In 1704 the French Orientalist Antoin Galland introduced to the Western world a translation of The Thousand and One Nights. Over the course of two subsequent centuries, numerous editions followed. Many of these, like Galland's, included texts of stories not found in the indigenous manuscripts of the Nights but selected by the European editors from other literary and oral collections of ordinary folktales and legends. Thus, the original work acquired a Western designation as The Arabian Nights, a title unknown among the masses in Arab lands. Now, three centuries later, original publication of The Thousand and One Nights is being celebrated with widespread, renewed interest in the work. Hasan El-Shamy's motif-index, based on an authentic folk edition of Alf laylah wa laylah, provides scholars of various fields accurate information about the content of this classic piece of Arabic folk tradition.

Provides accurate information about the content of the authentic Arabic folk classic Alf laylah wa laylah

About the Author

Hasan El-Shamy is Professor of Folklore, Near Eastern Languages and Cultures, and African Studies at Indiana University. He is author of several books, including Types of the Folktale in the Arab World (IUP, 2004), Tales Arab Women Tell (IUP, 1999), and Folk Traditions of the Arab World: A Guide to Motif Classifications (IUP, 1995).

Reviews

This is a valuable reference for university libraries, large public libraries, and Arabic and Middle East study centers. . . . Recommended.

* Choice *

Prof. Hasan M. el-Shamy has once again produced an authoritative work on Middle Eastern folklore . . . There exists a cultural chasm between the Middle East and the European West, and major literary works such as 'Alf laylah wa laylah are relatively unknown, or at best reduced to children's tales or Hollywood spectaculars. el-Shamy's A Motif Index of the Thousand and One Nights is not only valuable to the folklorist, but is an element in bridging the gap.Spring/ Summer 2009

* Western Folklore *

El-Shamy's motif index will certainly be helpful for students of The Thousand and One Nights in finding their way through the ever-expanding corpus of material.124, 2011

* Journal of American Folklore *

The wealth of information contained in [this] volume is impressive, and one can only wish that more studies of this kind will be undertaken on other narrative corpora of the Near and Middle East.

* Journal of Near Eastern Studies *



Book Information
ISBN 9780253348340
Author Hasan M. El-Shamy
Format Hardback
Page Count 696
Imprint Indiana University Press
Publisher Indiana University Press
Weight(grams) 1061g