Zakariyya' al-Qazwini (full name: Abū Yaḥyā Zakariyyāʾ ibn Muḥammad ibn Maḥmūd al-Qazwīnī, ), also known as Qazvini, (born c. 1203 in Qazvin, Iran, and died 1283), was a cosmographer and geographer. He belonged to a family of jurists originally descended from Anas bin Malik (a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad) which had been well established in Qazvin long before al-Qazwini was born. His most famous work is the ʿAjāʾib al-makhlūqāt wa-gharāʾib al-mawjūdāt (lit. 'Wonders of the Creation and Unique [phenomena] of the Existence'), a seminal work in cosmography. He is also the author of the geographical dictionary Āthār al-bilād wa-akhbār al-ʿibād (lit. 'Monuments of the Lands and Historical Traditions about Their Peoples').

Career

Born in Qazvin, of either Persian or Arab ancestry, al-Qazwini served as a legal expert and judge in several localities in Iran. He traveled around in Mesopotamia and the Levant, and finally entered the circle patronized by the Ilkhanid governor of Baghdad, Ata-Malik Juvayni (d. 1283 CE). It was to the latter that al-Qazwini dedicated his famous cosmography titled ʿAjāʾib al-makhlūqāt wa-gharāʾib al-mawjūdāt (lit. 'Wonders of the Creation and Unique [phenomena] of the Existence'). This treatise, frequently illustrated, was immensely popular and is preserved today in many copies. It was translated into his native Persian language, and later also into Turkish. Al-Qazwini was also well known for his geographical dictionary Āthār al-bilād wa-akhbār al-ʿibād (lit. 'Monuments of the Lands and Historical Traditions about Their Peoples'). Both of these treatises reflect extensive reading and learning in a wide range of disciplines.

Encyclopedic sources

Secondary literature

Editions of the Arabic text

Translations