2nd millennium BCE, Egypt, Egyptian, fooleum, primary source
The earliest reference I have found to a possible court jester concerns a dwarf at the Egyptian court in the 3rd millennium BCE. It appears that dwarfs and pygmies were respected in ancient Egypt, and there is even a dwarf god, Bes. More to follow on this as I am...
10th century, Arabic, Egypt, historical figure, primary source, quotes, stories
It was a happy moment to discover this first hand account of a 10th century ‘wise fool’, Sībawayh the Egyptian (897-98 – 968-69 / 284-358). I am grateful to Mathieu Tillier’s paper for bringing him to light and translating a number of episodes...
1st millennium BCE, 2nd millennium BCE, 3rd millennium BCE, 7th century BCE, Babylonian, China, Chinese, East Asia, Egypt, Egyptian, historical figure, Mesopotamia, Middle East, primary source, quotes, research
The first specific reference we have (so far) to what might be a jester concerns a dwarf or a pygmy in ancient Egypt during the reign of Neferkere (Pepi II, r. from c. 2278 BCE). An official wrote to the Pharaoh mentioning a dancing dwarf he had found, and Pepi II...
10th century, Arabic, bibliography, book, Egypt, historical figure, primary source
al‐Ḥasan b.Ibrāhīm b. Zūlāq (Ibn Zūlāq) (919‐998) was a contemporary of the historical ‘wise fool’ known as Sībawayh the Egyptian. About 20 years younger, he was an eyewitness to some of the flying barbs and critiques levelled by Sībawayh at corruption or...
10th century, Arabic, bibliography, Egypt, historical figure, journal paper, research
Mathieu Tillier’s paper brings to light the 10th century ‘wise fool’ (ʿuqalāʾal‐maǧānīn) who rode a donkey or walked through the streets of Fusṭāṭ. Abū Bakr Muḥammad b. Mūsā b. ʿAbd al‐ʿAzīz al‐Kindī al‐ was known as Sībawayh (‘the...
