The library
Classical Arabic, from fables to travel and history, and short graded texts for learners — every page free to read.
Graded texts
- A morning at the market صَبَاحٌ فِي السُّوقِ Ahmad goes shopping one morning — every word glossed.
- My family عَائِلَتِي Maryam, aged eight, introduces her parents, her brother and sister, and her grandmother.
- Our house بَيْتُنَا A walk through a white house on a quiet street, from the living room to the lemon tree in the garden.
- My day يَوْمِي Khalid, a university student, describes his day from six in the morning to bedtime, and his Fridays.
- Breakfast at home الْفُطُورُ فِي الْبَيْتِ On Saturday morning the whole family sits down to breakfast, and little Ziyad wants only honey.
- The first day at a new school الْيَوْمُ الْأَوَّلُ فِي مَدْرَسَةٍ جَدِيدَةٍ Adam knows nobody at his new school, until he forgets his pencil.
- Our cat قِطَّتُنَا One morning the white cat Sukkara disappears, and the whole family searches the house for her.
- The weather today الطَّقْسُ الْيَوْمَ A cold winter morning, a warm noon and a rainy afternoon, and a coat left at school.
- At the bakery فِي الْمَخْبَزِ Hala buys bread and sesame rings, asks the prices and pays.
- My friend صَدِيقَتِي A girl describes her best friend Layla, who is nothing like her.
- In the park on Friday فِي الْحَدِيقَةِ يَوْمَ الْجُمُعَةِ A family spends Friday in the park, and little Lina feeds her lunch to the ducks.
- A new shirt قَمِيصٌ جَدِيدٌ Tariq comes to buy a white shirt in medium, and leaves with something else.
- On the bus فِي الْحَافِلَةِ Nadia takes the bus to work every morning; one day a man offers her his seat, and it is her new neighbor.
- At the doctor's عِنْدَ الطَّبِيبَةِ Salim has had a headache for three days, and the doctor asks about his sleep and his coffee.
- At the library فِي الْمَكْتَبَةِ Zaynab cannot choose among so many books, until the librarian asks her what she likes.
- My room غُرْفَتِي A tour of a small, tidy bedroom where everything has its place, almost.
- Juḥā and his donkey جُحَا وَحِمَارُهُ Juḥā and his son try every way of traveling with their donkey, and every time people complain.
- The lost key الْمِفْتَاحُ الضَّائِعُ Hudā looks everywhere for her house key, and it was in her bag all along.
- A day at the beach يَوْمٌ عَلَى الشَّاطِئِ A family spends a summer day at the beach, and a wave takes their sandcastle.
- Grandfather's garden حَدِيقَةُ جَدِّي A child describes the trees, fruit, flowers and birds in Grandfather's garden.
- An evening in Ramaḍān مَسَاءٌ فِي رَمَضَانَ A family gets the iftar ready, waits for the call to prayer and breaks the fast together.
- The rain الْمَطَرُ Laylā and her father go for a walk in the rain, and she finds a big puddle.
- A letter to my grandmother رِسَالَةٌ إِلَى جَدَّتِي Maryam writes to her grandmother about school, her bicycle and the summer visit.
- My village قَرْيَتِي Ḥasan shows us his village: the river, the old mosque and Uncle Maḥmūd's shop.
- The fruit seller بَائِعُ الْفَاكِهَةِ Salmā buys apples and oranges at a fruit stall and asks the prices.
- A new phone هَاتِفٌ جَدِيدٌ Ṭāriq can't stop looking at his new phone, until his answer at dinner makes everyone laugh.
- The train to the city الْقِطَارُ إِلَى الْمَدِينَةِ Āmina takes the train to the city with her mother and loves the journey.
- Football after school كُرَةُ الْقَدَمِ Khālid's team is one player short, so he asks the new boy to play.
- Cooking dinner together نَطْبُخُ الْعَشَاءَ مَعًا Every Thursday Zaynab cooks dinner with her mother; today it is fish, rice and salad.
- A small bird at the window عُصْفُورٌ صَغِيرٌ ʿUmar feeds a hungry sparrow all winter, and in spring it brings a friend.
- Plans for the weekend خُطَطُ نِهَايَةِ الْأُسْبُوعِ Salma and Huda plan a day in the mountains, with a rainy-day plan just in case.
- Moving house بَيْتٌ جَدِيدٌ فِي مَدِينَةٍ جَدِيدَةٍ A boy moves from Marrakesh to Casablanca, feels lonely, and then a neighbor knocks at the door.
