Biography: Abu Nuwas
Credited as one of the most acclaimed and
influential poets in Arabic, Abu Nuwas (Abu Nuwas al-Hasan ibn
Hani al-Hakami) spent most of his life in
Baghdad. He was said to have been a submissive sex partner to his
teacher, master poet Waliba ibn al-Hubab. Before becoming deeply
religious, near the end of his life, he enjoyed the practice of
pederasty, rarely showing interest in women or older men. He
helped to put forward as a genre of Arabic literature love poetry
written to young boys. In addition to verse, he wrote satires on
several topics including the joy of intoxication and what he
perceived as the inanity of lesbianism. His prominence is often
cited as proof that Arab culture has been relatively tolerant of
same-sex love between men and young men, despite Islamic law. Abu
Nuwas appears as a character in A
Thousand and One Nights.
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