The Identification of the Rhyme in the Muʿğam fī maʿāyīr ašʿār al-ʿağam by Šams al-Dīn Muḥammad b. Qays al-Rāzī

Abstract

The chapter on the ravī (the last ‘letter’ of the rhyme), from the work al-Muʿğam fī maʿāyīr ašʿār al-ʿağam by Šams-i Qays (13th century), is deemed the earliest and more prestigious extant text describing the rules concerning the rhyme (qāfiya) in Persian verses. It focuses on the identification of the pivotal rhyming letter (ravī), that is the last segment of the rhyming word, around which the rhyme of a poem is built. In discussing this topic, Šams-i Qays touches on linguistic issues and gives a list of Persian suffixed morphemes for the first time. The present paper offers a new annotated translation of the section on the ravī from al-Muʿğam; it aims to clarify difficult passages and examples, highlight text inconsistencies, and identify several lines of poetry occurring in the text.