- Eid morning صَبَاحُ الْعِيدِ A girl describes Eid al-Fiṭr: new clothes, the prayer, her grandparents' house and Grandmother's date biscuits.
- A job interview مُقَابَلَةُ عَمَلٍ فِي فُنْدُقٍ Hani is interviewed for a job at a hotel reception, and is asked what he would do with an angry guest.
- An email from Amman رِسَالَةٌ مِنْ عَمَّانَ Rana writes from Amman to her friend Anna in London about the snow, downtown and the food, and invites her to visit.
- The old souk السُّوقُ الْقَدِيمُ A walk through an old covered market: spices and soap, calling sellers, copper hammers and a kind perfume seller.
- A visit to the hospital زِيَارَةٌ إِلَى الْمُسْتَشْفَى Ziyad visits his friend Majid, who broke his leg, with chocolates and a football magazine.
- A village wedding عُرْسٌ فِي الْقَرْيَةِ The whole village helps at a cousin's wedding: the tent, the henna night, the groom's white horse and the dabke.
- Lost in the city ضَائِعٌ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ On his first visit to Tunis, Munir gets lost, and an old jasmine seller walks him to his uncle's door.
- A trip to Petra رِحْلَةٌ إِلَى الْبَتْرَاءِ Two friends walk through the Siq to the Treasury and climb to the Monastery in the rose-red city of Petra.
- Arabic coffee الْقَهْوَةُ الْعَرَبِيَّةُ How Arabic coffee is made with cardamom, how the host pours it, and how a guest says “enough”.
- The camel الْجَمَلُ Why the camel is at home in the desert: water, the hump, eyelashes, feet and thorny plants.
- Juḥā the judge جُحَا الْقَاضِي Two angry neighbors bring Juḥā a quarrel about a cow, and he tells each of them he is right.
- A student's diary مِنْ مُذَكِّرَاتِ طَالِبَةٍ A week in a first-year student's diary: getting lost, a new friend, a late morning, an exam and a lot of pizza.
- The honest boy الْوَلَدُ الْأَمِينُ Yusuf finds a wallet full of money on his way home from school.
- The palm tree and dates النَّخْلَةُ وَالتَّمْرُ How the date palm grows, what dates are like, and why Arabs love this tree.
- A day in Cairo يَوْمٌ فِي الْقَاهِرَةِ A visitor sees the pyramids, eats koshari, shops in Khan al-Khalili and sails on the Nile.
- Market day يَوْمُ السُّوقِ Salma helps her father sell vegetables at the weekly village market, until a lamb runs loose.
- The fox and the crow الثَّعْلَبُ وَالْغُرَابُ A hungry fox uses sweet words to get a crow's cheese.
- My grandfather's stories حِكَايَاتُ جَدِّي A grandfather tells his grandchildren what life was like when he was young.
- Healthy food الطَّعَامُ الصِّحِّيُّ What a healthy diet looks like, and which foods to eat only sometimes.
- A night in the desert لَيْلَةٌ فِي الصَّحْرَاءِ Sage tea by the fire, a sky full of stars and a Bedouin guide's stories.
- The old mosque الْمَسْجِدُ الْقَدِيمُ A walk through the old mosque at the heart of a town: its minaret, courtyard and prayer hall.
- The fisherman and the big fish الصَّيَّادُ وَالسَّمَكَةُ الْكَبِيرَةُ After days without a catch, a poor fisherman lands a huge fish and must decide what to do with it.
- Why I learn Arabic لِمَاذَا أَتَعَلَّمُ الْعَرَبِيَّةَ؟ Daniel from Brazil gives three reasons for learning Arabic.
- The four seasons الْفُصُولُ الْأَرْبَعَةُ Winter soup, spring blossom, summer by the sea and the autumn olive harvest in Tunisia.
- A phone call مُكَالَمَةٌ هَاتِفِيَّةٌ Hani phones his friend Mustafa to invite him to dinner.
- Our new neighbors جِيرَانُنَا الْجُدُدُ A family from Morocco moves in next door, and a plate goes back and forth.
- Ibn Baṭṭūṭa, the traveler from Tangier ابْنُ بَطُّوطَةَ، رَحَّالَةُ طَنْجَةَ The life of the Moroccan who traveled for almost thirty years, from Tangier to India and beyond, and dictated a famous book about it.
- The lion and the mouse الْأَسَدُ وَالْفَأْرُ A lion spares a little mouse, and the mouse repays him when he is caught in a hunters' net.
- Damascus, one of the oldest cities دِمَشْقُ، مِنْ أَقْدَمِ مُدُنِ الْعَالَمِ A visitor walks through old Damascus: the covered souq, the Umayyad Mosque and a courtyard house full of jasmine.
