dinars.
Good,
old Malal(flax) (11) goes for 280 to 190 (dirhems). Another of this variety goes for 160 to 250.
Please be
so advised .............. As to the price of spices: Costus is 25.
Brazilwood is . . .
(12) pepper is 82.
- 18.
Sal Ammoniac
is a dinar per 3-1/8 mann • . . Egyptian sugar is 14. (13) Sharab is 10.
Musk sells badly at
KirmanI indigo . . . . . dinar per mann.
Camphor is 62.
6 dinars per m a n .........
(14)
Lacquer is not on the market and has no ^
price worth writing to you.
The high-grade
mm
«■
Amtani indigo
is 20 to 25* I would like to inform my Master, the Elder— (15) may God be his support— that I have sought God Exalted’^guidance, and I have married in al-Kahdiyya into a family that required of me much in exchange (i.e. a high bridal gift). As to the news from our region:
(16) there are
all sorts of exactions and the poll-tax— may God not for give him who causes this and who does harm to the people. I pray God that the outcome will be £good
..........3
letter of (17) my Master the Elder, and they will settle
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335 it for us.
Whatever I have I shall write to my Master,
the Elder— may God make lasting his positi ( o n .......... • .J (18) on all that was with me. this letter mentioning what I have.
Now I have written I pray God that a
letter [from you^ will arrive [with] (19) the news from your region.
I shall see to the selling after the holi-
day~God willing.
I shall buy as God inspires me [• • •
• • • and I shall depart
(20) with the first ships—
God willing. I extend my very best greetings to my Master. And to my Master, Abu *1-Fadl and my Master . . . . . . • • (margin) and my Master Abu Sahl, and my Master Abu SacId, my best greetings.
I have not seen . . . .
any
letter from my Master, the Elder, this year, and it grieves me. I hope for the best and may the end be peace.
(verso) Extend to my brother, Salama, my best greet ings, and inform him that I have not sold the bale which has been with me up till [now.
I will sell it3 (2)
together with my merchandise— God willing.
I shall buy
as God inspires me, and shall bring it with me— if God wills.
Greetings to his sons and to the one who is by
his side (i.e. his wife).
(3) Peace unto you and God*s
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336 mercy and blessings.
(address) To my Elder, Lord, and Master . . . .
the venerable— ‘may
Gcd make his position ever-lasting and exalt him— ^Abu"] *1-Faraj Yusuf b. Yacqub b. cAwkal (may his soul find rest) From Harun b. Yusuf al-Ghazzal (may his soul find rest) His friend and admirer To arrive in Fustat, Egypt— God willing
(note of receipt in Arabic script) Arrived on the 9th of Rabl° II, 421 (A.H.)
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337 Notes TS 13 J 29, f. 2 (# 6) 1.
(1)
"the beginning of the month"— mustahall.
2,
(2)
wasaltu ana wajadtuha: 2.
Cf. above, VII, C,
Perhaps this is not an asyndetic clause.
The conjunction may possibly have been as similated by the writer with the Initial waw as in present-day colloquial Moroccan (wwldat or uwldat, "and she gave birth"). 3*
(3)
wa-lam yabl°:
Cf. above, VII, B, 3»
4.
(3)
Abi *1-Hayy instead of Abu *1-Hayy:
Cf.
above, VII, C, 7. 5.
(3)
ml khala mln al-°ldl:
6.
(4)
markab Abu *1-Kharrar;
7.
(5)
wa-lam najld.hu ba°i:
For ma khala »l-cldl. Cf. above, VII, C, 7. Instead of ba°lyan:
With the loss of the case endings, one finds the accusative occurring in Judaeo-Arabic texts only in special instances, cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 148, para. 216 and pp. 150-152. 8.
(5)
15 man yahull f1 shay* dirham an w5hld: an, cf. above, VII, C, 5*
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For
338 —Q
9.
(6)
wa-lam nabl t
.
(6)
ma khala mln °ldl an wahld:
10
Cf. n. 3 above. Cf. nn. 5 and
8 above. 11
.
