ABSTRACT
The Maqhmht of a single author, al-Hamadhhnj, are the focus of this essay. Nevertheless, it will be useful to give a general definition of the genre. The maqhma (pl. maqhmht) – variously translated as ‘assembly’, ‘session’ or ‘séance’ – is a picaresque anecdote written in rhyming prose (saj‘) which crystallized into a genre in the late fourth century AH/tenth century AD. Its creator was Badj‘ al-Zamhn al-Hamadhhnj (358-98/968-1008), and it reached its apogee a century and a half later in the work of al-Åarjrj (446-516/1054-1122). Between the two lie a number of lesser-known authors,1 notably Ibn Nhqiyh (410-85/1020-92), whose works are also briefly discussed in the following sections.