- The wise judge الْقَاضِي الْحَكِيمُ Two women claim the same child, and a judge finds the true mother with wisdom rather than force.
- The old calligrapher and his apprentice الْخَطَّاطُ الْعَجُوزُ وَتِلْمِيذُهُ In old Aleppo, an impatient boy learns from a master calligrapher that beautiful writing begins with patience.
- Arabic in the world الْعَرَبِيَّةُ فِي الْعَالَمِ Who speaks Arabic, how its script works, and the Arabic words hiding in other languages.
- A letter home from abroad رِسَالَةٌ مِنَ الْغُرْبَةِ Ḥamad, an Omani engineering student in Japan, writes to his parents about snow, trains, friends and missing home.
- The House of Wisdom in Baghdad بَيْتُ الْحِكْمَةِ فِي بَغْدَادَ How a library in Abbasid Baghdad became a center of translation and learning.
- When it rains in the desert حِينَ يَنْزِلُ الْمَطَرُ عَلَى الصَّحْرَاءِ Desert rain is rare but sudden: it brings dangerous floods, and then flowers, grass and life.
- The merchant and the parrot التَّاجِرُ وَالْبَبَّغَاءُ A caged parrot sends greetings to the parrots of India, and their strange reply shows it the way to freedom (a tale also told by Rūmī).
- A teacher I remember مُعَلِّمَةٌ لَا أَنْسَاهَا A botanist remembers the science teacher who taught her class to ask questions instead of only memorizing answers.
- Why we need sleep لِمَاذَا نَحْتَاجُ إِلَى النَّوْمِ؟ What the body and brain do while we sleep, how much sleep we need, and how to sleep better.
- The three brothers and the inheritance الْإِخْوَةُ الثَّلَاثَةُ وَالْمِيرَاثُ Three brothers cannot divide their father's seventeen camels, until a wise old man lends them one of his own.
- Ibn Sīnā, physician and philosopher ابْنُ سِينَا، الطَّبِيبُ الْفَيْلَسُوفُ The life of Ibn Sīnā (Avicenna), whose Canon of Medicine was taught in Europe for centuries.
- The gardens of al-Andalus حَدَائِقُ الْأَنْدَلُسِ How the people of al-Andalus brought water, new plants and quiet beauty to the gardens of Spain.
- The tortoise and the two ducks السُّلَحْفَاةُ وَالْبَطَّتَانِ Two ducks carry their friend the tortoise through the sky, on one condition: she must not say a word. A fable from Kalīla wa Dimna.
- Life with the internet الْحَيَاةُ مَعَ الْإِنْتَرْنِتِ A short essay on what the internet has given us, what it costs us, and how to keep it in its place.
- The Silk Road طَرِيقُ الْحَرِيرِ The network of caravan routes that carried silk, spices, paper and ideas between China and the West for some fifteen centuries.
- The generosity of Ḥātim al-Ṭāʾī كَرَمُ حَاتِمٍ الطَّائِيِّ In a year of hunger, the poet Ḥātim al-Ṭāʾī slaughters the horse he loves to feed a poor neighbor and her children.
- Water is life الْمَاءُ حَيَاةٌ How little of the world's water we can drink, and small ways to save it at home and on the farm.
- The boat that drifted away الْقَارِبُ الَّذِي ابْتَعَدَ Ziyād climbs into his uncle's boat for a moment, and the wind carries him out to sea.
- The Cairo book fair opens افْتِتَاحُ مَعْرِضِ الْقَاهِرَةِ لِلْكِتَابِ A short news report: crowds, publishers, a student and a storyteller on the opening day of the Cairo book fair.
- Fāṭima al-Fihrī and al-Qarawiyyīn فَاطِمَةُ الْفِهْرِيَّةُ وَجَامِعُ الْقَرَوِيِّينَ A merchant's daughter from Kairouan founds a mosque in Fez that becomes one of the world's great places of learning.
- The shepherd boy who cried “wolf” الرَّاعِي الْكَذَّابُ A bored young shepherd plays a trick on his village twice; the third time, the wolf is real.
- My first job عَمَلِي الْأَوَّلُ An engineer remembers his summer job at a juice shop in Alexandria, and the patient owner who taught him.
- The olive tree شَجَرَةُ الزَّيْتُونِ The patient tree of the Mediterranean: the autumn harvest, the oil press, soap, and a symbol of peace.
- Al-Khwārizmī and the birth of algebra الْخُوَارِزْمِيُّ وَمِيلَادُ عِلْمِ الْجَبْرِ How a scholar of ninth-century Baghdad gave the world algebra, the decimal numerals and the word “algorithm”.