(6)
wa-ltasallaftu:
12
.
(8)
srj:
13.
(9)
bll-qlsm wa-rlzq:
Cf. above, VII, B, 2.
A slip of the pen.
Reads
dajar.
A common expression in
the Geniza, also found in the forms bigism allah wa-rlzq and blma yaqslmu *llah wayarzuq— i.e. for whatever price one can get. Cf. Goitein, Med. Soc., I, pp. I85f. 14.
(11)
"please be so advised"— aclamtuka dhallk: Literally:
"I have informed you of this"
(also, carraftuka dhallk).
This is merely
a way of Indicating the end of a section. 15.
(14)
dinar instead of dinar:
Cf. Blau, Grammar,
pp. 23f., para. 9 A and B. 16
.
(15)
"I have sought God Exalted*s guidance"— lstakhartu, etc.:
Literally, "I sought from
God to choose the best for me."
On this
practice of divining God's will, of* Goldziher, Istikhara, El*, II, pp. 5^1f. Simi lar practices are found amongst the Jews and Muslims of the Middle East up till today.
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339 17.
(15)
man?
Written twice.
18 .
(1?)
wa-ma li shay1an aktub?
For an, cf. n. 8
above• 19.
(19)
al-akhbar alladhl J5*at:
Cf. above, VII,
B, 5. 20.
(19)
cndkwm:
Cf. above, VII, A, 3.
21 .
(20 )
al-salam instead of ai-salam:
It is writ
ten the same way in the margin and on side 2, 1. 1.
Cf. Blau, Grammar, p. 19> para.
6 B abd p. 24, para, 9 B.
(margin) —c
22 .
(1 )
lam abl :
23.
(2)
illjr:
24 .
(3 )
wal-sala (!)?
Cf. n. 3 above,
Read?
allSh. For wal-sal5m.
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COMMENT TS Arabic Box 5, f. 1 (#28) Although the name of the sender is missing from this letter, we may assume with some certainty that the writer is the brother of Harun al-Ghazzal (1. 11)* Unlike the previous letter, it seems quite clear in this instance that akhi is used to refer to the writer's real brother. Again we find the Tunisian markets paralyzed (kasid).*
On account of the sluggish market in Tunisia,
the writer sailed to Palermo, only to find after a jour ney of great hardship that the markets there, too, were Inactive (11. 15-18). This letter would appear to have been written during the late twenties or early thirties of the eleventh century.
The ship al-Maqru§ has already been encountered
in two dated letters from the year 1030.2
The writer in
forms Ibn cAwkal that he is sending two hundred pieces
*Cf. the preceding letter and TS 12.218 (# 18), 11. 12ff+ . 2TS 13 J 19, f. 29 (# 3)» 1. 10+ ; and TS 13 J 17, f. 11 (# 7), 1. 5+ .
3^0
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3^1 (shlqqa) of cloth and a consignment of caraway seeds on the al-Maqru§.
The shlqqa was the standard pre-cut, gar
ment-sized piece of cloth. ranean product.
Caraway was a common Mediter
The writer also mentions that he is send
ing a consignment of silk in the qaraba (or qarrlba) in which he and another merchant were travelling to al-Mahdiyya.
From the name, it would seem that qaraba was some
sort of freighter. Harun*s brother dictated this letter to one Salman b. Shablb, who sends his personal regards to Ibn _
cAwkal at the end of the setter.
L
On the back of the letter is a short scribbled account of receipts from Qayrawan.
Very possibly this
account is In the handwriting of Joseph b. cAwkal, him self.
Most merchants did not have scribal hands, and in
fact, there is no other example of this handwriting in the Geniza according to Professor Goltein.5
3 c f . Dozy, Supplement. II, p. 323a* where the word is defined as "a kind of box in which one transports apples." Cf. also Goitein, Med. Soc., I, p. ^77* n. 13* ^Concerning this practice, cf. above, Chap. V, A, pp. 73f* ^Goitein, Jewish trade, p. 92.
