Arabic, fictive fool, Middle East, primary source, quotes, stories
One method of admonishing a king is to offer him the title of fool, a verbal equivalent of making him change places with his jester. Here is an Arabic version of this regular formula:A list of fools was drawn up by a man from Damascus with the sultan’s name at...
Arabic, fictive fool, folk fool, Middle East, primary source, quotes, stories
There is an Arabic tale of a jester-like hunchback who helps the king see the stupidity of his superstitions by making him laugh. A hunchback was supposedly a bad omen, to be avoided. One day when the king was out hunting, the first person he met was a hunchback...
Arabic, fictive fool, Middle East, primary source, quotes, stories
Physical deformity was in many times and places a positive asset in a jester, as this example from the 1001 Nights demonstrates. In other contexts, mental disability could also be an asset. We will reference fools and jesters of either type as we go, and also bring to...
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...
3rd millennium BCE, Babylonian, lexicon, Mesopotamia, Middle East, primary source, research
‘The alan.zu/ aluzinnu could sing, play instruments and dance, and in fact from the earliest times (in Mari, Babylonia and in Bogazköy) he is connected with musicians, singers and acrobats who performed at festivals and (para?)religious...
3rd millennium BCE, bibliography, English, Greece, Greek, journal paper, Mesopotamia, Middle East, primary source, research
‘When did professional jesters become a part of civilized society, and in particular a part of court and temple personnel?’ (p. 187)Maddalena Rumor’s paper poses a big question and moots the possibility of an early start to the jester as a...