- The king and his falcon الْمَلِكُ وَصَقْرُهُ A thirsty king strikes the falcon that keeps spilling his cup, and learns too late why it did so.
- City life and village life بَيْنَ الْمَدِينَةِ وَالْقَرْيَةِ An essay weighing the bustle and opportunities of the city against the calm and close ties of the village.
- How printing came to the Arab world كَيْفَ وَصَلَتِ الطِّبَاعَةُ إِلَى الْعَالَمِ الْعَرَبِيِّ From the first Arabic type in Italy to the Būlāq press in Cairo: why printing came late, and what it changed.
- Climate change and the Arab region تَغَيُّرُ الْمُنَاخِ وَالْمِنْطَقَةُ الْعَرَبِيَّةُ Heat, water scarcity and rising seas — and the sun as the region's great resource.
- A miser's dinner عَشَاءٌ عِنْدَ بَخِيلٍ A guest describes a dinner with a famous miser, in a story told in the manner of al-Jāḥiẓ's Book of Misers.
- The talkative barber الْمُزَيِّنُ الثَّرْثَارُ From the Thousand and One Nights: a young man explains why he cannot bear to sit with a certain barber.
- Ibn al-Haytham and the science of light ابْنُ الْهَيْثَمِ وَعِلْمُ الضَّوْءِ The scholar from Basra who showed how we see, tested every claim by experiment, and was known in Europe as Alhazen.
- Umm Kulthūm أُمُّ كُلْثُومٍ From a village in the Nile Delta to the “Star of the East”: the life and fame of the Arab world's best-loved singer.
- The translation movement under the Abbasids حَرَكَةُ التَّرْجَمَةِ فِي الْعَصْرِ الْعَبَّاسِيِّ How Greek, Persian and Indian learning came into Arabic in Abbasid Baghdad, who translated it, and where it went next.
- Do we still read? هَلْ مَا زِلْنَا نَقْرَأُ؟ A columnist argues that we read more than ever but less deeply — and that the cure is a habit, not a device.
- The ring-dove and her friends الْحَمَامَةُ الْمُطَوَّقَةُ From Kalīla wa Dimna: trapped doves escape by working together, and a watching crow learns the worth of a true friend.
- The well الْبِئْرُ In the third year of a drought, a girl and her grandfather start digging out the village's forgotten well.
- On friendship فِي الصَّدَاقَةِ Aristotle's three kinds of friendship, Arabic proverbs, and what a true friend looks like in the age of social media.
- Tourism and heritage السِّيَاحَةُ وَالتُّرَاثُ Tourism brings money and jobs to historic places — and crowds, cheap souvenirs and empty old quarters. Can it be done better?
- The Alhambra قَصْرُ الْحَمْرَاءِ The palace of the Naṣrids in Granada: its name, its carved walls and water, and the day its last king handed it over.
- The judge and the thief الْقَاضِي وَاللِّصُّ How Iyās ibn Muʿāwiya, the famously shrewd judge of Basra, made a dishonest man give himself away.
- Sindbad's first voyage رِحْلَةُ السِّنْدِبَادِ الْأُولَى Sindbad the Sailor tells a poor porter how an island turned out to be a giant fish, and how he came home rich.
- Women scholars in Islamic history عَالِمَاتٌ فِي التَّارِيخِ الْإِسْلَامِيِّ ʿĀʾisha, Karīma al-Marwaziyya, Shuhda and others: the women who taught, transmitted and endowed learning.
- Social media and the news وَسَائِلُ التَّوَاصُلِ وَالْأَخْبَارُ A writer weighs the good and harm of getting our news from social media, and offers three questions to ask before sharing.
- A father's letter to his son رِسَالَةُ أَبٍ إِلَى ابْنِهِ On the night before his son leaves for university, a father writes down what he has learned.
- The old coffeehouse الْمَقْهَى الْقَدِيمُ A café at the end of an old alley: the smell of coffee, the click of backgammon, and the storyteller who stops at the best part.
- Ibn Khaldūn and group feeling ابْنُ خَلْدُونَ وَالْعَصَبِيَّةُ Why states rise and fall: Ibn Khaldūn's idea of ʿaṣabiyya and the three generations, and what it still teaches.
- Abū Zayd the trickster أَبُو زَيْدٍ الْمُحْتَالُ In Ṣanʿāʾ a ragged preacher moves a crowd to tears, and al-Ḥārith follows him to see where the money goes: al-Ḥarīrī's first maqāma, retold.
