The Purposes and Artistic Characteristics of Andalusian Poetry (zajal)

Abstract

This research examines zajal, a type of modern Arabic poetry that differs from traditional poetry in terms of grammatical inflection and rhyme. The aim is to define zajal linguistically and terminologically, and demonstrate its origins, themes, and artistic characteristics. The findings show that zajal can be considered a sung muwashshah. It spread across Al-Andalus then the Arab East. It has diverse themes including love poetry, wine poetry, and panegyric. It also has varied artistic forms such as simple, compound, complex, and anomalous