Cairo Genizah : Poem

Cairo Genizah

<p style='text-align: justify;'><p>Fol. 1r contains an Arabic poem in Hebrew script, beginning יא מן הוואה עזהו ואדלני כיף (i.e., يا من هواه أعزه وأذلني كيف). This is a popular poem attributed to Aḥmad bin Saʿīd al-Busaʿīdī (1710-1783), who was the first ruler of Oman. The poem became a song, which was popular in the Gulf. It's in the metre al-kāmil. The poem is prefaced by the abbreviation ש׳׳ט (probably), 'a good name'. Fol. 1v has an unidentified colloquial Arabic love poem, written in the same Hebrew script, which begins ואלאה לקעוד (i.e., والاه لقعود). There are a number of deletions in both poems. The handwriting is late. There are some notes and alphabetic writing practice on leaf 2, in different hands. </p></p>