- The language of the ḍād لُغَةُ الضَّادِ Arabic is called after a single sound, yet that sound has changed: an essay on what really makes Arabic Arabic.
- Ibn Rushd and Aristotle ابْنُ رُشْدٍ وَأَرِسْطُو The judge of Córdoba who spent his life explaining Aristotle, fell from favor, and became “the Commentator” of Latin Europe.
- A letter from exile رِسَالَةٌ مِنَ الْغُرْبَةِ Ten years abroad, Yūsuf writes to his sister about language, politeness, and a home that went on without him.
- The city at night الْمَدِينَةُ فِي اللَّيْلِ From sunset to the dawn call to prayer: lit windows, night workers, late cafés and the city's hidden face.
- Translation and identity التَّرْجَمَةُ وَالْهُوِيَّةُ Is the translator a traitor, and does translation threaten who we are? An essay that argues the opposite.
- Al-Mutanabbī: pride and poetry الْمُتَنَبِّي: الْكِبْرِيَاءُ وَالشِّعْرُ The life of Arabic's proudest poet, from Kufa to the court of Sayf al-Dawla, and the line of verse said to have cost him his life.
- The orphan الْيَتِيمُ A teacher's red pen corrects a boy's past tense, and learns that some verbs should stay in the past.
- Reason and revelation الْعَقْلُ وَالْوَحْيُ From the Muʿtazila to Ibn Taymiyya: how medieval Muslim thinkers argued over what reason can know and where it must stop.
- Cities that grow too fast مُدُنٌ تَنْمُو أَسْرَعَ مِمَّا يَنْبَغِي Why people pour into the world's cities, what happens when a city outgrows its roads and pipes, and what planners propose.
- The house of my childhood بَيْتُ طُفُولَتِي An old courtyard house with a lemon tree, a hiding place under the stairs, and what remains when the house is gone.
- The Nahḍa: the Arab awakening النَّهْضَةُ الْعَرَبِيَّةُ Printing presses, student missions, dictionaries and newspapers: how the nineteenth-century Nahḍa looked both to Europe and to its own heritage.
- The merchant of Basra تَاجِرُ الْبَصْرَةِ A merchant pays a fortune for three pieces of advice, mocks himself for it, and finds that each one saves him on the way home.
- A graduation speech كَلِمَةٌ فِي حَفْلِ التَّخَرُّجِ A doctor returns to the hall where she graduated thirty years ago and tells the new graduates three things she wishes she had known.
- The desert in pre-Islamic poetry الصَّحْرَاءُ فِي الشِّعْرِ الْجَاهِلِيِّ Ruins, camel journeys, a night like the sea and a wolf for a brother: how the desert became the first school of Arabic poetry.
- The maqāma of the market مَقَامَةُ السُّوقِ In rhymed prose, a ragged old preacher moves a Basra market to tears, and the narrator follows him to learn the truth.
- On eloquence فِي الْبَلَاغَةِ An essay in the manner of al-Jāḥiẓ: eloquence is fitting the word to the meaning and the speech to the occasion.
- Standing at the ruins الْوُقُوفُ عَلَى الْأَطْلَالِ Why the classical Arabic ode begins at the abandoned campsite, from Imruʾ al-Qays to the mockery of Abū Nuwās.
- An epistle on friendship رِسَالَةٌ فِي الصَّدَاقَةِ A scholar answers a friend who has reproached him for his silence, and writes on what true friendship is.
- The scholar and the king الْعَالِمُ وَالْمَلِكُ A king summons an old scholar to his palace; the scholar refuses, and the king learns why knowledge is visited and does not visit.
- The fall of Granada, 1492 سُقُوطُ غَرْنَاطَةَ How the last Muslim kingdom of al-Andalus, divided against itself, surrendered to Ferdinand and Isabella in 1492.
- Language and thought اللُّغَةُ وَالْفِكْرُ From a famous debate in tenth-century Baghdad to modern experiments: does our language shape the way we think?
- What makes a poem great مَا الَّذِي يَجْعَلُ الْقَصِيدَةَ عَظِيمَةً؟ From Ibn Sallām to ʿAbd al-Qāhir al-Jurjānī: how the classical Arab critics judged poetry.
- The sea الْبَحْرُ A night on the shore: the writer speaks to the sea, which is neither cruel nor kind, and asks it for its lessons.
- Maxims and their meanings حِكَمٌ وَمَعَانِيهَا Arabic maxims, from “many a word says to its speaker: let me be” to “time is a sword”, with a commentary on each.
