A Survey of Iranian Proverbs in Arabic Poetry

An important feature indicating the influence of the Iranian culture on the Arab culture is the abundance of Iranian proverbs and idioms in the Arabic literature. Though this topic is not new, we have introduced 65 lines from Arabic poetry which are translations of Iranian proverbs. In addition, we have explained in 10 sample poetry lines how Arab poets have directly adhered to Iranian proverbs and indicated their origin. We have also referred to 52 lines of Arabic poetry in 33 categories, which critics have attributed to Iranian proverbs. We argue that the influence of the Iranian culture and literature on the Arabic literature has been more pervasive than previously thought. We have referred to around a hundred of such lines, which, we believe, will open up avenues for further research in this area.