An-Najah Staff

The habit of giving gifts was popular in the Abbasid Era for various purposes. It was given for generosity, getting close from somebody, congratulating someone, avoiding nasty circumstances and as a bribe. Thus, the poets in this Era said plenty about this habit. They talked about the influence of the gift, the times of presenting, what is good to be given as a gift, and what forces and brings disparagement. They also told the descriptions of those gifts, through that they viewed the value of the gift, its kind and its condition. Their purpose of that was generosity and generous people, or the irony from the stingy ones. The most of what is said of the gifting poetry was poetry of occasions, and for every occasion there was its special gifts, so the gifts became diverse and multi as the diversity of people in the society of Abbasid Era. Therefore, we see that the poets had talked about the sorts of foods and desserts, the different kinds of drinks, the fruit and vegetables, the horses, the books, perfumes in their various kinds….etc. So we can see that they have transferred to us a side of the gracious life in that era, and some of their habits that were prevalent in their society. Thereby, this study has come to view all those aspects mentioned above.