- The Heron and the Crab الْعُلْجُومُ وَالسَّرَطَانُ From Kalīla wa Dimna: an old heron tricks the fish into letting him carry them off two a day, until a crab sees the bones and turns the trick against him.
- The Lion and the Hare الْأَسَدُ وَالْأَرْنَبُ From Kalīla wa Dimna: a little hare, chosen to be the lion's lunch, tells him a rival lion lives in a well, and the lion leaps at his own reflection.
- The Monkey and the Turtle الْقِرْدُ وَالْغَيْلَمُ From Kalīla wa Dimna: a turtle lures his friend the monkey out to sea to take his heart for his wife, and the monkey talks his way back to his tree.
- The Hermit and the Weasel النَّاسِكُ وَابْنُ عِرْسٍ From Kalīla wa Dimna: a hermit comes home to find his pet weasel's mouth bloody, kills it in haste, and then finds his baby safe beside a dead snake.
- The Rat and the Cat الْجُرَذُ وَالسِّنَّوْرُ From Kalīla wa Dimna: surrounded by enemies, a rat frees a cat caught in a hunter's net in exchange for safety, then wisely keeps his distance afterward.
- The Dove, the Fox and the Heron الْحَمَامَةُ وَالثَّعْلَبُ وَمَالِكٌ الْحَزِينُ From Kalīla wa Dimna: a heron teaches a dove how to stop a fox from taking her chicks, then falls for the fox's own trick himself.
- The Fisherman and the Treasure الصَّيَّادُ وَالْكَنْزُ From Akhbār al-Ḥamqā wa-l-Mughaffalīn: an honest fisherman finds jars full of money for the emir, refuses ten thousand dirhams, and asks for a reward that makes the emir laugh.
- The Man Who Was a Donkey الرَّجُلُ الَّذِي كَانَ حِمَارًا From Akhbār al-Ḥamqā wa-l-Mughaffalīn: a trickster steals a simpleton's donkey by taking its place on the rope and claiming he had been turned into a donkey for disobeying his mother.
- The Spark on the Grammarian's Cloak الشَّرَارَةُ وَجُبَّةُ النَّحْوِيِّ From Akhbār al-Ḥamqā wa-l-Mughaffalīn: a grammarian teaches his son to weigh every word before speaking, and the son weighs his words so carefully that the father's cloak burns.
- The Stick and the Needle الْعُودُ وَالْإِبْرَةُ From Kitāb al-Bukhalāʾ: a man of Khurasan ties a stick to his lamp so it will not waste oil, and a miser from Merv teaches him that a needle wastes even less.
- Even If You Stepped Out of Your Skin لَوْ خَرَجْتَ مِنْ جِلْدِكَ From Kitāb al-Bukhalāʾ: a man from Merv is always a guest of his friend in Iraq, but when the Iraqi visits him in Merv he pretends not to know him at all.
- Greetings and Food السَّلَامُ وَالطَّعَامُ From Kitāb al-Bukhalāʾ: a stingy old man of Khurasan politely invites a passer-by to share his picnic, then explains why a polite word should only be answered with a polite word.
- The Pearl Divers of the Gulf غَوَّاصُو الْجَوْهَرِ From The Travels of Ibn Baṭṭūṭa: he describes how the divers between Sīrāf and Bahrain bring up pearl oysters from the seabed, and who takes the pearls.
- A Mountain in the Sea جَبَلٌ فِي الْبَحْرِ From The Travels of Ibn Baṭṭūṭa: on the way back from China a storm drives his ship into an unknown sea, where the sailors see a 'mountain' rise into the air and fear it is the giant bird, the rukh.
- The Portrait Painters of China رَسَّامُو الصِّينِ From The Travels of Ibn Baṭṭūṭa: in China he finds his own portrait and his companions' on a market wall, painted secretly by order of the sultan, and learns why the Chinese draw every stranger.
- The Boy Raised by a Gazelle حَيُّ بْنُ يَقْظَانَ وَالظَّبْيَةُ From Ḥayy ibn Yaqẓān: a baby set adrift in a box is nursed by a gazelle on a lonely island, grows up among the animals, and when she dies searches for what has left her body.
- The Free Lunch in Baghdad الْمَقَامَةُ الْبَغْدَادِيَّةُ From the Maqāmāt of al-Hamadhānī: a penniless ʿĪsā ibn Hishām pretends to know a country man, orders roast meat and sweets for them both, and slips away, leaving the man to pay the bill.
