On the Article Titled “Başşār” by Mahmad Fahmī Lecturer in History of Arabic Literature in Dār Al-Funūn
Bünyamin AydınMudarriszādah Mahmad Fahmī (ö. 1873-1944) was a lecturer who held several offices in Baghdad during the reign of Abdulhamīd II. Mudarriszādah then lectured in the History of Arabic Literature at Dār al-Funūn for ten more years. Besides Arabic and Turkish he also spoke and read Persian and French. He prepared this lecture notes in four volumes and published the first volume dedicated to the jāhiliyya period in Istanbul. One of the articles he wrote in Turkish is an article entitled Başşār, which was published among the letters of Abdulhak Hāmid. In this article, Mudarriszādah presented information about Başşār’s life and then analyzed selected couplets from his poems by comparing them with some poems belonging to the jāhiliyya period as well as Persian and Turkish poems. In this study, the life of Mudarriszādah will be discussed through Arabic and Turkish sources, including the period from his birth to his departure from Istanbul and then his article entitled Başşār will be presented.
Dârülfünûn Arap Edebiyatı Tarihi Müderrisi Mehmed Fehmî’nin “Beşşâr” Başlıklı Makalesi Üzerine
Bünyamin AydınMüderriszâde Mehmed Fehmî (ö. 1873-1944), II. Abdülhamid devrinde Bağdat’ta çeşitli resmi görevlerde bulunmuş, İkinci Meşrutiyet’in ilanından sonra Dârülfünûn’da on yılı aşkın süreyle Arap Edebiyatı Tarihi dersleri vermiş, Arapça ve Türkçe’nin yanında Farsça ve Fransızcayı da bilen Bağdatlı bir müderristir. Dârülfünûn’da okuttuğu Târîh-i Edebiyyât-ı Arabiyye dersi notlarını dört cilt halinde bir araya getirmiş ve câhiliye devri edebiyatına tahsis ettiği birinci cildi İstanbul’da yayımlamıştır. İstanbul yıllarında kaleme aldığı Türkçe yazılardan biri de Abdülhak Hâmid Tarhan’ın mektupları arasında yayımlanan Beşşâr başlıklı makalesidir. Mehmed Fehmî bu makalesinde önce Beşşâr b. Bürd’ün hayatına dair bilgiler sunmuş, daha sonra farklı konulardaki şiirlerinden seçme beyitleri câhiliye dönemine ait bazı şiirlerin yanı sıra Farsça ve Türkçe şiir örnekleriyle de karşılaştırmak suretiyle tahlil etmiştir. Bu çalışmada Müderriszâde Mehmed Fehmî’nin hayatı, doğumundan İstanbul’dan ayrılışına kadar olan dönemi içine alacak şekilde, Arapça ve Türkçe kaynaklar üzerinden ele alınacak; devamında Beşşâr başlıklı makalesinin çeviri yazımı sunulacaktır.
Mudarriszādah Mahmad Fahmī (ö. 1873-1944) was a lecturer who held several offices in Baghdad during the reign of Abdulhamīd II. Mudarriszādah then lectured in the History of Arabic Literature at Dār al-Funūn for ten more years. He prepared the lecture notes in four volumes and published the first volume dedicated to the jāhiliyya period. One of the articles he wrote in Turkish is the article entitled Başşār, which was published among the letters of Abdulhak Hāmid Tarhan. In this article, Mudarriszādah presented information about Başşār’s life and then analyzed selected couplets from his poems on different subjects by comparing them with some poems belonging to the jāhiliyya period as well as Persian and Turkish poems.
Information about the identity of Mudarriszādah can be obtained essentially from two sources. The first of these is archival documents. The second basic source is the information conveyed by those who saw him. Irāqī author Yusuf Izzeddin, in his work Fahmī al-Mudarris min ruvvād al-fikr al-ʿArabī al-Hadīs, conveyed the information he received from people who had seen Mudarriszādah. He also included information from those who had seen the people who knew him. Mudarriszādah received a classical education in Baghdad, first from his father and then from many important scholars of the period. He studied fiqh, usūl, kalām, tafsīr, hadīth, logic and rhetoric. Among his teachers was Mahmūd Shukrī al-Ālūsī from the Ālūsī family. Mudarriszādah gave lectures in mosques in Baghdad at a young age and interpreted the verses of the Qur’an.
“Başşār” is an article written by Mudarriszādah in the Turkish language and published in the book entitled Abdülhak Hâmid Külliyyât-ı Âsâr Mektuplar 2, which contains the second part of Turkish poet Abdulhak Hāmid’s letters. The publisher of the book is the Âsâr-ı Müfide Library. The book was published in Istanbul in 1916 at Matbaa-i Âmire. Mahmad Fahmī’s article titled “Başşār” is between pages 155-183. The article is mentioned in the contents of the book with the reference “An article about Başşār, by Muʿallim Fahmī”. There are two main sections in the article, namely information about Başşār’s life and the analysis of selected couplets from his poems. In this context, after mentioning Başşār’s birth, upbringing and physical characteristics, information about his talent for poetry and prose, and his mastery over the Arabic language, his relationship with the poets of his period is presented. His literary life is described by expounding selected couplets from his poems, especially through his unique examples of similes and his love, praise, satire, elegiac, social condition and morality poems. Examples of his poetry being free of exaggerated expressions, especially in praise and satire, are presented. In the first part of this study, Arabic books about Mudarriszādah’s life, information given in interviews with those who knew him and some works that Mudarriszādah wrote after leaving Istanbul will be used as sources. In the second part of the study, Mudarriszādah’s article titled “Başşār” will be presented. The couplets were analyzed after they were translated into Turkish. In addition to some references to jāhiliyya poets in the analysis section, examples of Persian and Turkish couplets are also included. The article ends with information about Başşār’s belief system and information about his death. In this context, the materials that can provide clues for Mudarriszādah’s life, personality and his scientific views on some issues will be discussed, and the part of his life until his departure from Istanbul will be reviewed.
