The Rise and Fall of the Barmakids

This volume offers the first annotated English translation of Ḍiyāʾal-Dīn Baranī’s The Accounts of the Barmakids, based on a little-known manuscript housed in the Bodleian Library, MS Ouseley 217. The Barmakids, originally from the Balkh region in modern-day Afghanistan, were a prominent family of converts to Islam who rose to great power in the 8th century, under the Umayyad and Abbasid caliphates. Their influence reached its height under the Abbasid caliph Hārūn al-Rashīd, who eventually brought about their downfall. The Barmakids have intrigued both medieval and modern scholars, with their legacy preserved in regional lore and Western popular culture, the latter particularly through the One Thousand and One Nights. While early Arabic sources provide factual accounts of the family, Baranī's Persian story cycle, written in the 14th-century, paints a more vivid picture. Contained within this work are 70 tales, including stories of generosity, wise leadership, romance and skulduggery.