- Maʿn ibn Zāʾida and the Verse on the Plank مَعْنُ بْنُ زَائِدَةَ وَبَيْتُ الشِّعْرِ عَلَى الْخَشَبَةِ From al-Mustaṭraf: a poet who cannot get in to see the generous governor Maʿn ibn Zāʾida floats a line of verse to him on a plank, is rewarded three days running, and runs off with the money before Maʿn can give him more.
- Al-Ḥajjāj and the Old Man of Banū ʿIjl الْحَجَّاجُ وَشَيْخُ بَنِي عِجْلٍ From al-Mustaṭraf: an old man curses al-Ḥajjāj to his face without knowing who he is, then gets himself out of trouble with a quick-witted answer.
- Qaṭan ibn Muʿāwiya Gives Himself Up قَطَنُ بْنُ مُعَاوِيَةَ يُسَلِّمُ نَفْسَهُ لِلْخَلِيفَةِ From al-Faraj baʿd al-Shidda: a rebel who is tired of hiding gives himself up to the caliph al-Manṣūr, confesses everything frankly, and is pardoned and given back his property.
Prose
- Kalila wa Dimna كليلة ودمنة Animal fables on wisdom and statecraft, the classic of Arabic prose.
- Hayy ibn Yaqzan حي بن يقظان A child raised alone on an island reasons his way to the truth.
- The Ring of the Dove طوق الحمامة في الألفة والألاف A treatise on love, with stories from Muslim Spain.
- The Epistle of Forgiveness رسالة الغفران An imagined journey through the afterlife, meeting the poets.
- The Maqamat مقامات بديع الزمان الهمذاني The first maqamat — rhymed tales of a wandering trickster.
- The Maqamat of al-Hariri مقامات الحريري ـ مفهرس Fifty virtuoso tales in rhymed prose.
- The Tears العبرات Eight short stories of misfortune and compassion, some his own and some retold from French, in the prose that made him famous. Vowelled.
History & travel
- The Travels رحلة ابن بطوطة Thirty years on the road, from Tangier to China.
- The Muqaddimah مقدمة ابن خلدون The introduction to history that founded the study of society.
- The Life of Saladin النوادر السلطانية والمحاسن اليوسفية A first-hand biography of Saladin by his secretary.
- The Barmakids إعلام الناس بما وقع للبرامكة Stories of Hārūn al-Rashīd's court and of the rise and fall of the Barmakid viziers.
- The Book of Contemplation كتاب الاعتبار A Syrian knight's memoir of battles, hunts and life beside the Crusaders. Its opening pages are lost.
- The Travels of Ibn Jubayr رحلة ابن جبير An Andalusian's journey of 1183–85 across the Mediterranean to Egypt, Mecca, Baghdad, Damascus and Sicily.
- Ibn Faḍlān's Journey رحلة ابن فضلان An envoy's account of his journey from Baghdad to the Volga in 921–22, and of the Rūs (Vikings) he met there.
- Al-Fakhrī الفخري في الآداب السلطانية On how rulers should govern, then a lively history of the caliphs and their viziers.
- Meadows of Gold مروج الذهب ومعادن الجوهر A history of the world as a tenth-century traveler knew it, from the lands and seas to the caliphs of Baghdad.
- The Conquests of the Lands فتوح البلدان How Arabia, Syria, Egypt, Iraq and Persia came under Muslim rule, told in short reports from those who remembered.
- Lives of the Physicians عيون الأنباء في طبقات الأطباء Some four hundred doctors, from the Greeks to the author's Damascus, with their cures, sayings and stories.
- The Wonders of Destiny عجائب المقدور في أخبار تيمور The life and conquests of Tīmūr, in ornate rhymed prose, by a man taken captive as a boy when Damascus fell.
- Monuments of the Lands آثار البلاد وأخبار العباد Cities and countries of the world, climate by climate, with their wonders and famous people.
- The Pearl of Wonders خريدة العجائب وفريدة الغرائب A medieval picture of the world, its seas, islands, countries and their marvels, and the stones, plants and animals.
- The Best Divisions أحسن التقاسيم في معرفة الأقاليم The lands of Islam as a traveler from Jerusalem saw them, with their towns, people, trade, food and speech.
- Remarkable Events عجائب الآثار في التراجم والأخبار A day-by-day chronicle of Cairo through the eighteenth century, the French occupation and the rise of Muḥammad ʿAlī.
Adab
- The Book of Misers البخلاء للجاحظ Witty anecdotes about the stingy, from the master of Arabic prose.
- The Small and the Great Book of Manners الأدب الصغير والأدب الكبير Short maxims on friendship, rulers and self-discipline.
- Tales of Fools and Simpletons أخبار الحمقى والمغفلين Short, funny anecdotes — an easy way into classical prose.
