Abu Dulama, Zand Ibn Al-Jawn

Date of birth un known; died 777. A poet and satirist in Arabic. Abu Dulama came from Africa; his native language is unknown. He produced his works at the court of the caliphs Mansura and Mahdi. The fragments of Abu Dulama’s diwan that survive show him to have been a skillful poet endowed with traits of genuine humor. The poet also stooped to flattery. His biting, satirical verses, which live on in the form of familiar anecdotes, won popularity. Many of Abu Dulama’s figures of speech have become proverbial.