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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 February 2009
The documented history of the theory of the muwashshaḥ and one of its constituent parts, the kharja, spans almost 800 years: from Ion Sanā' al-Mulk (d. 608/1211) to the present day. Apologists for the various theories broadly belong to one of two schools, which for the sake of convenience I shall label ‘integralist’ and ‘partialist’. The integralist view holds that the muwashshaḥ is an indivisible poetic unit with a coherent internal structure; partialists, on the other hand, divide the muwashshaḥ into two separate units where certain linguistic criteria are applicable: the main body of the muwashshaḥ in Classical Arabic and the kharja if it employs a Romance and/or Arabic vernacular.
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47 Labbayka (‘ at your service’) is a formula addressed to God during the pilgrimage until the stoning at the valley of Minā; ՙUmra is the lesser pilgrimage which may be performed in association with the Ḥajj; hadīy is a sacrificial animal slaughtered on iīd al-aḍḥā; jimār are three heaps of stones in the valley of Minā formed by the stones thrown by pilgrims returning from ՙArafāt, thought to symbolize the stoning of Satan.
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50 Whilst I retain full responsibility for the views expressed in this paper, I wish to record my gratitude to Dr Richard Hitchcock of the University of Exeter, Professor Pat Harvey of King's College, London, and Dr Jareer Abu-Haidar of the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, who generously gave their time to comment on the paper at various stages in its development.