- Relief after Hardship الفرج بعد الشدة لابن أبي الدنيا Brief stories of people delivered from distress.
- The Exquisite in Every Art المستطرف في كل فن مستطرف A popular anthology of stories, sayings and curiosities.
- Enjoyment and Conviviality الإمتاع والمؤانسة Forty evenings of conversation at a vizier's court.
- Eloquence and Exposition البيان والتبيين Al-Jāḥiẓ on speech, rhetoric and the eloquent.
- The Book of Proverbs الأمثال لابن سلام Arab proverbs with the stories behind them.
- Views النظرات Essays and short pieces first published in Egyptian newspapers, on virtue, society, grief and hope.
- The Clever Ones الأذكياء Anecdotes of quick wit and cleverness, from caliphs and judges to children, women and thieves.
- Wise Fools عقلاء المجانين Sayings and stories of the "wise madmen", people thought mad whose answers put the sane to shame.
- Deeds of the Generous المستجاد من فعلات الأجواد Stories of famous acts of generosity, from the Arabs before Islam to the Abbasid court.
- Table-Talk نشوار المحاضرة Anecdotes of tenth-century Baghdad, of viziers, merchants, judges and thieves, as the author heard them told.
- Fruits of the Leaves ثمرات الأوراق A miscellany of anecdotes, witty replies and poetry about poets, rulers and their courts.
- Inspiration of the Pen وحي القلم Essays and stories by one of the great stylists of modern Arabic prose, first published in Egyptian magazines.
- Jewels of Literature جواهر الأدب A classic course in Arabic composition and literature, with model letters, descriptions and poems.
- Scattered Pearls نثر الدر Sayings, retorts and anecdotes of caliphs, viziers, poets, misers, fools and wits, arranged by who said them.
- Choice Narratives عيون الأخبار Ten books of reports on rulers, war, nobility, learning, friendship, food and women, the model for later Arabic anthologies.
- Poetry and Poets الشعر والشعراء The lives of the Arab poets, from before Islam to the author's day, with their best-known lines.
- The Unique Necklace العقد الفريد An Andalusian anthology of everything a cultivated reader should know, in chapters named after the jewels of a necklace.
- Flowers of Literature زهر الآداب وثمر الألباب Fine prose and poetry, witty replies and descriptions, gathered by a scholar of Qayrawān.
- Spring of the Righteous ربيع الأبرار ونصوص الأخيار Short sayings, verses and anecdotes on every subject, from time and the heavens to food, animals and jokes.
- The Dictations الأمالي Lectures given in Córdoba on rare words, poems, proverbs and Bedouin tales, as the students wrote them down.
- Proverbs of the Arabs أمثال العرب The oldest surviving collection of Arabic proverbs, each with the story of how it came to be said.
- On Friendship and Friends الصداقة والصديق What the ancients and the author's friends said about friendship, and how rarely it is found.
- The Vices of the Two Viziers أخلاق الوزيرين A biting portrait of two powerful viziers by a writer who served them both.
- The Book of Animals الحيوان Al-Jāḥiẓ's vast book on animals, from dogs, cocks and flies to the camel, with poems and stories on each.
- The Epistles رسائل الجاحظ Short treatises on the Turks, singing girls, teachers, envy, secrets and more.
- The Poets' Mistakes أوهام شعراء العرب في المعاني Where famous Arab poets got their facts wrong, about animals, plants, stars and the desert, by an Egyptian scholar.
Poetry
- Diwan — selected poems ديوان المتنبي The most quoted poet of the Arabic language.
- The Seven Hanging Odes, with Commentary شرح المعلقات السبع للزوزني The great pre-Islamic odes, explained line by line.
- Diwan al-Khansa ديوان الخنساء Elegies for her brothers by the foremost woman poet.
- Diwan Zuhayr ibn Abi Sulma ديوان زهير بن أبي سلمى Pre-Islamic poetry of wisdom and peacemaking.
- Diwan Tarafa ibn al-Abd ديوان طرفة بن العبد The young poet of the most famous camel description.
- Diwan Antara ibn Shaddad ديوان عنترة بن شداد The warrior-poet's verses of courage and love.
- Diwan al-Nabigha al-Dhubyani ديوان النابغة الذبياني Court poetry and apologies to the kings of al-Ḥīra.
- Diwan Abu al-Atahiya ديوان أبي العتاهية Plain, memorable verses on life and death.
- The Mufaḍḍaliyyāt المفضليات An early anthology of pre-Islamic and early Islamic odes, chosen for a caliph's son.
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