Hispano-Arabic Poetry, the Provencal Medium, and Middle English Lyrics: Some Similarities in Their Metrical Patterns, Motifs, Imagery, and Phraseology

In this paper I advance the thesis that certain aspects of HispanoArabic poetry have influenced Medieval English poetry principally by way of the Proven9al poetry of the troubadours and of other European poetries. Although extensive studies have been published on the Arabic theory on the genesis of European vernacular poetry as well as on the influence of the troubadours on Medieval English poetry, no serious study, as far as I can ascertain, has been published showing the link between Hispano-Arabic and Middle English poetry. This thesis, I hope, should make a specific contribution to the field of comparative studies in Medieval European literature by demonstrating that some Hispano-Arabic elements can be seen in Middle English lyrics. The� thesis first discusses the impact of Medieval Arabic culture on Medieval Europe and the means through which the transmission of Arabic knowledge was effected. In it I review the theories on the origins of Romance vernacular poetry and of the courtly love tradition and examine the characteristics of Hispano-Arabic poetry, showing its influence on Romance vernacular poetries, especially on the Proven9al. I also discuss the influence of Provencal poetry on European Medieval poetries including Middle English poetry. Finally, in light of the foregoing discussions, I demonstrate the similarities in metrical patterns and in the motifs, imagery, and phraseology between Hispano-Arabic poetry and Middle English lyrics. However, beyond a few general references, the religio~s poetry is not treated in this study. Again, apart from a few illustrations, the poetic works of Chaucer, Gower, Lydgate, Skelton, and Dunbar are not examined. Such writers need an analysis beyond the scope of this effort. As the study stands, some repetitions of ideas and jargon still appear. Also, apart from the verses reproduced from the English translations of Arabic poetry, I take the responsibility for any deficencies in the few translations I made. For transliteration and unless quoting, I followed the system used by American scholarly journals. In the case of proper names and place names, I used the generally accepted forms in current English scholarship. Some of the words, such as Hispano-Arabic and Andalusian, are used interchangeably. I also normalized medieval English spelling to some extent. For example, the letter (y) is used instead of the yogh (3).Englis