Abu Uthman Amr bin Basr al-Fuqaymi al-Basri al-Jahiz ( 160-255/776-869 )

 Sometimes quoted as one of the first to develop a Darwinian scheme of evolution , Abu 'Uthman 'Amr b . Bahr al-Fuqaymi al-Basri al-Jahiz was the most talented Arab prose writer of the third century Hijra . He wrote works of adab , Mua`tazili theology as well as politico-religious polemics . Born at Basra ( ca . 160/776 ) , he owes his nickname , Jahiz ( meaning with a projecting cornea ) to a deformation of the eyes .

 Early in his life , he became part of a group of young people who gathered in at the main mosque of the Basra , then the center of the Islamic intellectual tradition , to discuss a wide range of questions . These young men attended lectures delivered by the most learned men of the day on philology , lexicography and poetry .

 Al-Jahiz’s wit and memory soon took him to the drawing rooms of the aristocracy and his command of Arabic language made him a favourite of the learned . The most important issues of his times were the theological questions dealing with the harmonization of faith and reason . Likewise , in politics , question of the qualification for the office of the Caliph was of foremost importance . Known for his penetrating observations of human nature , al-Jahiz lived a very intense social life combined with a vast reading of books of all kinds . Some of his works attracted al-Ma`mun’s attention and this led to his arrival in Baghdad where he made a strong impression on the intellectual elite . From that point onward , he made frequent and long sojourns in Baghdad but his hometown , Basra , left such a deep imprint on his life that it remains a continuous thread throughout all his works .

 Towards the end of his life , suffering from hemiplegia , he retired to Basra where he died in Muharram 255/December 868-January 869 . Almost 200 works are attributed to al-Jahiz . They include two broad categories: Jahizian adab , intended to entertain and instruct the reader , and more serious works where he deals with topics of his times .

 His chief work in the first category is Kitab al-Hayawan ( ed . Harun , Cairo n . d , 7 vols . ) , which is generally quoted in support of the claim that he had developed a scheme of Darwinian evolution , is actually not a bestiary but a genuine anthology based on narratives concerning animals . Often the narrative of this wonderful prose leads off into theology , metaphysics , sociology , embryonic theories and to the questions of evolution of species and the influence of climate on animal psychology . But these , one must recall , are not based on biology . These are imaginative journeys , with no science to support the claims made in the narrative .

 In addition to the Kitab al-Hayawan , which al-Jahiz left incomplete , we have Kitab al-Bighal ( ed . Pellat , Cairo 1955 ) , Kitab al-Bayan wa’l-tabyin ( ed . Harun , Cairo 1367/1948-50 , 4 vols , and other editions ) , both of which are an inventory of what have been called the “Arabic humanities” , designed to stress the oratorical and poetic ability of Arabs . His Kitab al-Bukhala ( ed . al-Hadhiri , Cairo 1948 and other editions; Ger . tr . O . Rescher , Excerpt in Fr . tr . Ch . Pellat , Paris 1951 ) , is a portrait gallery of Arabs which highlights the generosity of Arabs , remains unparalleled in Arabic literature . Filled with acute observations , light-hearted skepticism , a comic sense and satirical narrative , this admirable portrayal of human types and society describe several social groups ( schoolmasters , singers , scribes… ) , but always within the bounds of decency--except in the case of Kitab Mufakharat al-dhawari wa’l-ghilman ( ed . Pellat , Beirut 1957 ) , dealing with a delicate subject , which is marred by obscenity . However , for the majority of literate Arabs al-Jahiz remains something of a jester; his place as such in legend can undoubtedly be attributed in part to his fame and his ugliness , which made him the hero of numerous anecdotes; but it must also be attributed to a characteristic of his writing which could not but earn him the reputation of being a joker in a Muslim world .