Arabian Chivalry and its advent into English Romance

Abstract

Arabs are known to the world as a tribe of nomads fighting among themselves bereft of any traits of ‘civilized’ nations. This narrative has come down to us from the oriental perspective, however there are so many loopholes in this frame of reference, that modern day scholars feel the need to unearth the truth behind the socio-political fabric of Arabs, long forgotten in the so called secular history. The rich literary tradition of Arabs needs to be studied and brought to light. Albert Hourani in his book, A History of the Arab Peoples rightly says, “In the seventh century the Arabs created a new world into which other peoples were drawn” (123). The statement is woven specifically in the context of bringing to the world a new religion that is Islam with a stable socio-political order. The present studyhas the primary focus of unearthing the very genesis of chivalry (Al-furusiyyah al-arabiya) and its importance in Arab life down the ages. Chivalry as a social institution has its roots in the far deserts of Arabia. The common literati believe that chivalry is primarily a western genre of romance literature. However the fact remains that it trickled into the European literary landscape after the Spanish conquest. It was the year A.D 711 when Tariq bin Ziyad through the rock of Gibraltar changed the course of European history for ever by grafting the seeds of intellect and progress into the West. The Spanish conquest brought Europe back from the dark ages which had bed-ridden it for many hundred years. Arabs brought with them a new social set up and political order which Europe was lacking on account of rise of Visigoths and mercenaries. Muslims brought with them books of medicine, mathematics, commerce and above all a stable political order to Spain. It was here when the East met the West and transformed the later forever. Arab way of life was channeled into the West through the literary works of poets and roaming troubadours. The present study has a focus to trace the origin of chivalry back to the Arabian Peninsula and how it was adopted by western society in their literary tradition.