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342 TS Arabic Box 5, f. 1 (#28) (the first 2£ lines are missing) ( 3 ) ............. may God hasten our reunion (4) in His customary graciousness. I shall £informJmy Master the Elder— may God strengthen him of some of what I (5) suffered on this journey of mine— things which surpass description.
^Not
only were there s t o r m s b u t also pirates and other things (6) which would require a lengthy explanation.
But thank
God and praised be He, Who ordained that the outcome would be for the good.
Indeed, this is due to my Master's
baraka ("blessing"), (7) and his good fortune.
May God
never deprive you of £h1s favorj . I came only to find the markets paralyzed (8) and the various grades of flax in low demand.
All of
the merchants were at a standstill, and I, too, did no business because the market (9) was dead and my flax in low demand.
Thus we refrained from selling • • • • wait
ing until Purim for prices to rise.
(10) and indeed,
the market increased greatly when your j~choice^| letter arrived in which you give instructions to sell at what ever price God ordains (11) since you have a great deal of flax there.
You also mention the matter of the loads
which remained with my brother, Harun (12) in al-Mahdiyya. Then a letter arrived from Harun to Abu Ya°qub Yusuf with
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3^3 instructions to sell.
So we all agreed to sell after
Purim with his consent and when Abu Yusuf b. Yahya arrives to collect its price . . . .
( 1 4 ) ........... I have a
bale belonging to me remaining with him in []al-toahdlyya]], (15) and he will collect its price.
When I learned of the
prices o f ............... and how littiba was the profit, and then learned that (16) £fla]]Jx was selling on the Island, I took it with [me aboard a ship]],
-‘•hen we en
countered a terrible storm, (17) and most of the lighter cargo was thrown overboard. (Palermo)
At last we reached the city
by the life of my Master the
Elder ( 1 8 ) ............... but this year happened to find the markets inactive.
(19) So I sought God*s aid and
sold as He ordained at varying [prices]] ranging from 28 to 31.
(20) the oales were of varying weights.
b a l e s ........... and the full weight.
£ other]]
Three
three (21) were lacking
I packed what I got for the sale money, in
alls
(several lines missing) (2?) I still have a great deal of the provisions
which were shipped to me (28) by Ibn al-Hajjanl and others . . . . . . . , ( 29) .................. rive in al-Mahdiyya.
(30) until we ar
Please be so advised.
I would not be kept here from coming back to (31)
you
were it not for the price of the loads which
I left in al-Mahdiyya which still has to be collected. My brother is afraid that (32) [he will not come]] this year
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344 ....
because I heard that he was staying in Egypt,
I— God willing— will go down (33) to al-Kahdiyya to set my affairs in order and then make the journey back to you,
I have sent £on the (34) ship^j al-Maqru§ a bundle
containing 200 pieces of cloth and caraway seed,
I am
sending silk in a qara .[ssQ (35) in which Marwan alAndalusI and I— God willing— are travelling to al-Mahdiyya (36) the day after tomorrow,
I appreciate the extent of
your love for him, your desire for "friendly relations” with him, (37) and your firm confidence in him. grateful to you for this. of gratitude.
May
He is
Indeed, you are justly deserving (38) reunite us under the best of
circumstances and not deprive us of your blessed counts* nance.
For you afford protection (39) to all those who
seek refuge in you and who know you. I extend to my venerable Master, in particular, my very best greetings.
(4) And to my Master Abu '1-Fad.l
— may God strengthen him— my most complete and respectful greetings.
To my Master (41) Abu Nasr— may God be his
support— my abundant greetings.
To my Masters Abu Kathlr
Ephraim and A[bu Sahl (?)] (42) Manasseh— may God shield them all— greetings.
And to all those under your pro
tection b[est] (43) greetings.
I commend you to God’s
protection for He is the best refuge. And I, SalmSn b.Shab[lb,J (44) your client and your handiwork, extend to you all personally | my most
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3^5 respectful^ and complete greetings. the ........
(45) The sign of
is on the wrapping material . . . . . .
