Taberî

Taberî (Ebû Ca'fer Muhammed b. Cerîr b. Yezîd el-Âmülî et-Taberî el-Bağdâdî) is one of the founding figures of Islamic historiography, a historian who lived in the 9th-10th centuries. His most renowned work is Târîhü'l-Ümem ve'l-Mülûk (Târîhü't-Taberî), which narrates world history from the first human to his own time.

Life

Taberî was born in Âmül, the center of the Taberîstan region located south of the Hazar, at the end of the hicrî year 224 (m. 839) or the beginning of the hicrî year 225. He completed his studies in Islamic sciences alongside renowned teachers of the era in various cities of İran and Irak; in h. 253 (m. 868), he moved to Fustat, the capital of Mısır, and after a three-year absence, he returned to Bağdat in h. 256 (m. 871). Taberî, who spent more than fifty years of his life in Bağdat, remained in scholarly circles, neither accepting official positions offered by Abbâsî caliphs and viziers nor receiving their gifts and awards. Despite not marrying, Taberî, known by his kunya Ebû Ca'fer, passed away in Bağdat in h. 310 / m. 923 at the age of eighty-four (Volume 1, p. 93).

Narrations Regarding Kurds

Taberî holds special importance for the sources of Kürt history; he is the first historian to use the word "Kürt" to express the ethnic characteristic of settled communities. Taberî, who wrote his work in the Hicrî III / miladî IX. century, is among the earliest authors to use the word "Kürt" in this ethnic sense. His Târîh contains numerous narrations on various topics related to the Kurds: while twenty-nine narrations concerning Kürt cities in the pre-İslam period are conveyed, there are fifteen narrations where the word "Kürt" (el-Kürdî) and/or its plural "Ekrad" appear. Taberî used the word "Ekrad" fifty-five times in his work as the name of a people/nation. The majority of these usages occur during the narration of events belonging to the caliphate periods of el-Mu'tasım Billâh (d. h. 227 / m. 842) and el-Mu'tazid Billâh (d. h. 289 / m. 902), i.e., between the hicrî years 220-270 / miladî years 835-883 (Volume 1, p. 94).

Taberî's Târîh has also served as a source for narratives concerning the Kurds in the pre-İslam period. His work includes a letter exchanged between Pehlevî Erdevan and Sâsânî Erdeşir; in this letter, Erdevan disparages Erdeşir as a "Kürt raised in tents." Similarly, there is a reference to the Kurds in a narration between Sâsânî king Hürmüz's son Perviz and Behram; in these narrations, Taberî conveys statements indicating that Pers nomads were Kurds (Volume 2, p. 52). These narrations have also been followed and cited by later geographers and historians.

Influence on Later Historiography

Taberî's work has been one of the fundamental pillars of subsequent historiography. Sâbit b. Sinân authored a work as a supplement to Taberî's Târîh; the work titled Kitâbü't-Târîh by the Büveyhîler period historian Hilâl b. Muhassin es-Sâbî (d. 448/1056) is a continuation of Sinân's supplement and covers the years 360-447 (970-1055) (Volume 1, p. 144). In geography and travel literature, Himyerî also utilized Taberî, along with authors such as İbn İshâk, İbn Hişâm, and Belâzürî, while preparing his work er-Ravżü'l-Mi'târ fî Haberi'l-Aktâr (Volume 2, p. 46).

In conclusion, Taberî's Târîhü't-Taberî is considered one of the principal works forming the basis for comparative reading among the fundamental sources providing information about the Kurds, alongside İbnü'l-Esîr's el-Kâmil fi't-Târîh and Şerefhan Bidlîsî's Şerefnâme (Volume 2, p. 8).