(46)
(the remnants of two lines in another hand, obviously the sender's)
(address) Abu '1-Faraj Yusuf b. Yacqub cAwkal (!)— may ^God grant him long life, etc.^
(A short account is scribbled on verso possibly in Ibn cAwkal's own hand) (# 3 6 ) (1) The receipts in Qayrawan: (2) Rate of exchange . . .
8562 and a quarter
(dirhems) to dinars on 200
dinars . . . (3) Out of this . . . . . .
(4) 45 dinars, 2/3, (5) .In gold: (6) fromthat
and 1/8. To . . . 46, 2/3 and 1/8
a purse •
• .• • 45£ dinars.
....
remain to him. (7) .............. and nothing remains to him
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dinars
346 Notes TS Arabic Box 5, f. 1 ( # 2 8 and # 36) 1.
(5)
safratl:
Cf. above, VII, A, 6.
2.
(6 )
fa-111lah al-hamd wa-» shukran:
Cf. above,
VII, C, 6. 3.
(7)
"due to my Master*s baraka"— bl-barakat mawlaya:
Literally, "due to my Master's
•blessing.'"
The word baraka is used in
North Africa "to denote a mysterious wonder working force which is looked upon as a blessing from God, a 'blessed virture.'"— E. Westermarck, Ritual and Belief in Morocco, I (New Hyde Park, New York:
University
Books, 1968), p. 35. 4.
(9)
fa-ltawaqqafna:
3,
(10)
"at whatever price God ordains"— bll-qlsm wa *l-rlzq:
Cf. above, VII, B, 2.
Cf. n. 13 to the previous let
ter, above, p. 338* 6.
(16)
mabyu° for mabl°;
Cf. Blau, Grammar, p.
89, para. 104. 7,
(16)
nu'an cazlLm:
The writer treats nu'an, the
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347 broken plural of naw* (tempest), as a singular. 8.
(18)
wa-kan al-sana klslda: This use of the masculine verb where the feminine Is called for Is very common.
9.
(19)
"so I sought God*s aid"— wa-lstakhart:
Con
cerning this practice of divination, cf. n. 16 to the previous letter, above, p. 338* 10
.
(19f)
wa-kan al-cdal:
Cf. n. 8 above.
11
.
(27)
muna an kathlr:
Cf. above, VII,
12
.
(3)
°arraftuka dhallk:
C, 5*
This is merely a way
of indicating a full stop (like aclamtuka dhallk).
Cf. n. 14 to the previous letter,
above, p. 338* 13.
(30)
mln hon:
14.
(31)
al-ahmal alladhl:
15.
(31)
wa-ahkl khshyh;
.
(34f)
17.
(36)
16
Cf. above, VII, A, 3* Cf. above, VII, B, 5* Cf. above, VII,
al-qarajbajlladhl:
A, 3.
Cf. n. 14 above.
"friendly relations with him"— f1 suhbatlhl: Regarding this term, cf. Golteln, Med. Soc., I, p. 169.
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348 18.
(37f)
allah ya.1ma°una °ala «l-khayr:
Cf. above,
VII, C, 4.
(verso) 19.
(7)
lam yabqa:
Cf. above, VII, B, 3»
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COMMENT TS 8 J 18, f. 14 (# 11) This very short letter is written by Joseph b. Yeshuca, one of Ibn cAwkal's less important agents in Alexandria.
The letter is mostly concerned with the
transferring of monies.
In all, six purses for Ibn cAwkal
are mentioned— all apparently having arrived from the West.
The Ibn al-Basmali on which one of the purses ar
rived (1. 7) is one of the two ships which were impounded in October 1030.*
Two of the purses for Ibn cAwkal are
from important agents of his whom we have met before as correspondents— Ephraim b. Ismacri al-Jawharl (11. 9f.) and Harun al-Ghazzal (1. II).2 Some of the other people mentioned here are known from other Genlza sources.
YaCqub b. al-Shama, who
here is delivering some letters to Ibn cAwkal (1. 5)> appears in 1040 before Nathan b. Abraham, who for several years set up a rival gaonate to the Palestinian Academy,
1Above TS 13 J 17,
U